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Buckhorn Exchange Restaurant

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1886. 1000 Osage St. (northeast corner of W. 10th Ave.) (NR)
  • Buckhorn Exchange Restaurant (Tom Noel)

In 1893 Henry Zietz moved his legendary tavern from Market Street into this typical two-story brick commercial building. Buffalo Bill and presidents from Theodore Roosevelt to Ronald Reagan drank and dined here on the wild game, which ranges from rattlesnake steaks to saucy Rocky Mountain oysters.

Wildlife murals by Noel Adams decorate the exterior. The interior is jammed with around 300 stuffed animals and birds, ranging from jackalopes to a golden eagle, from prairie dogs to a giant bison head. Besides doubling as a natural history museum, the Buckhorn is also packed with antique guns, trappers' tools, and an assortment of western Americana. The Zietzes supposedly brought the white oak front bar with hand-carved oak leaves and acorns from the family tavern in Essen, Germany.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Thomas J. Noel

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