Houston's Trails End Restaurant and Mobile Catering
Kanab, Utah

RESTAURANT FIRST OPENED: 1975; Mobile catering begun 1977
NUMBER OF DINING ROOMS: 2
SEATS: 155 (total)
HOURS: 6 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Sunday
DINNER CHECK AVERAGE: Main dining room, $8-$10 (excluding tax and tip). Steakhouse dining room, $12-$14 (excluding tax and tip).
LOCATION: All Western States
OWNERS: The Houston Family

 
The firefighters' menu features many of the most popular dishes from the Kanab restaurant. Using huge trailers which carry everything they need-including generators-to set up a complete restaurants, the catering operation supplies two hot meals and boxed lunches each day for more than 3,000 people. It's a tough job with long hours, but it's rewarding. And, Houston quickly points out, "We couldn't do it without SYSCO. When we're out in the field, they manage to get us everything we need and often make deliveries once a day."

Several times a year, the Houstons also take to the road, or more correctly, the trail, with Red Rock Ride. As co-owners of this adventure vacation operation, they provide the food for up to 20 guests who "cowboy up" for a seven-day horseback ride through the national parks around Kanab. "All they do is come and enjoy themselves.

Appetizers
Appetizer combo
$6.90
Deep-fried mushrooms
$3.90
Houston's special nachos
$3.75
Deep fried battered cheese sticks
$4.90
Golden crisp onion rings
$3.90
Jalapeno poppers
$5.50

Entrees
Special cowboy chicken fried steak
$9.95
Bacon-wrapped 8-ounce beef tenderloin filet steak
$16.95
Steak and shrimp
$16.95
Houston's special hand shelled jumbo shrimp
$12.95
Baked boneless trout filet
$12.25
Boneless Country-style pork spare ribs
$9.95
Mesquite char-broiled chicken breast filets
$11.95

We take care of everything else-from carrying luggage to setting up tents to serving fine meals, including a final night dinner complete with linens and silver on the table and a menu of filet mignon, shrimp and a flaming dessert. It's a wonderful trip and we have a blast," Houston Says.

Having a blast on the trail, feeding thousands of firefighters and running a full-service restaurant requires a lot of time. And Houston is not sure how long he will want to keep up the pace. But since there's a third generation of Houstons in the business now and a new contract to feed the firefighters is in the works, it looks like Houston's Trails End Restaurant and Mobile Catering will be at home and on the road at least for the foreseeable future.

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