First of all - to be called a Cowboy, a steak must be cut from a selected beef short loin. Therefore, it has to be either a Porterhouse (the first one or two cuts), a T-Bone, or a Club(the last one or two cuts). No other steak, no matter the cut or how good it is, can rightly be called a Cowboy.

Second - A Cowboy steak has to be carefully trimmed - the tail can't be too darn long, the bark (side cover) should be pretty narrow, and there should be very little filet fat on the tenderloin side. The bone and trim on a Cowboy is left there for only one purpose - to enhance the flavor of the beef.

Third - A Cowboy has got to be cooked over a roaring wood coal fire on an open grill. The wood that is used for this fire has to be mesquite - no other kind of wood will do. Mesquite smoke imparts a special flavor to fine beef and even the coals from a low mesquite fire remain exceptionally hot (nearly 600 degrees Fahrenheit on the grill surface). Other methods of cooking may produce good steaks, but they are not Cowboys.

Finally - A Cowboy steak always ought to be eaten in a real western atmosphere. There may be paved streets, steel buildings, rushing traffic, and the hustle and bustle of a busy city outside of Pinnacle Peak, but inside is all country.

How come we're so smart and know all this? Well, it's because we've been cooking and serving great Cowboy Steaks for over 35 years.