Buffalo Bill. Wyatt Earp. Wild Bill Hickok. Annie Oakley. Who doesn’t recognize the names of these real-life cowboys and girls? And, barring shootouts at the O.K. Corral, who wouldn’t live a day in their boots if given the chance?
Rancho de los Caballeros, a 20,000-acre dude ranch in Wickenburg, Arizona, grants city slickers this wish in the form of a full sensory cowboy experience. Steer-herding, ghost town and gold mine excursions, and horseback riding across miles of untouched Sonoran Desert are just a few of the more rugged activities available. Meanwhile, back at the homestead, Executive Chef Alex Kurtz cooks up a daily dose of the Wild West for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
“We are an American Plan resort, so all meals are included in our room rates,” says Tricia Duffney, sales manager. “However, we do a lot of corporate business, and for groups of 25 or more, we offer themed parties that make for authentic cowboy memories.”
The most popular of these, the Desert Cookout Under the Stars, kicks off 30 minutes before sunset, when groups meet at the ranch’s corral and climb aboard hay wagons for a ride ending at South Yucca Flats. Positioned between the Bradshaw Mountains and Vulture’s Peak, the picturesque locale is enough to set the mood. Lanterns are hung on shepherd’s hooks. Tables are covered in red-and-white gingham. Cowboy boot centerpieces filled with sunflowers and a crackling mesquite bonfire lend the finishing touches.
“When guests arrive, they’re treated to a bar featuring ice-filled troughs of beer, including Corona, Negra Modelo, and local brew Nimbus, as well as our saloon’s signature Prickly Pear Margaritas. As a fitting hors d’oeuvre option, we offer a Chuck Wagon Chili Station.”
Served in blue-and-white speckled cups, chili varieties include beef, vegetarian, pork with green chilies, and Texas (made with cubed beef and served over rice), while plain or jalapeño cornbreads are available for dipping. The stars are out when the dinner bell sounds, and guests enjoy steak and barbeque pork ribs and chicken, all cooked over an open mesquite fire. Sides include a green salad, Cowboy Beans (pinto beans with bacon, onions, fresh herbs, and salsa), Dutch Oven Corn Succotash, and Cowboy Potatoes (grilled with garlic and green onions, topped with salsa). After dinner, guests sit in camp chairs around the fire, sip coffee, and nibble grilled fruit crisp and s’mores while a cowboy guitarist takes requests.
“Some people sing and dance, and others just sit and relax,” says Duffney. “Then there are the groups that request a Tequila toast to end the night with a bang.”
Since the cowboy tradition originated with the Spanish vaqueros, who traveled to Mexico, the Mexican Fiesta is another themed option for reliving the Wild West. Hosted poolside, this reception features décor like piñatas, sombreros, tiny covered wagons, Aztec-print buffet linens, and colorful lanterns. While a mariachi band plays, guests enjoy authentic fare such as chicken and beef fajitas, carne asada, cheese and onion enchiladas, mustard chicken, Manchaca beef, southwestern rice and beans, citrus salad, handmade flour and corn tortillas, and a fresh salsa station.
“Our resident Mexican chef, Guadalupe Perez, creates all the dishes on the Fiesta menu and comes out to explain each one to the guests,” says Duffney. “Every day, Lupe picks fresh, native ingredients right from the desert. She is the real deal and wows guests with the rustic simplicity of her cooking.” Whether guests have the hankering for a comfort food cookout or a savory buffet spread, they’ll find sustenance fit for a true cowboy at Rancho de los Caballeros.
