There’s Just One Ponderosa Steakhouse Remaining in IN and KY

Raise your hand if you've ever eaten at a Ponderosa Steakhouse. I certainly have. I grew up in Owensboro, Kentucky and we had a Ponderosa location at Wesleyan Park Plaza right in the middle of town. That location closed years and years ago.

It occurred to me, while writing this story, that the last time I ate at a Ponderosa location was a decade ago. At the time, I was the Chair of Relay for Life in Daviess County and I had lunch with some Relay friends from Spencer County, Indiana. We met up at the Ponderosa location on State Road 37 in Tell City. It was just as delicious as I had remembered. Of course, that location- as popular as it once was- eventually closed its doors too. In fact, that Ponderosa closed without warning in July of 2015.

So, are there Ponderosa Steakhouses that are still open? If so, do we have any here in Kentucky or Indiana? The answer is "Yes!" However, there's only one location left and it's in Indiana. All the locations in Kentucky have closed.

Ponderosa still owns and operates a steakhouse in Vincennes, Indiana. For some perspective and geography, that's about 100 miles from where the Ponderosa used to sit here in Owensboro. Today, Ponderosa operates 15 locations here in the U.S. They're found in Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois and southern Indiana.

As a matter of fact, I found this gem on YouTube. A family dropped into the Hillsboro, Ohio location and filmed their experience.

If that made you ready for a road trip, here you go! The Vincennes, Indiana Ponderosa is located at 2625 Hart Street.

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If you live in western Kentucky, southern Indiana or southern Illinois, you could head up to Vincennes and check it out. In the meantime, here's a classic #ThrowbackThursday Ponderosa commercial for you from the 1980s.