There is no better feeling than being pleasantly surprised.
I tend to live by this quote from the American poet Sylvia Plath: “If you expect nothing from somebody you are never disappointed.” Having spent years working in kitchens across the country, I tend to be a finicky foodie when I eat at a restaurant. The experience usually ends with me being disgruntled for spending money on a meal I could have rustled up to be much more appetizing at home.
That wasn’t the case when the contents of my plate quickly disappeared at the Luxury Diner in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The Green Chili Sauce that smothered my Big Boy Burrito is the stuff dreams are made of. The fluffy, warm buttermilk biscuits, sliced down the middle, drenched in thick, salty sausage gravy sealed the deal. This winning breakfast spread fueled up the girls and me before we embarked on our 10:00 a.m. Wild West Trolley Tour of Cheyenne.
Wild West Trolley Tour
This 90-minute trolley tour celebrates Cheyenne’s rich history with plenty of entertaining stories about some of its original residents. We got a good layout of the town and its many historical landmarks. It helped us appreciate the rich history of the men and women who have called Cheyenne home over the years.
Cheyenne – Home to Chris Ledoux
The trolley tour includes a stop at the statue of local legend, Chris Ledoux, who graduated high school in Cheyenne. Chris called Cheyenne home when he became both a rodeo champion and country music star. He loved singing about sunsets, 8-second rides, true love, and the value of a good cowboy hat. Music was his hobby, and being a cowboy was his livelihood. With every Chris Ledoux song, we catch a glimpse of what it takes to thrive when you choose to live in Wyoming.
Chris Ledoux stampeded onto the country music scene with the same ferocity that came with bull riding. Angie and Dell, the owners of the Luxury Diner are doing the same with the great food they are serving up to hungry customers in Cheyenne, just 1 mile NE of the intersection of I-80 and I-25.
Cheyenne – Home of the Brave
Angie Jimenez and her brother Dell Jimenez immigrated to the U.S. from Venezuela with their parents in 1990. After a brief stop in Arizona, they moved to Fort Collins, Colorado where their mom attended Colorado State University.
After Angie finished school, she joined the United States Marine Corps. She served 6 years before joining her brother Dell in Cheyenne.
Wyoming fits Angie like a glove. Its population consists of human beings that are diverse, united, and tough! Her commitment to something other than herself translated to working 12 years as a social worker in Cheyenne. She ran a homeless vet program, providing housing and case management services while veterans received treatment at the local VA.
Angie and Dell bought the Luxury Diner in 2020 smack dab in the middle of COVID. I have many friends who had to shudder their restaurants and lost their livelihood during COVID. I know how incredibly brave you have to be to start a venture in the food industry during a pandemic. But you also have to be fearless to be both a U.S. Marine and a social worker, so Angie’s new path serving exceptional food and service in Cheyenne is no surprise.
“We love Cheyenne!” Angie says. “The locals are so great and supportive of both us and our staff.”
Our Amazing Meal at the Luxury Diner
Our daughter saddled up to the counter overlooking the kitchen wearing her new cowgirl boots we bought at The Wrangler. She was immediately greeted by our server Rebecca with a warm smile and a menu that made an outstanding first impression for her mother and me.
The Luxury Diner menu effectively conveys the dining experience and ambiance of the place. Burgers, French Dip sandwiches, bacon, biscuits and gravy, hashbrowns, and toast are pretty iconic across the country. But when you are serving the hungry and hardworking masses of Wyoming, it makes sense to have a Three-Egg Philly Cheese Steak Omelet listed as one of your choices on the first page of the menu.
When Angie and Dell took over the diner, the old-time regulars insisted their beloved luxury potatoes wouldn’t be messed with. The same thing was said about the humongous cinnamon rolls. The cream cheese glaze magically sneaks into every nook and cranny of these soft, gooey, pull-apart, cinnamon-slathered phenomenon. And I am not exaggerating about the size of the cinnamon rolls. At first glance, our daughter commented with bulging brown eyes, “This thing is bigger than my head!”
Green Chili Recipe Greatness
With all that said, it’s the Green Chili Sauce anointing the crown jewel Big Boy Burrito which makes this “greasy spoon” stand out from the rest of the pack of good diners I have frequented over the years.
“I love my homemade green chili recipe, but this one’s better,” declared our server Rebecca. I have to agree with her when it comes to not being able to do it better than the Luxury Diner. A green chili recipe is delicious but time-consuming. By the time you roast the peppers and slow cook everything together, you’re caught in a dilemma of how long to let the flavors meld in order to capture the perfect coulis that would complement a homemade cast iron venison steak, quesadilla, carnitas, or burrito. But Angie and Dell have nailed their green chili recipe!
I appreciated the subtle heat in the intoxicating sauce that topped my burrito bursting with hashbrowns, shredded cheese, scrambled eggs, and sausage. But as Angie pointed out, “The temperature changes every time we make this green chili recipe based on the peppers we get.”
The Green Chili Sauce gains its rich green color from the roasted jalapenos, Anaheim peppers, hatch green chilis, and tomatillos infused with fresh cilantro. That mixture is simmered together with roast pork, roux, cumin, salt, black pepper, and water before serving it up in this quaint little eatery that seats only 50 guests.
Whether you are in search of a cure-all after a night out on the town during Frontier Days, or a comfort food staple to enjoy with the family before taking the Wild West Trolley Ride, a trip to Cheyenne is not complete until you partake in an unforgettable breakfast and great service at the Luxury Diner.
