Royal Pig Diner, Amarillo

Royal Pig Diner is a neighborhood institution that draws patrons in with the mouthwatering scents of pork, burgers, fries, and tender steak dressed with gravy. Like family photos or the ventriloquist dummy in your attic, the restaurant's carefully guarded sauce recipe has been passed down through the generations. The mixture traces its origins to The Pig Hip Drive-In, a Route 66 eatery in Amarillo, Tx, in the 1930’s. Grandfather Pat Teague, who first concocted the sauce at his Route 66 eatery in 1955, purchased the recipe in 1945, and opened his restaurant, the Royal Pig Diner, in Amarillo, featuring the sauce. The sauce covers delicate pulled pork, beef, and chicken breasts, while beer-battered fries escort meals of chili, rib-eye and New York strip steaks, or tamales. In the eatery's dining room, the sound of cheering fans drifts from TVs broadcasting local sporting events, mingling with contented sighs and jangling silverware.