Amarillo's Big Texan Steak Ranch has been enticing hungry travelers for almost half a century. Now the restaurant known around the world for its free 72-oz. steak dinner, if eaten in one hour, is making it easy for steak lovers across America to enjoy the Big Texan experience.

A new on-line and mail order business, www.ilovesteaks.com, features the Big Texan's most popular steaks and provides a huge portion of Big Texan food and fun, according to Big Texan co-owner Bobby Lee.

Five steak packages are offered through www.ilovesteaks.com. The prices range from $99.95 for the 72-oz. steak to $149.95 for a combo pack that includes four filets and four rib eyes. Other packages include four 20-oz. Big Texan T-bones ($119.95), four 6-oz. tenderloin filets ($99.95) and four rib eyes ($99.95). The prices include free standard shipping with delivery guaranteed within 7-10 business days. Priority and expedited shipping are available for an extra charge. You can also order steaks over the phone at 888-841-7272.

"People from all over the world have been stopping in Amarillo for years because of the 72-oz. steak. You might say we're the steak ranch that made Amarillo famous," Lee said

"Lots of them called when they returned home and asked if we could ship our steaks to them so they could share them with friends and family. We think that our on-line and mail order company, www.ilovesteaks.com, is a fine way to share our great steaks and our father's legacy," Lee said.

The Lee family legacy began in 1960 when Midwesterner R.J. "Bob" Lee opened the Big Texan Steak Ranch alongside old Route 66 in Amarillo. One evening a cowboy ventured in bragging that he was so hungry he could "eat the whole, darned cow." Bob started cooking steaks and when the cowpoke finally hollered "calf rope," he had consumed 4 1/2 pounds of tasty Texas beef. Bob vowed from that day forward the meal would be served free to anyone who ate it in one hour.

Today the restaurant is located alongside Interstate 40 on the east side of Amarillo. Almost 400,000 people visit each year, including residents of almost every country in the world, and consume 263,000 pounds of beef.

"We'll put the quality of our steaks up against any other steaks," said Danny Lee, Big Texan co-owner and Bobby's brother. "It's not just the grade of beef that makes a good steak. We carefully select the beef we sell, and then we use a slow, natural cold-aging process that we've developed to bring the steaks to the peak of tenderness and taste. Each steak is cut to our personal specifications. All of our steaks are USDA inspected. Each steak is spiral-frozen and individually packaged to maintain its color, freshness and flavor."

According to the Lee brothers, the experience doesn't end when the steaks are delivered.

"We put a piece of the Big Texan in every box of steaks," they explained. "People don't come to the Big Texan just for the food – they come for the fun and the memories. We include our special steak seasoning, a tote bag, one of our official aprons, a brochure with a big helping of 72-oz. steak trivia, some rattlesnake eggs and other fun items that help turn a backyard barbecue into a Texas-style shindig."

The two questions most often asked by Big Texan visitors are whether anyone has ever eaten the "big steak" and how long does it take to cook?

Almost 40,000 people have attempted to eat the 72-oz. steak dinner since 1960. About 7,000 have succeeded, including an 11-year-old boy and a soft-spoken 69-year-old grandmother. Frank Pastore, who pitched professionally for the Cincinnati Reds, holds the record for the fastest time at 9 minutes and 40 seconds. Carlene and Richard LeFevre, a couple from Henderson, Nev., have each eaten the steak 10 times when they passed through Amarillo.

When it comes to cooking, Danny Lee recommends-

• a cooler fire.
• a gas flame.
• frequent turnings with tongs, never a fork.
• regular steaks will reach medium rare in about 8-10 minutes. The 72-oz. steak will take at least 30-40 minutes. A meat thermometer should reach 130° F for medium.

For more information about steaks from the Big Texan Steak Ranch, call 888-841-7272 or visit www.ilovesteaks.com.