A 60-year-old business; with a family mentality

Over the past 60 years Dude’s Branding Iron and Steak House has been a regular stopping place for residents and guests of Sidney.

Patrons have gone into the well-known establishment to take advantage of Dude’s entertainment and dining options.

The restaurant was recognized as being family owned for three generations and in business for 60 years by the Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce, but according to the Gorman family it really has been a four generation business.

“Her grandpa worked here too,” Larry Gorman said, as Jennifer Gorman added there has been four generations already that have worked within those walls.

“My dad’s dad used to come here every morning and help open for breakfast, and chop all the salad for the restaurant for the dinner crowd,” Patty Gorman remembered, “and he would also help with the cleanup. He was very much a part of it as we have felt him to be.”

Patty said her father and mother opened the doors to the bar on her second birthday in 1952.

“On the day,” Joe Gorman said.

The steak house part of the restaurant was opened 10 years to the day, Patty said, of the original opening, again on her birthday.

“He (Patty’s father) loved people and thought everyone had an interesting story,” Patty said to the opening of the business. “He just enjoyed people and loved this part of the country. He was born and raised here and just wanted to serve the public here.”

The story of how the establishment got its name and logo is both sad and endearing, “I don’t know if you know about Dude, but Dude lost his arm to cancer,” Larry said, “if you look at the cowboy on the sign, the cowboy has one arm. So if you ever wondered why there is a one armed cowboy up there, that’s him.”

Dude is Patty’s father.

“He was also a cattleman,” Jennifer added, “and a farmer on the side, so this was just another adventure for him, opening up a restaurant.”

“He ran cattle and that is how they made their money,” Joe added.

Patty said she more or less grew up within the walls of the family owned restaurant, as did her kids, Jennifer and Joe.

She said she even met her husband Larry within the restaurant; he started out as a dishwasher all those years ago.

“He started working here (in the restaurant portion) when he was 15 as a dishwasher and that is where we met each other. He moved away to Wyoming and I moved to California, we both came back and we ended up getting married and have been working here ever since,” Patty said.

Theirs is a relationship perfectly matched. Patty and Larry said neither could see themselves anywhere else – including outside of the restaurant.

“Jenny was born in ‘78 and Joey was born in ’79 and they have literally been here (within the business walls) their entire lives,” Patty said. “Larry and I would bring them down here when we had to do things during the day. Grandpa and grandma were here as well.”

Patty attributes the knowledge she and Larry gained to how the workings of the business from her parents, “We learned as much as we could from them and then these too have learned everything about the business from Larry and I, as well as being fortunate enough to have learned from grandpa and grandma too.”

Jennifer had moved away to go to college for a while before coming back to help run the business, she said, “Technically I wasn’t going to go into this business, I went to college to be a forensic specialist. But I came back here and still loved doing it, and stayed with it. And now I’m more involved.”

Patty added, “We are thankful she did.”

“I enjoy it,” Jennifer said. “I love talking to people and meeting new people.”

She said meeting all the out-of-town people from all over the place even from outside the country who come here to work is interesting. The visitors are fun to have conversations with.

“They are so inquisitive about the history of the building or the paintings,” Jennifer said.

For Joe, he compared the years to a roller coaster ride, “There have been years that I absolutely love it and I know we are blessed to have this. But there were years, when I was younger, that I kind of wanted to get out of town and try new experiences.

“But now I’m older with my own family and I am so thankful we have this business. I thank grandma and grandpa, mom and dad every day. I can raise my children and feed them; we are able to live comfortably. I feel we are a very successful family. I feel very fortunate to be a part of it.”

“I was able to get a small business degree at WNCC, so if anything did happen to them, people would take me seriously,” Joe smiled.

Patty said had her children decided to go into different careers it would have been all right with her as “this is a tough business to be in, but if anyone can do it I know they can.”

Patty said she and Larry officially took over the family run business nine years ago from her parents, with the help of her own children.

“My dad passed away in ’98 and my mom bowed out a couple years later,” she said.

“But,” Joe added, “They were here since ’69 running it. My parents were the ones behind the scenes doing the work while my grandparents were out mingling with the customers.”

“Promoting,” Patty added.

“The promoters and the elbow rubbers then were grandma and grandpa,” Joe said.

As it was for her parents, according to Joe, in today’s time “the cycle has happened again,” the siblings now run the show while mom and dad are able to take it easier.

Though Patty said they tend to only come to the restaurant during the daytime, and not in the evening anymore.

“But we are here every day,” Patty said.

“What Florence used to do mom now does in the morning, and what mom used to do I now do at night,” Jennifer added.

“And even my wife is getting involved in some of the running,” Joe said.

Patty added that, “Joe’s wife, Sarah, is the head waitress and does all the organizing.”

Jennifer added, “Floor manager.”

“We have a lot of good dependable workers, and have now for six years,” Joe said.

“Oh gosh yes,” Patty added. “That’s right. All of our shirts on the back say family, established in ’52. And my family honestly believed that. Everybody that works for us is part of our family.”

According to Patty every one of their workers, even today, are an extended part of their family.

She said they all know each other so well that when one of the adopted family members hurt they all hurt and when they are happy they are all happy with them.

Joe said, “When you work with someone you get to know them a little bit better,” which is where the family attitude comes in, “and in the end you’re family.”

“That’s how this place is ran, counting on each other, because no one person can do it,” Patty added.

It is what they attribute the success and ability to keeping the doors open – besides hard work – for so many years.

Joe also said, “A lot of our motto is if grandma and grandpa were still around we want to make sure they would be pleased at how we run it. I think that is another reason why we have been able to keep ‘er going for as long as we have.”

“Our theory is, why change something that has always worked? We appreciate our customers and hope they appreciate us. We love them. It’s just a whole small town family values,” Patty said.

“Actually,” Joe said, “a lot of our customers have become family too.”

He said this family attitude extends from customers to vendors to truck drivers, and gift giving during the holidays or just getting together with them is nothing unusual.

It seems the business has seen many generations of the family grow up within its walls, including Joe’s children, who are doing just like he and his sister did, “sleeping in the booths and helping clean.”

“They help out with everything from vacuuming to busing,” Joe smiled.

“Just last week Jenny was working as a waitress and Joey had brought his daughter, she is 3, in and she followed (Aunt) Jenny and helped set tables. Already at 3,” Patty beamed with pride.

When asked how long they would like to keep the establishment in the family, Larry said with a smile, “For as long as we have to eat.”

“We would like to see another 60,” Joe added.

“We would like to keep it going as long as we can, in the family,” Jennifer said.

“We have another generation coming up,” Joe said, “If they decide they want to go off to college and come back and run this then wonderful. If they decide to do something else it’s their choice, but we would like to see it stay within the family.”

As with the many generations the business has seen, the people who love it so much have seen many changes take place while being a part of it.

The family agrees that the biggest change, as many business owners would also agree with, is in work ethics.

“The world has changed with work ethics,” Patty said. “It’s harder to get people as dedicated to the job as they used to be.”

Jennifer added, “People don’t take as much pride in their work as they used to back then” - referring to when her mother was in her place within the business – “People changed. Back then they took pride in making that desk with their hands or whatever they did.”

“We have even seen these changes in our own generation,” Joe said. “So I can’t even imagine how much more dedication they (his parents) saw. Thank goodness there are still some that still do, because we wouldn’t be able to do without them.”

“Yes,” Patty added, “they take pride in their work as we do.”

Other changes the family said they have seen have been in the change of smoking laws and liquor laws.

Larry said to cope with the smoking changes they added a smokers lounge so the patrons could still enjoy their drink while having a cigarette.

Patty said some changes are harder than others but nothing the family has not been able to adjust to and help their patrons adjust to as well, yet another example of the family attitude they feel toward their customers.

They did admit that it is important to change with the times, especially in the aspect of the dance club.

“We will see how the times go, and what the tides bring,” Jennifer said.

“And what Sidney will need,” Patty added.

Patty said the pride she feels in her children taking over the business as she did from her parents is something that makes her smile every day and lets her know the business will stay in the family for a long time – something all the family members said was important to them.

“It’s a tradition,” Joe said and everyone else agreed.