Beware of big steaks in Glacier

'Boring! Overrated! Rather be in Butte!"

I just visited Glacier National Park for the first time and I took seriously the recommendations to yell frequently, warning off bears while hiking. I came up with the above refrain after testing a few variations. I would stretch out the "booorrring," while "ratherbeinButte" would be all one rushed word, developing a nice rhythm. Since we returned uneaten I'm offering it free of charge for the use of all future visitors.

Glacier is not, of course, at all like Butte. It's just littered with 10,000-foot peaks, beautiful lakes, babbling brooks and meadows of wildflowers. My wife wondered whether people would go home saying, "Really great, except for that one nut case."

In case you're beginning to wonder, there is a food tie-in here. It's actually the reason we headed to Glacier. When Kat suggested an impromptu getaway with no destination in mind, I headed to Auntie's Bookstore to scope out regional travel books, looking for some hook to hang a trip on. OK, what's this? The Babb Bar Cattle Baron Supper Club? Quite the mouthful - a good sign, if the food matches.

As one guidebook put it, the club was once famous as the second rowdiest bar in the country, now "known worldwide for the size and flavor of its steaks," and that people fly into a small runway in Babb just for the experience. (Lord knows there's nothing else there.) Given the fact that I'd never been to Glacier and that Babb is just north of St. Mary's, Mont., at the eastern end of the Going- to-the-Sun Road, it seemed like your basic no-lose proposition.

I called the Cattle Baron before the trip and I was told reservations were necessary. The parking lot was certainly full enough when we arrived on our third evening into the trip. Ambience? Montana-big-beamed-cowboy-Indian, but actually pretty impressive.

The simple no-frills menu (with a few nonbeef options) basically said, "Eat meat," offering one salad, vegetable and potato option, and three salad dressings. I ordered the T-bone, Kat, the rib eye, about $28 and $25 respectively, with accompaniments. No mention of pounds and ounces was mentioned and I just estimated size by price.

The salad was serviceable, elevated with superb croutons, garlicky and crunchy. The veggies - sauteed peppers, onions, and mushrooms, with a nice touch of toasted sunflower seeds - were perfect, as was the baked half potato, topped with beurre blanc and chives.

Trust me, they weren't skimping on the potato, but showing mercy. Because the steak - simply adorned with a single grilled scallion and pepperoncini - was the most impressive hunk of cow I've ever seen. Perfectly charred, with an impeccable crosshatch, my finger measurement recorded a 2-inch-thick steak, about the size of my two outstretched hands placed together. Kat's rib eye, just a bit smaller, was equally regal.

They were perfectly cooked, almost fork-tender and buttery, with a just-right slathering of a slightly sweet sauce. I've had only one restaurant steak as good - at Jake's Grill in Portland. The price? For a steak like this? Cheap, cheap, cheap. The Cattle Baron's worth a 300-mile drive - and the scenery's not bad, either.

Cooking at home does have one advantage. I've had better quality cuts of meat at steakhouses but never one that's fully satisfied my seasoning requirements, with a near excess of salt, pepper and garlic. Since a good deal of the rub falls of while grilling, don't skimp on the fridge time, and you can go even longer. For flavor, I like a thick sirloin best, though every cut has its merits and is a matter of choice.

GARLIC-PEPPER STEAKS

Two (12-16 ounce steaks), at least an inch thick

Extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

1 tablespoon fresh-cracked pepper, or to taste

6 large cloves garlic, minced

Drizzle the steaks lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle salt liberally on one side of each steak, rub in, turn and repeat. Do the same with the pepper, then garlic, pressing firmly into the surface. Don't worry if it doesn't all stick. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. Remove and bring to room temperature before grilling. Prepare a grill for direct heat cooking and grill over a hot fire, to taste, turning and moving to a different part of the grill, as needed, to prevent flare-ups. Cooking time varies greatly by size and thickness; about 5 minutes per side for medium- rare is a rough guide. I like to just stick the tip of a steak knife in and check when I think it's getting close. Residual cooking will bring them up a bit, so remove when slightly underdone, then let rest 5 minutes.

Yield: 2 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate due to recipe variables.

Donald Clegg is a Spokane watercolor artist and inventive home cook. His column appears every third Wednesday of the month in the IN Food section. He can be reached by e-mail at info@donaldclegg.com.

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