What’s better than eating one of the city’s best chicken-fried steaks? Doing it in peace while your kids pet a goat. This woodsy family oasis hunkers between industrial garages and Northwest Houston’s cookie-cutter subdivisions, and is seemingly always packed. Expect a wait during peak hours—at least they have that petting zoo, right? The back patio’s often filled with parents sucking down cold beers while the young’uns run wild in the yard full of peacocks, mules, miniature horses, and chickens. Beware of the free-roaming restaurant cats; they fear no one and might jump up on the table to sniff what’s in your basket.

Aside from the typical artery-clogging fried finger food, including (now and then) excellent fried okra, there are outstanding hand-formed burgers. They’re juicy and beefy, with just enough char to make them unforgettable. But the pièce de résistance is the galactic-sized, tender chicken-fried steak, smothered in homemade cream gravy and served up with two sides (we like the garlic mashed potatoes and the cole slaw—“We chop all that cabbage into little slices by hand ever’day,” they tell us). The gravy is awesome, with the right balance of pepper and creaminess, and no mealy starchiness. We’ve hardly had better, in or out of the Loop. Hey, the food may not be the healthiest, but for family-bonding time, it can’t be beat.