LAMONT—Driving through Lamont, a town of less than 300 residents, one might be surprised to discover there is a fine dining steakhouse.
Owner Katherine “Kat” Muegge, who graduated from Deer Creek-Lamont in 2014, opened Kat’s Steakhouse in January 2021 in the heart of downtown directly on Oklahoma 74.
The former track star always loved cooking, a passion she picked up from her mom, who was a home economics teacher.
“My mom taught me how to cook,” Muegge said. “She made extravagant harvest meals. It was the flavor … she didn’t make anything bland. I have her skills.”
When her dad bought the rural community’s gas station, she managed it following college graduation with an agribusiness degree from Oklahoma State University in 2018 and served as the convenience store cook.
“That taught me people management, ordering, and scheduling,” Muegge said. She also helped on the family farm and feedlot.
In 2020, her father, local bank owner Chad Muegge, encouraged her to dream bigger, to become the chef of her own restaurant in her hometown.
“My dad encouraged me to do it,” she said.
Muegge is one of six siblings in the fourth generation of Muegges, German immigrants who settled in the Lamont area. That rich family history coupled with local artifacts are reflected along the walls of her steakhouse, which was once a Simple Simon’s pizzeria that her family frequented.
Renovations to convert the building into a fine dining establishment took a year.
Muegge acquired the necessary licenses plus wholesale accounts and hired contractors while her grandmother did all the decorating. Many furniture pieces either came from the former bank that her grandparents owned or were family heirlooms.
Prior to the official grand opening, Muegge invited her “coffee guys” from the gas station and their wives to the steakhouse so she and her staff could practice.
The early days were a little rough, she said, as they worked to find a rhythm in the kitchen. For example, dishes she’d cook at home didn’t always turn out or required extra steps at the restaurant.
That was five years ago. Kat’s Steakhouse will celebrate its fifth anniversary next week.
And now this hopping place is a well-oiled machine as the staff seamlessly moves in tandem between the kitchen and the linen-clothed tables to deliver top-notch service and food.
“We want to make it special to drive here,” Muegge said.
Most nights they average between 80 to 100 patrons; sometimes the dinner crowd is as big as 130 and sometimes it is as little as 40. She said much of it has to do with timing.
Seating begins at 4:30 p.m., but if several people want reservations at 6 p.m. and it fills up, late calls for a table are relegated to 8 or 8:30 p.m., which doesn’t appeal to some, she said.
Muegge strongly recommends reservations—which can be made far in advance or sometimes even same day—but walk-ins are welcome if there is space at the bar or the outdoor covered seating.
She tries her best to accommodate everyone, especially if they’ve driven quite a distance to come to try her restaurant. The wait time for a table is 10-15 minutes at the most, she said.
More than beef on the menu
Kat’s Steakhouse is a rarity for rural Northwest Oklahoma.
This destination restaurant caters to the fine-dining experience, meaning at a minimum, it will cost $40 per plate to eat there.
That’s because the starring entrée is hand cut Angus steak, from sirloin to ribeye and filet mignon, all of which is grilled to perfection three nights a week by Muegge’s father.
Muegge chose to open a steakhouse rather than a café or bar and grill because it seemed like a natural choice for her.
“I grew up around cattle, raised cattle,” she said. “I ate a lot of steak.”
She knows that not everyone who accompanies friends or family there wants to eat a steak, so other entrée options include beef bourguignon, lemon chicken, grilled shrimp, pork chops, and lasagna (though only offered on Thursdays).
Muegge’s proud of the fact that every meal is “as homemade as it gets.”
Side dishes to complement each dish are rice, grilled asparagus, roasted carrots, rice, and potato variants—mashed, thinly sliced fried house potatoes, baked potatoes, company potatoes (hashbrowns with sour cream and cheese), and steak fries.
The handmade onion ring strings hands down out beat the competitors’ fried onion blossoms.
Then there are the bevy of delectable desserts to choose from such as the rum cake and bourbon pecan pie—all baked by Muegge.
She also is the bartender, so in addition to taking reservations, greeting patrons as one of the hostesses, flipping the tables for the next customer, serving meals, and managing the part-time staff, she freshly squeezes the fruit and mixes the cocktails.
Nothing is premixed or premade, Muegge said, adding everything is freshly made that day.
Many of the patrons come excited for a night on the town with friends and family. Muegge said she has her regulars from Medford, Pond Creek, and Tonkawa plus she sees several travelers coming off I-35 as well as hunters in the area.
“I love meeting people,” she said. Her patrons have become friends, several who hail from Vance Air Force Base, so when they relocate, she has people she can visit across the country.
“Our atmosphere is cozy,” Muegge said, adding her father tries to pop out of the kitchen each night and visit every table. “I know they want to talk to the chef. We want them to feel special.”
Kat’s Steakhouse, 107 N. Main, Lamont, is open Thursday through Saturday from 4:30-9 p.m. Call (580) 388-4042; reservations are strongly encouraged but walk-ins are welcome if there is seating availability. Go online to Facebook.com/katssteakhouse for the Open Table link.