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Garden City's iconic Ranch Club closes

Posted at 3:02 PM, Feb 17, 2017
and last updated 2017-02-17 17:02:02-05

An iconic Garden City bar and restaurant has closed its doors, according to the Idaho Statesman.

The newspaper reports The Ranch Club has shut down, but the reason why is unclear.

We tried reaching out to the owner, but no one returned our calls. We saw several cars in the parking lot Thursday, but no one answered the door. The parking lot was empty and the business was again locked on Friday.

The website seattlebars.org says the log cabin-like building was constructed in Payette in 1908 and was moved to its Chinden Blvd. location forty years later. “The building hosted prostitution and gambling and, in later years, was simply a dive bar frequented by local old-timers,” the website says.

The club, located at 3544 Chinden Blvd., has been a Garden City fixture for decades -– and is perhaps most famous for its statue of a rearing stallion.

Touting itself as being “world famous,” the Club was one of the few establishments that allowed smoking.

It was also featured in Clint Eastwood’s 1980 comedy movie “Bronco Billy,” that was filmed in and around the Treasure Valley.