Last Chance Saloon & Restaurant brings country-western to downtown Plano

by Teresa Gubbins

PLANO — The only thing more unexpected than a country-western saloon in old downtown Plano is a country-western saloon in old downtown Plano opened by ex-New Yorkers.

Well, giddy up and all that to Tony and Roberta Landi, whose Last Chance Saloon & Restaurant is having its soft opening this weekend.

"We just wanted someplace that people who enjoy country music can listen to, with cold beer," Tony says. "People are surprised I like country music -- I used to not like it. We're originally from New York, but I've never felt more at home than when I've been in Texas."

He has a few priorities, and those include live music on weekends and always having an old cowboy movie airing on one of their flat-screen TVs.

"It might be an old episode of Bonanza or Rawhide," he says. "We have a phenomenal collection of DVDs with Jack Palance and Clint Eastwood."

The're doing a simple menu that's mostly one step above bar food, but it's all good, he says. That includes burgers, deli sandwiches, chicken wings, cheese fries, loaded nachos, and a weird specialty: a deep-fried hot dog.

"We're special-ordering Sabrett hot dogs with the natural casing shipped in from New York and I’m deep frying them," Tony says. But his best-seller so far has been his $1 beans and square of cornbread.

"We wanted to be in Collin County," Tony says. "I looked all over Frisco and Plano but nothing really fit or felt comfortable. We came to downtown Plano, and it reminded us of back home."

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