Battered and deep-fried bull testicles, sliced thin, served with horseradish cream and cocktail sauce; a ranch-country bar snack that survived in old-Denver steakhouses.
Rocky Mountain oysters arrived in Denver with the Front Range cattle trade in the 1860s, a ranch-economy use of branding-season byproducts. The Buckhorn Exchange, opened in 1893 by Henry H. Zietz, kept them on the menu through the 20th century alongside elk and bison. The Testicle Festival in Throckmorton, Texas popularised the dish nationally; in Denver, Buckhorn and a handful of old-school steakhouses still run them as a starter. The dish remains a tourist initiation more than a serious local staple.
1 editor pick for Rocky Mountain oysters in Denver, ranked by editorial score. All Denver signature dishes · Rocky Mountain oysters across every city.