First, the gift/souvenir shop... I was in here about a week ago... There are definitely a lot of neat things to look at. Pretty pricey if you ask me and judging by pictures other people have posted, some of the items have been sitting in the same spots for quite a while and looking at the prices, I see why! We did go in to the restaurant for some ice cream because the lady in the shop told someone that her mom makes it fresh every night. When I walked in, the lady at the counter told me to wait... no friendly greeting... just a "wait there." After she made some shakes for other people, she came over and ask, "do you know what you want?" I just said a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of chocolate. I asked what the spinning wheel was for and she said if it lands on your number your order is free. Okay, cool... $4 for 2 small scoops of ice cream was a bit much for ice cream that wasn't even that spectacular. It was pretty comical and sad at the same time to watch her interact with other customers and staff. At one point she told a customer if they didn't know what they wanted they need to take a menu and sit down until they know what they want so she could help the next people in line. And she yelled at a lady in the kitchen... told her to either come take an order or come make shakes because she can't do both. I told my husband about my visit and he laughed and said maybe we should go try some burgers and see if they acted the same or the lady was just having a bad day. We went with our kids. There was a different lady working and she was scooping ice cream. So, we stood at the counter and waited. There was a group of like 7 or 8 behind us... the lady came over an said who's next. My husband said we are and the guy behind started ordering.... He was like uh, we were here first and the cashier asked if we were all together and we said no. Then she said you need to go to the back of the line while I take their order. Okay, fine whatever...After she took our order, we picked a card and she spun the wheel... I was like oh, cool what is that for? She said if it lands on your number you get a free scoop of ice cream. That's different from what the other lady said last time...hmm We ordered the Rib Dinner, Buffalo Burger & The Duke's Burger. My kids liked the ribs but thought the fries were disgusting...I would have to agree! They were super greasy salty! As for our burgers... My Buffalo Burger was supposed to be medium... When the waitress brought them out she asked who had the ribs, we pointed at the kids. Then she said "and 2 cheese burgers" I was like um one was supposed to be a buffalo and she said "oh" and looks at them and said "this one is the buffalo" and placed it in front of me. We cut them in half so we could make sure because my buffalo burger was supposed to be medium but they were both cooked to well done... They tasted the exact same, bland an dry! I would have complained but I didn't want to end up eating something besides food, if you know what I mean! We ended up using a ton of the bbq sauce just to give it moisture because these were seriously the driest burgers we have ever had! And they are NOT worth the money! While we ate, there were other people getting ice cream. Some wanted cones and some wanted bowls. Then the lady said we don't have anymore cones so you can only have bowls. So, after eating, I took my kids to the bathroom to wash their hand and use them before we went out to the little town with the animals. It's a good thing I went in because my 4 year old and my 8 year old could not reach the toilet paper in the stalls. And they couldn't reach the hand drier... I would feel bad for someone in a wheelchair or anyone that is short! Then we were going to go out to the little town area and feed carrots to the animals... The lady in the shop was busy with another customer... And after about 5 minutes she looked up and I said can we still go out and feed the animals? She took a big breath and sighed.... it was only 7:20pm and they don't close until 8pm. She was like "that's fine, just a minute." And then continued to help the two ladies. So we waited a few minutes and I asked my husband if he wanted to just grab some ice cream and go. He said yeah. So, we go over and the restaurant is closed... Wait, what? The sign says 8pm and it's only 7:27pm.... I even took a picture... So, we waited a few more minutes to maybe go feed the animals.... but the lady was busy with other customers... so we just left. They definitely need to work on their customer service skills! Maybe hire a few people so they don't get so overwhelmed when they have their busy spurts. They treated us as if they didn't have time to help us... Like our business didn't matter... And I guess maybe it doesn't... They can treat tourists like crap and not worry about them coming back. But, I am a local and I was seriously hoping for some good service and good food and it just didn't happen! I do NOT recommend Fort Zion!!! read more

See all

Was a little skeptical at first but yelp hasnt let me down and this time it didnt dissappoint. Bbq pork rib dinner was amazing. Meat fell off the bones and bbq sauce was so good. read more

Fort Zion - Amazing bbq pork rib dinner plate. - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

Probably one of the coolest places I have visited in a while. There are so many artisan made goods and everything looks like it came out of a museum. Prices are also very affordable (considering we were coming from the bay area). I can't wait to come back again! read more

The positives were overshadowed by the obvious neglect of the animals in the petting zoo. Attached is a picture of one of the horses hooves, which are so so overgrown, making him obviously uncomfortable. Don't give these people your money. read more

This was one of the highlights of our trip to Zion. This family run business has been around for several generations and is just darling! There is a restaurant, a general store, a recreated play western village and a petting zoo with adorable animals. The prince of the petting zoo is Sundance.... the 28 year old donkey. He's such a sweet boy. All of the animals are rescues and are cared for by the owners. $1 buys three carrots. We didn't have an opportunity to try the food. Thanks Fort Zion! read more

Yes it's a tourist trap but my kids loved it. And the price of admission to the ghost town was so cheap. Well worth the stop!

Scratch made BBQ sauce, salad dressing and yes even iice cream. The owner was baking waffles cones when I came in. Wow - who does that? We ordered ribs, steak and chicken dinners. Totally reasonable prices. Every entree was (I think) under 10 bucks. The meals come with a generous sized house salad, two buttered slices of homemade bread and a side. The prickly pear bbq sauce is super yummy. They will give it to you on the side or they have some squeeze bottles by the condiments. They also had a squeeze bottle of a hot - hot version. But it was just right for me. If you have a sweet tooth they also have a selection of giant cookies, brownies and cinnamon buns - all home made. Oh and they have a petting zoo and souvenirs there. This is one hard working family. A secret gem! read more

This place looks like a tourist trap that you should avoid, but it turned out to be our favorite place we visited in southern Utah. The food is excellent. We got burgers, and I think this was the best burger I've ever had! No joke, best burgers ever! And the prices were very affordable. They had steakhouse quality burgers and fast food prices. I think we paid $13 for two burger meals (burger, fries, and a drink). They also have a nice souvenir store, we got some candy. The staff was extremely friendly and helpful. But the highlight for our kids were the animals! They have donkeys, ponies, deer, lamas. We got to pet them and feed them! My kids were so excited and had so much fun. It's something they will not forget for a long time! This was one of the best memories we had during our vacation. It's worth going out of your way to visit this place, especially if you have kids! read more

Stumbled across this place and so happy I did! Home made icecream!! Fresh ingredients! So creamy and yummy!! The people here are so warm and friendly. I no joke the ice cream is ToP! read more

Fort Zion - Prickly pear cactus and huckleberry!! Home made-delicious!!! Awesome hospitality, warm welcome! - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

What can I say about Fort Zion... Well, if you want good food at a decent price I would strongly recommend you look elsewhere... The food is overpriced and mediocre at best. The burgers are like meatloaf (the bad kind of meatloaf mind you) and are greasy as can be. The ribs were as dry as the climate in the area and the buffalo chili was comparable to buffalo chips... We didn't even want to try the ice cream since we had initially come to the place due to the reviews about the food... I could have let some of it slide had the price of the food not been so ridiculous. The burgers were Red Robin prices but more along the lines of Burger King quality... Although I would have preferred a Whopper to the Duke... The only bright spot was the petting zoo and buildings they have. Those were fun and worth the dollar admission. Don't waste your money on the food though. Just go somewhere else for that! read more

Loading pictures, ya gotta have pictures...

Delicious burgers and homemade fries. Great ambience and player piano. Best ice cream!!!

Keep driving. All they have is a bunch of knock off cheap souvenirs your kids won't leave alone. Petting zoo is ROUGH. Looks sad. We went to the restaurant there because I saw the good reviews on yelp. Those reviews were not for the food. Large portions but terrible quality. Rib special was way over cooked. Chili was all beans. I'm giving 2 stars because the people were very nice and the prickly pear salad dressing and the prickly pear hot BBQ sauce was pretty good. read more

Fun place to stop by and shop for some unique little knick-knacks on the way to Zion National Park. For a $1, you can go to the petting zoo in the back and see the alpaca, llamas, and ponies they have. Add an extra dollar and you could pick 3 carrots to feed them with. My little cousin had a blast taking pictures in the cute little "town" they had set up and feeding the animals. What made it even better was knowing that all the proceeds were there to help with the care and aid of these animals. If you aren't interested, they have plenty of knick-knacks that you can buy. As weird as it sounds, my cousin and I opted for the salt & vinegar flavored crickets! There were also some worms to choose from and the older lady behind the counter (who was as cute as a pickle!) told me that they just ran out of scorpions! But don't fret! They're FDA approved and raised very cleanly. From my opinion, they taste a little like potato chips! You should really try them! They also have a restaurant in the back. I haven't tried it, but I saw from previous reviews that the food was good. Maybe I should try it when I come back! Cute little place to stop buy on the way to Zion. It isn't a must, but if you have kids or are interested in unique little things, you should try to stop by! Be forewarned, this place is small! You could miss it if you blink! read more

See all

Stopped by today on our way to Zion and it looks like they are out of business parking lot is all roped off and they are closed. So sad another business not able to make it through this pandemic. We always love coming here. read more

I drove by on the way to Zion and stopped for the cute western town. Unfortunately it was closed. Their website as of January 13, 2021 states it is closed until further notice. read more

Friendly staff, good price, and really good ice cream. The ribs were delicious. They weren't dry, even after reheating the leftovers the next day. For dessert, at least sample the prickly pear cactus flavor! It's sort of similar to peach. I also tried the s'mores flavor and liked that too. Also the cute mini-town also has a petting zoo. You can enter that area for $1 read more

As a vegetarian on a road trip most of the time food is limited to gas station fruit and sunflower seeds. I forced our trip to a hault when I saw the sign for Native American jewelry, but what we got was so much more!!! The petting zoo and ghost town is worth the dollar admission by a long shot, (I'd pay 10$ to see the white llama spit in my boyfriends eye again!) the rocks and crystals inside are gorgeous and priced right, but the best thing by far was the handmade black bean vege burger. Dee and her husband hand make everything, the bread, the burger, the barbecue sauce, even their specialty prickly pear ice cream! If your passing through this is must stop!!!! Made my whole drive worth it! read more

Fort Zion - The petting zoo is a must! A whole handful of carrots for 2$ - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

See all

10 stars not 5. The owners and staff are amazing and the food????? WOW is the word that comes to mind. So delicious! read more

Fort Zion - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

See all

Fort Zion is very weird. You won't miss it if you are driving east to Zion, as it is literally in the middle of nowhere (although surrounded by those beautiful plateaus) and marked by wacky cartoon-like wooden Western buildings. There are also random European flags on one side of the establishment, and farm animals including alpacas and miniature ponies on the other. A sign out front reads "Rib dinner - $9.99," which caught the eye of my barbecue-loving friend so, despite my skepticism, we ventured inside the last evening of our Zion trip. The frontier-themed decor is overwhelmingly kitschy, and the dining room is somehow dim and has bright red walls at the same time. The hype having built up over the course of a few days, we both ordered the rib dinner, which is a hefty spread including numerous ribs, beans, fries, salad, and a bread roll. While the place still creeps me out a bit, I have to say that it was a very satisfying dinner. The ribs, wherein I should add a small American flag toothpick was staked, were extremely tender and saucy. The bread lover in me enjoyed the seedy buttered squaw bread. They also do a playful thing where you pick a poker card to mark one's order, and if the cashier spins that poker card symbol on the wheel behind the counter one gets free ice cream. In my short time sitting in the vicinity though, I saw the wheel spin to 9 of spades a suspiciously high number of times...ha! After our hearty meals, my friend and I casually paid $1 each to go hang out with the menagerie outside, and then got ice cream, because how can one say no to ice cream. read more

See all

Fun for the family. The burgers and fries are great. The service can be a little slow but if you're patient or can find time to browse the kitchy tourist shop, it is worth it. read more

The treatment of the animals in their petting zoo was questionable, to say the least. Their enclosures had feces throughout and a small space that provided shade for the animals in each of their enclosures. It did not seem like sufficient space for multiple animals to be comfortable and stay cool in the desert heat. Not only that, but the feces took up a good 1/4 of the space the animals had and they would not go in that area, so their already limited space was made even smaller by lack of cleanliness. The enclosure that upset me the most, however, was that of the sheep. There were three sheep inside one of the wooden "houses" - which was falling apart as I experienced first hand when my foot fell through a piece of wood on the porch - and the mother sheep was tied up around her head. She had two ropes, one at the front and one at the back, both of which were tied around her horns and clipped together. They held her in place against the wall, she couldn't even lie down, while her babies could go where they wanted within the home. However, they stayed near her and seemed to be in distress, one of the babies even climbing around and squeezing in between the mom and the wall. There wasn't a door to this space or a gate. Instead, a piece of plywood was leaned against the open doorway. I did not see water in this space. All the animals seemed unhappy and uncomfortable. Their only interest or joy was in the carrots brought by tourists who paid far too much for them, some of which appeared to be rotten as I noted upon exiting the gift shop. The gift shop was full of cheap, knock off, and offensive souvenirs that copied Native American art and sought to make money out of a false concept of "the old west" and "Indians." The bathroom was so small that only one person could stand inside at a time. One of the stall doors nearly fell off the door while I was waiting in said restroom. Overall, my experience was not pleasant and I will not be stopping again. Do NOT fall for this trap. read more

Had to stop here per recommendation from one of the Out fitter store owners on our hike from Angel's Landing. This place surely catches your attention while driving. The owner told us to look for a Fort and we'd know we were in the right place. Sure enough we couldn't miss it. The place is a great place for souvenirs and grabbing a bite to eat for hungry hikers. I had to try the steak and my girlfriend had the buffalo burger or bison burger...can't remember what it was. Both were super delicious and the prices were very reasonable. They were very generous in their servings and my girlfriend and I were both very full. So full in fact that we regrettably passed on the home made ice cream, which we will try on our return trip next spring. The trading post itself had a lot of nice trinkets and souvenirs if you want to grab something to remember for your trip to Zion. The prices were well below the stores we encountered closer to the park. I picked up two Indian Blankets that would normally cost 50 dollars in Vegas for the price of 25 for two!!!! Great price and they make excellent mats for picnicking. Overall I have to say you have to stop here if you are looking to buy some souvenirs or to get a bite to eat or even both!!! Staff here are very friendly and kind. read more

This place is awesome. I rarely give 5 stars but this place was worth every penny. Portion sizes are huge and prices are very reasonable, especially being so close to Zion National Park. We ordered the 1/2 lb bison burger and pork ribs special: $12 and $10 respectively. Both come with steak fries and salad. Really hit the spot after wading through the narrows in Zion for 7+ hrs. Decor is awesome: old school piano music and rustic interior, including a gift shop with all kinds of jewelry, souvenirs, and every type of jerky imaginable (but I could never eat a mako shark). Service is great. Will definitely be back when in the area again! read more

We went in and had the homemade ice cream. It was delicious. The staff was super friendly.i felt the food prices were a little high

Whooo boy, we caught this establishment just before close and boy did it deliver! We stopped in mostly for the food (COWBOY BURGERS) after balking for dinner at the jerky/art shop a few miles closer to the park. The buffalo burger with prickly pear barbecue sauce is heaven on earth. While the food was cooking I popped over to the store and purchased a pair of belts for a hell of a deal along with some prickly pear candy. We finished dinner just before close and had a brief chat with the proprietor of the restaurant and heard stories of the prickly pear harvest over some ice cream (I went for 1 scoop huckleberry, 1 scoop prickly pear). The world needs more places like this. read more

Fort Zion - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

I was asked 3 times if I was sure that I wanted my buffalo burger medium rare, as if in disgust for having taste buds. What my wife and I eventually got was a dry charred Sh*t biscuit, which not just for the price, but for the sake of the poor buffalo that gave his life for my appetite, was a sad example of culinary skills. How dare I want a burger cooked properly!? The funny part is when the cook comes out to explain that there was a very thin line of pink in my burger, almost invisible as if harry potter threw a cloak over it. The woman at the counter was nice. The gift shop is over priced. And you have to pay to feed their animals because they won't. Plus, no beer. Skip it. Skip it. Skip it. read more

My mom and I stopped in after driving past. Super cute, very kitschy. The staff was incredibly friendly.

Stopped here after a long day of hiking at Zion. We both had burgers - my boyfriend had the buffalo and I had the veggie black bean. Both were very delicious - one of the best black bean burgers I've ever had. The buns are homemade and very tasty and fries were fresh. Definitely worth the stop if you are driving by ! read more

The Stars were a battle between 2 (hubs) 4 (me). So we settled on 3. The petting zoo area was super cute. totally worth the $3 for entry and three carrots to feed the animals. The houses were pretty neat. The store has a ton of stuff. Hubs didn't like the animals being out in the heat- he felt bad for them and the lump on the donkey. Llamas were funny. One tried to kick hubs. Ha- don't touch the animals read more

See all

This is the best stop after coming back through Zion National Park. Make sure that you stop and enjoy a hamburger and homemade ice cream. read more

Fort Zion - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

Great place for a stopover before or after heading Zion National Park. It looks like a place in the middle of nowhere with a nice souvenir shop beside it and some small buildings replicating an old town. read more

See all

There HOMade ICECream are the beST! Also they have a petting zoo $1 for admission and carrots are 3-1$. So I suggest you guys purchase it! It was a lot of fun feeding the animals! We met the owner of the place, she was very nice and super accommodating ohh she's the one who makes the delish ice cream!!! I can't wait to go back here! read more

See all

This place was a great place to eat! Everything was delicious and homemade, the food was good fair priced I love roadside places like this when traveling on the road! read more

See all

We had a wonderful meal here. Loved the buffalo burgers and the fry bread tacos and the ice cream was excellent. My son loved the animals and the cool decor. They had recently hired a new waitress and she was wonderful. Such great energy and full of life! My only complaint is that the owner seemed to need a vacation. She seemed stressed and overbearing on her employees. I recommend she take some time off once the new waitress is fully trained. A great stop on your way to Zion. read more

Such a fun club in a sleepy little town. Restaurant by day, popup nightclub by night! Check it out when DJ Mesa is spinning! read more

This review is solely based on ice cream. Stopped in craving ice cream and was excited to see their homemade ice cream sign and a few interesting flavors. We got cookies and cream, as well as strawberry in a waffle cone. Ice cream had an odd chemical taste that was the furthest from homemade I could imagine. Waffle cone also had a strange taste. Service was less than pleasant as well. Maybe this was an off day but we definitely won't stop here again. Took a few bites of each then had to throw them in the garbage, quite a disappointment and waste of $. read more

This place is overall a pretty cool place to stop and grab bite to eat before going into Zion National Park. The burgers are pretty big so my girlfriend and I shared one. We ordered a regular cheeseburger with bacon and fries. The burger was cooked to perfection and the house made BBQ was delicious. I thought the fries were oily but my girlfriend said that they weren't and were overall good. The menu is pretty interesting and had items like a bison and rattlesnake burger. If your on your way to Zion come and check out this place read more

If i could give more stars i would. We had steak blakbean burger, meat lovers pizza and a buffalo burger. Everything was perfect. Homemade ranch,fries,bread,buns,pizza sauce,pizza crust. My lord im coming back to utah just for this restaurant! read more

Fort Zion - American Near Me - Virgin, Utah

Fort Zion ruined my vacation. Stopped with a friend and his son on our way from Zion to Page Wednesday 4/13 about 5pm for their famous home-made ice cream. Decided to have it made into milkshakes. We saw the kindly older lady mix them up using the 2 blenders on the counter -- the son's and mine made on the blender on our left, my friend's on the other blender. Within an hour, the son and I were sick as dogs, puking out the window before I could get my friend to stop the car. After a long night of sleeping on our bathroom floors, trips to the emergency room for fluids and anti-nausea meds, we wound up losing precious days of our vacations and did not enjoy any of the rest of our trip. read more