Located in an abandoned mining town, the Marysville House is famous for its hearty food portions and rustic setting. “This place was once a very famous steakhouse,” says Don Clark, current owner of the Marysville House, “and we’re putting it back on the map.”
Faithful to the restaurant’s previous incarnations, the Marysville House still serves guests large portions of porterhouse, ribeye, chicken, lobster, shrimp, and Alaskan king crab. The food is all freshly prepared by a trained St. Louis chef and customers often confess that their steak is the best they’ve ever eaten.
Not only is the food hearty and delicious but it’s visually appealing as well. This is significant, considering that food at the Marysville House was once served on Styrofoam. “One of the first things I did when I took over ownership was buy restaurant- quality china,” says Clark. The professional plating now matches the quality of the food, while the restaurant’s atmosphere remains fun and rural.
One thing that helps create this ambiance is the Marysville House itself. The building was once the Silver City Northern Pacific Railroad Station, just down the road from Marysville when Silver City was a bustling 1800s mining town. In 1975, long after Silver City had run dry, a Marysville resident named Rick O’Connell moved the station to its current location. The Marysville House has been through a handful of owners but it has endured even though the town has not.
Visitors to the Marysville House can see the remains of this once a booming community. Main Street is all but empty and a few buildings and miners’ shacks litter the hills. It’s hard to imagine that there were once 4,000 people living in Marysville, with two railroad companies fighting for its service. Today, there are less than 100 residents dedicated to the ghost town and the majority of them commute to Helena or the surrounding area for work. This makes the Marysville House unique in that it is one of the only businesses still open in town.
Marysville residents appreciate having a local gathering place, and visitors to the Marysville House enjoy the great food and fun times. The restaurant is a popular stop for snowmobilers, ATV riders, tour buses, and travelers just passing by. If you find yourself on Highway 279 between Helena and Lincoln, stop into the Marysville House for a juicy steak or exceptional seafood. If you have children, be sure to bring them during the summer when they can roast marshmallows on a roaring fire. There’s enjoyment to be had by everyone. Marysville may be a ghost town but good times at the Marysville House are far from dead.