The Alamo Steakhouse

The Alamo Steakhouse cooks its aged, hand-cut steaks over an oak fire, according to the restaurant's official website, and that method is the draw. The Gatlinburg restaurant is at 705 East Parkway, and the same company runs a second Alamo at 3050 Parkway in Pigeon Forge, so check which address your reservation or waitlist entry is for.

• Address: 705 E Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738.
• Phone: (865) 436-9998 for Gatlinburg. The Pigeon Forge restaurant is (865) 908-9998.
• Menu: the site highlights aged steaks cut in house, hand-ground burgers, homemade soups, sauces and gravies, and hand-breaded mozzarella sticks. Lunch, dinner and kids menus are posted on the website.
• Waiting list: the site links to online waitlists for each location, a useful tool when the line forms on a weekend evening.
• Hours: the website lists a weekly schedule with later opening early in the week and lunch service on some days, but it does not say which location the times apply to. Confirm by phone.

The 700 block of the Parkway is in the busiest part of downtown Gatlinburg. That means foot traffic, sidewalk crowds and plenty of competing restaurants, but it also puts you close to the shops and attractions, so a steak dinner works as the end of an evening walk. For ideas on the rest of the day, the Gatlinburg visitor site lists attractions by area.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park starts at the edge of downtown, and most visitors do a park drive or hike before dinner. Entry to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is free, but any vehicle parked longer than 15 minutes needs a parking tag ($5 daily, $15 weekly, $40 annual) displayed on the dashboard. America the Beautiful and other federal passes are not accepted for it; the Park Service fees page has the details. Downtown parking is the bigger headache at dinner time: paid lots fill, and the free Gatlinburg trolley is a reasonable way to avoid driving the Parkway after dark.

• Couples and groups celebrating a trip with a proper steak dinner.
• Families with older kids who can handle a longer sit-down meal.
• Anyone who has had enough barbecue and pancakes for one week.

Join the waitlist online before you walk over, especially in leaf season and on summer weekends. Ask how your steak will cook over the fire, because an oak grill runs hot and the kitchen can advise on doneness. If you have a large party, call the restaurant directly and ask about seating.