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Painting of a slice of prime rib on a dark plate with mashed potatoes, roasted carrots and au jus

Steakhouse · Supper club · Est. 1932 · York, Nebraska

Supper, the way York remembers it.

Prime rib you can cut with a butter knife. Pan-fried chicken. The Hob-Nob Lounge. Downtown since 1932.

Three generations of one family, and since 2021, Bryan & Renee Jantz. After-church brunch, service-club lunches, prime-rib anniversaries, and the I-80 travelers whose GPS sends them downtown.

Build your plate

Pick it. Plate it. Then come eat it.

Regular or Husker cut, your temp, your potato, as much jus as you like. Then try the butter knife.

01The cut

Regular Cut. Market price.

02Doneness

Medium rare. Warm red center. The classic.

…or drag across the slice.

Swipe across the slice. Butter knife only.

03Potato & mushrooms

04Au jus

One ladle. Just right.

Guest checkNo. 1932
  • 1 · Prime rib, regular cut
  • medium rare
  • w/ really real mashed & mushrooms
  • au jus
  • + soup or greens, rolls

Thank you! Call (402) 362-7755

01 · The cut

Regular Cut. Market price.

Regular cut · med-rare · really real mashed & mushrooms · au jus

Call (402) 362-7755 for a table

Next buffet: Thu, Nov 26, Thanksgiving Brunch 10am – 2pm. Reservations highly suggested.

01The story

“Chances are, we’ll go broke.”

That’s what Raymond Reetz told Shirley in 1964, about to more than triple the size of the little Cozy Lunch downtown. “But I want to give it a try.” The new name said the rest.

  1. 1932

    1932

    Hiney Neufeld opens the Cozy Lunch, a “modern hamburger shop.”

  2. 1937

    1937

    Roy & Thelma “Mimi” Schultz, Shirley’s parents, take it over.

  3. 1957

    1957

    Raymond & Shirley Reetz buy the Cozy Lunch. It seats 50.

  4. 1964

    1964

    They expand to 180 seats, open the Shir-Ra Room, start catering, and rename it Chances “R”.

  5. 1983

    1983

    The Hob-Nob Lounge and Tommy-Suz Beer Garden open: mahogany, stained glass, brass. 550 seats.

  6. 1994

    1994

    Raymond & Shirley are named Restaurateurs of the Year by the Nebraska Restaurant Association.

  7. 2021

    2021

    After three generations of the family (the Schultzes, the Reetzes, Tom & Suzanne Vanous), Bryan & Renee Jantz take over.

The red Chances R sign with its crown, hanging over the sidewalk on West 5th Street
The sign out front, 124 W 5th St. Crown and all.
  • Restaurateurs of the Year, Nebraska Restaurant Association, 1994
  • Named the No. 1 tour bus stop in Nebraska

Your hosts since 2021

Bryan carves. Renee bakes.

Bryan & Renee Jantz took over from the family in September 2021, and kept the prime rib, the pan-fried chicken and the dessert tray right where York left them.

02The food

What people drive in for.

Steakhouse supper, done the downtown way since 1932. Breakfast Wednesday through Sunday, too.

  • Painting of a thick slice of prime rib in au jus

    Prime rib

    The butter-knife cut, with au jus ladled on.

    “Hands down, best prime rib in the state.”
  • The famous

    Pan-fried

    chicken

    All white meat, if you ask

    Pan-fried chicken

    The famous one. Regulars order it all white meat.

    “I usually order the fried chicken — all white meat — or the prime rib.”
  • Painting of real mashed potatoes beside the prime rib

    Real mashed potatoes

    Real potatoes. Not instant. A point of pride, and we'll keep saying it.

  • A whole carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and piped carrots, from the Chances R kitchen

    Pastries & desserts

    Homemade, like this carrot cake. Save room for the dessert tray.

    The dessert tray: “spectacular.”
The buffet table at Chances R: fresh fruit, salads and sides in the Tommy-Suz Beer Garden

“R” Buffets

“R” Buffets

Prime rib buffet and Sunday brunch

“Prime Rib Buffet was fantastic.”

Coming up

  • Thu, Nov 26Thanksgiving Brunch10am – 2pm
  • Fri, Nov 27Prime Rib Buffetfrom 5pm
  • Sat, Dec 19Prime Rib Buffetfrom 5pm
  • Sun, Dec 20Sunday Brunch10am – 2pm

About once a month right now, so reservations are highly suggested. Call (402) 362-7755

03The rooms

550 seats. One dining room feeling.

Mahogany, stained glass and brass since 1983. Walk in through the stained-glass doors and pick your room.

The Chances R bar: carved mahogany, stained-glass panels, brass rail and leather stools

The bar

Mahogany, stained glass & brass.

  • Stained-glass windows and leaded glass over the tables in the Hob-Nob Lounge

    Happy hour · Weekdays 5 – 7pm

    Hob-Nob Lounge

    Friendly and relaxed, with a soup and salad bar of 30-plus items and happy hour on weekdays.

  • Elegant

    West Dining Room

    Stained and etched glass, brass, mahogany and oak. A business lunch or an elegant evening out.

  • Casual

    East Dining Room

    Casual dining at its best. Slide into a booth for lunch, or homemade dessert and fresh coffee.

Private rooms & catering

Company parties, trainings, retirements, wedding receptions. Groups of any size. No room fee for private rooms with meal service. Tax and a 17% gratuity are added to private events. Wi-Fi throughout.

  • A long private-room table set with white linens and red napkins

    Up to 100

    Shir-Ra Room

    Elegant and versatile. Banquet rows, U or E shapes, conference style, or rounds of eight. Divides for smaller parties; projection screen on request.

  • Up to 250

    Tommy-Suz Beer Garden

    Its own saloon, a small stage, screen and sound system, antique gas pumps and neon. Meetings, parties, weddings.

  • 25 to 5,000 guests

    Off-site catering

    Full-service, off-premises, year-round: menu planning, hors d’oeuvres to desserts, served by an experienced staff. York, Lincoln, Grand Island, Seward, Columbus and around.

    catering@chancesryork.com

The straight story

We’re not fancy. We’re just the room York’s been celebrating in since 1932. No pretense. Just supper.

Downtown since the Cozy Lunch
1932Downtown since the Cozy Lunch
From 320+ Google reviews
4.3From 320+ Google reviews
Of 33 restaurants in York on TripAdvisor (440+ reviews)
#1Of 33 restaurants in York on TripAdvisor (440+ reviews)
Seats, across the dining rooms
550Seats, across the dining rooms
  • Fancy?

    No. Antiques on the walls, prime rib on the plate, no pretense.

  • Buffet tonight?

    Next buffet: Thu, Nov 26, Thanksgiving Brunch 10am – 2pm. Reservations highly suggested.

  • Coming off I-80?

    Your GPS will send you downtown. Trust it.

  • Is it 5 stars?

    It's 4.3. Busy Sundays mean a line. We think the prime rib is worth it.

Come on in

Save us a table.

Anniversary, after church, or just passing through on I-80. Call and we’ll hold a seat.

Hours

Mon – Tue
11am – 9pm
Wed – Fri
7am – 9pm
Saturday
8am – 9pm
Sunday
8am – 3pm

Carry-out & local delivery

11am – 2pm & 5pm – 9pm

Local delivery as staffing allows. Out-of-town by arrangement.

Next buffet: Thu, Nov 26, Thanksgiving Brunch 10am – 2pm. Reservations highly suggested.