Sports Illustrated once called Scottsdale’s Pink Pony “the most popular hangout for baseball people in the civilized world.” Writer Roger Angell dubbed it “the best baseball restaurant in the land.”
Find out why March 18 when a free program at the Old Town Baseball Experience at Frasher’s Tavern explores Pink Pony’s unique history and enduring allure.
The restaurant closed in 2016 but retains its place in baseball lore and Scottsdale history.
Rare artwork and photographs from the “Pony” will be on display March 18. Past owners, customers, and family members of the Briley family will share their memories and recount some of the more famous (and infamous) stories associated with the restaurant.
The program runs from 6 to 8 p.m. and is presented by the nonprofit group Arizona Baseball Legacy and Experience. Frasher’s Tavern is located at 4180 N Drinkwater Blvd. in Old Town Scottsdale.
Bartender Charley Briley began working at the Pink Pony in 1949. A year later he purchased the restaurant and through his close friendship with pitcher-turned-sportscaster Dizzy Dean, turned the steakhouse on Scottsdale Road into a hangout for celebrities and the baseball world.
Notable players who frequented the Pony included Ty Cobb, Stan Musial, Ted Williams, Rogers Hornsby, Joe DiMaggio, Ernie Banks, Billy Martin and Will Clark. The Pony was also a de facto office where trades and contracts were made and signed.
The inside of the restaurant was a virtual shrine to baseball with signed memorabilia, photos and caricature drawings of ballplayers, coaches and other spring training regulars gracing the walls. In the 1950s and 1960s Briley commissioned Disney cartoonist Don Barclay to draw the caricatures for $25 each — half paid in cash and half in trade.
The restaurant was also a draw for the who’s who of the social and political scene. Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood came for their wedding dinner. Clark Gable, Senator Hubert Humphrey, and Senator Joseph McCarthy ate there. Cowboy star and former California Angels owner Gene Autry had a favorite booth.
The March 18 event will feature art and memorabilia that hasn’t been seen publicly in decades, including more than a dozen of the Don Barclay caricatures and original drawings that were part of a 1988 Sports Illustrated feature story about the Pink Pony.
Speakers will include Camille Briley Hall, Charley Briley’s daughter, and Tim Smith, the last owner of the Pink Pony restaurant.
Join us as we celebrate one of the most remarkable chapters in Scottsdale history and a baseball shrine that still resonates with fans today.
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