Walt's Hitching Post - Fort Wright
Named for its original owner, Walt’s Hitching Post was founded by Walt Ballanger and his wife Mary in 1942, establishing signature items no greater than the legendary smoke house ribs. In 1958, Ballanger sold the restaurant to his neighbor Bill Melton, a young bartender at the White Horse Inn. Bill Melton kept the name in Ballanger’s honor. The “Hitching Post” got its name from cast-iron posts where customers could tie up their horses. Walt’s has undergone at least seven expansions since Melton took over the little restaurant in 1958 and ran it successfully for 50 years until his passing in 2008.
