Ruth’s Chris Steak House

I’ve been to several different Ruth’s Chris locations and the food is always quite good. The Durham, NC location was no exception.
When placing my reservation online I requested a quiet table off to the side and when arrived I was seated at just that. Our server was pleasant and attentive, and while she was unfamiliar with the beer options (my date was a beer fanatic) she took the time to seek out a complete list. I wish there were more options for by the glass wines, but mine was actually quite good.
My salad was a little on the dry side, but my steak was cooked to perfection as always. The brussels sprouts were fabulous, and I am quite picky about brussels. I follow the paleo diet and they were happy to provide me with a huge bowl of berries as dessert. So yes, I would definitely revisit. Ruth’s Chris is always great for a dependably wonderful steak.

The staff were super friendly. Service was very good. I recommend you try stuffed chicken. It was awesome.

Not my favorite RC by a long shot. Anniversary dinner was not acknowledged until we mentioned it to the manager. Staff then spent the rest of the dinner tripping over themselves to acknowledge our anniversary… very aqward !
Burnt brussels sprouts were removed from the bill. We are frequent guests of their Cary location which is very good, this one not so much.
Definitely would not return. Please see the picture for our parting gift which was attached to our bill folder.

We have been dining at this locations for over a year now, service has sways been exceptional. However, we dined in last Sunday and were beyond disappointed. My fiancé had made reservations for my birthday meal. The food was good, not as good as it usually is my steak had to be send back; the manager was beyond considerate in helping me to get my steak how I wanted it. Outside of the kindness shown from the manger, the service was pitiful. Absolutely pitiful. Our waiter rarely checked on us (which is why I had to discuss my meal displeasure with the manager in the first place), he had a very Displeasing persona about him the entire meal especially after he discovered my talking with the manager about my steak. I was given a complimentary dessert but rather than offering me a choice from the two options as they usually do at the tester he told me what would be brought and took FOREVERRRRRRRR to the extent that we didn’t even want the desert anymore, we just wanted our bill so we could go home. Very unsatisfactory service, for the price of dining we expect more. We have always had exceptional experiences in the past at this location and were just baffled by the awful service this last time.

I have visited this location FOUR TIMES in the past FOUR MONTHS — but never again. The hostess was RUDE, the waiter was INEFFICIENT, my crab cakes were BURNT, and NO ONE at the reception area EVEN BOTHERED TO say anything to us when we left. My entire dining experience was awful…

The ambiance you would expect from an upscale steak house. Large helpings, decent service. All wait staff greet you by name. It was a nice meal and saved the day.

My wife and I dined at Ruth’s Chris in Durham yesterday evening. We rarely have the opportunity to eat at Ruth’s Chris and dine there only for very special occasions. This was our first time at the Durham location, we have previously dined at the Cary location. I have dined at other locations on business. The food was excellent, but we were disappointed in the overall experience.
First of all, the food was delicious! My wife’s filet and my ribeye were both excellent as you would expect at a Ruth’s Chris. The calamari, lobster mac and cheese, mushrooms, and asparagus were all very tasty. We split a banana cream pie for dessert (plenty for two!). The pie was delicious and not overly sweet.
Our waitress was very pleasant and engaging.
However, we were disappointed by several issues that you would not expect at a place like Ruth’s Chris. Of course, we know going into a Ruth’s Chris that the prices will be high and are willing to pay, but we expect something closer to perfection in return.
The lobster mac and cheese, although very tasty, was luke warm to the point that it took away from the pleasure of eating it. It was much better when we ate the microwaved left-​overs today.
After the main course, we decided to order the banana cream pie and two cappuccinos. The cappuccinos came out first which was not an issue until the banana cream pie came out at least 20 minutes later! Of course, by then we had long finished the cappuccinos which we had hoped to enjoy with our dessert. No one kept us updated as we waited. During this time, I saw our waitress working hard to service others, so I perceive this is as a management issue, not an individual waitress issue.
In my effort to keep the mood light and enjoy the company of my wife, I decided not to confront these issues last night.
I rarely provide feedback through Unilocal.I usually have nothing remarkable to report. However, in this case, given the surprising issues, I am compelled to provide what I hope to be constructive feedback.

First, let me say I’ve been a huge fan of Ruth Chris for years. But this location has begun to change my mind about the chain. Last night, our party of 3 tried the Restaurant Week special at RC — a 3 course meal for $ 30. 2 ½ hours later we were done — that is ridiculous. The wait staff was less than attentive, one of our party’s salad arrived 15 minutes before the other first courses. The main course and additional sides took approximately 40 minutes after our first courses. The dessert took approximately 30 minutes after clearing the main course to be delivered. Maybe it’s because we were utilizing the cheaper Restaurant Week menu???
Nope. Six weeks earlier, I took a party of 4 there and dropped $ 600. The service STUNK then too.
The Maitre D’ looks like a fish out of water, staring into space… doesn’t he realize that there is a significant problem with his kitchen and restaurant?
This is a sad example of what Ruth Chris usually is. I’ve never experienced these problems at other RC locations, so I’d stay clear of this one, unless you want to stay there all night.
At least the food is still good… it’s just getting to the point where you get to eat it that isn’t.

The staff at Ruth Chris is always accommodating, knowledgeable and professional. Our last visit was fantastic… shrimp cocktail, martini’s and of course a delicious, perfectly cooked filet mignon.
To finish our meal, we decided on Irish coffees and bread pudding drizzled in Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge… highly recommended.
On a side note, Ruth Chris always follows up with a personal phone call… just to ensure your night was perfect.

I met my boyfriend at the bar in Durham and while he received very good service, I had to sit at the bar for 15 minutes before asking for a drink. Apparently, if I had not asked the five bartenders who were on duty for service, I would have continued being ignored.
During our time at the bar, my boyfriend was constantly referred to as «sir» and asked several times if he wanted additional drinks. However, none of the bar staff asked if I wanted another drink or showed any common courtesy towards me. I am going to send a note to speak with the GM or DM concerning this lack of service. Needless to say, I will not patronize this place again. It was great 5 – 10 years ago, but now it is just another chain with bad service.

Should be 4.5 stars. Only negative is the price. Food is friggen great though. Lobster mac and cheese — 4.0 stars. Steak sangwich — 4.5. Zucchini fries — 5.0. Crab sangwich — 5.0. Filet — 5.0. And the Bloody Mary — 5.0. Service was great too and the absolute best part is poppa irish pays the bill! Good man!

The food was very nice, but we were rushed out of there, and this location (Durham, NC) was not even packed there were only two other guests out of 20 tables. Also, we weren”t even done with our food and the server was already asking if we were going to be taking food home. After we answered that question she asked if we were going to be having dessert. 20 seconds later the check was on our table by our first waiter and wishing us a good evening. This was our first time and very last time there.

Came here for a special birthday dinner and was not disappointed. Exactly what I would expect from a high end steak house: excellent service, high price entrees cooked to perfection, rich food, good wine list.
We both got the prix fixe option and it was excellent. I had the filet and shrimp, he had the filet and lobster. Desserts were decadent and luscious: molten chocolate cake and strawberry shortcake with chocolate truffles. Everything made from scratch. Loved the homemade truffles!
Nice wine list and excellent service. Worth the splurge!

No real complaints here. I came here for a CE dinner for the veterinary field and we had a free dinner. I enjoyed it but I don’t think I would go back when I was a paying customer.

Our party of 5 just visited this location and it was amazing. The service, food and atmosphere was amazing. Everyone ordered the filet and we were thrilled. The server and management team were incredible. Thank you all!

Ruth Chris. The one place all my friends have talked about when mentioning the word «steak house.» Although I was always hesitant to go there myself, my family decided to try it out as a formal dining experience.
Regarding service, I don’t know if it was a coincidence or intentional, but they gave us a Korean gentleman to serve as our waiter. Anyways, he did a great job and offered to speak in Korean to our family since it is our primary language. Visits were occasional; not too often where it annoyed us and not too rare in so that we were never served. The lights were dim, so it provided a good, warm, sophisticated atmosphere.
Food was great. We decided to go with the Prix-​Fixe (3 Course Meal) and got some salads, 16 oz. ribeyes, lobsters, and some sides. The steak house salad was delicious, and so was the dessert (cheesecake). The ribeye that I ordered was, in my opinion, just above average. I did have high expectations for it (because it’s nearly $ 50+ per steak) and don’t get me wrong, it was a delicious (they cooked it to perfection). But the steak was a little bit too burnt on the outside for my liking. My sister said that it was just char and it was intenitonally seared like that. Personally, I did not like that. Sides ordered were the cream spinach, steak fries, green beans, and sauteed mushrooms. They were all again, decent. Nothing extraordinary with these.
Overall, Ruth Chris is a great formal dining place with great food and great service. Now was it worth $ 60+ per person? I don’t know, that’s an opinion that will be different with every individual. But I had a great time, filled my stomach up with good food, and had a great night with the family.

Just caught dinner here — And I will admit, I am a work traveler, eating alone, so the romance of a pretty lady across from me might have made me feel better about this. This Ruth’s Chris location is in Durham, in a large strip mall with high (er) end stores. It is new construction and while it is in nice, tidy shape, it really lacks the character of some of their more interesting properties. but with that being said, it isn’t why I rated it three stars.
I sat in the bar this evening and enjoyed what were pretty terrific lamb chops, but I had a few epiphanies while I was dining. First, the Onion Soup Au Gratin was fine — but for $ 10, I have to say that the serving was small. Capital Grille, where I ate a few weeks ago, was about the same price, and the size of a swimming pool by comparison. The soup itself was rather unremarkable, but for $ 10, I would have expected more.
The biggest challenge is that Ruth’s Chris, and I supposed many of their competitiors, do a la carte veggies which they try to make more palatable by providing 2 servings — Which is awesome, when in the company of a lovely lady or even some co-​workers. But when dining alone, it makes you feel wasteful leaving half a bundle of asparagus laying on the table as you leave. $ 10 or 11 bucks for asparagus with cold hollandaise sauce (which I thought should have been warm at least)
So I ordered the lamb chops — three 5 oz chops for $ 49 — which I didn’t really mind paying. The chops are served on a 300+ degree plate — which means two things — Your server has to bring out a pot holder to transfer them to the table on a second plate AND that the third chop continues to cook while you are eating the other two — In turn, chop 1 was medium, chop 2 was medium-​ish and chop 3 was approaching brown. Except chop three for some reason was predominantly fat. No exaggeration — the other two had a good sized hunk of meat and a teaspoon of fat, whereas the last chop was predominantly fat with a little meat. Not sure what happened there.
I will leave you with this — the service in the bar was great, waiter was super attentive and the responses quite prompt. However, my meal was accompanyied by the musical stylings of Nicki Minaj, Boys 2 Men and myriad other R&B and hip-​hop artists. I like these bands — but I hate to hear them when dropping $ 100 per meal.

This Ruth’s Chris location is what you would expect from a steak house, prime steaks, massive a la carte sides, you know the drill. The strange thing about this Ruth’s Chris is that it is attached to what I would consider a «cost-​conscious» business traveler hotel, people not usually on a prime steakhouse budget. I went here because I was staying in the hotel and didn’t have time to venture all over Durham to find dinner.
I was there for a meeting with colleagues, which stretched on for several hours. We started off at the bar, for a few drinks and then to a table where we had dinner. Everyone got steaks and we got a few sides as well. In an attempt to limit the caloric damage I was doing, I asked that the side of sautéed spinach be given to me raw with no oil and a side of grated roman cheese. The delivered on that as asked and our steaks were excellent as well. The service was very good, too. We were well taken care of and there was no hovering by the staff, however, they were always there when we needed something.

When you think Ruth Chris you think of a steak chain restaurant that can’t REALLY vary from location to location from city to city, if SO you are DEAD WRONG.
Ruth started up in NOLA & with Southern roots in conjunction with being a JetSetter plus Foodie, I’ve visited & dined at the original Ruth Chris. Let me tell you NO OTHER Ruth Chris compares to the original location as far as overall experience.
With that being said this location has been very impressive with the Chefs specials & genuine services. There are two servers in particular (Tomil & Sokol) who go above & beyond for me & my group when we have dinner weekly.
Let’s get down to the food:
That Ahi tuna appetizer is amazing & a MUST have. The tuna is extremely fresh & server over the perfect pinch of sauce with wasabi & ginger on the side.
Also if this chef special includes the Parmesan crusted halibut it is a must along side the ala carte asparagus.
The TOP dessert is a two-​way TIE:
1. The cheesecake is not your average cheesecake as far as shape, flavor & texture. It is very tasty & packed with calories (if you have some to spare)
2. The Banana Foster which is made table side & taste spectacular especially if you get Sokol or Tomil to make it. They have a way with making the sauce to the perfect consistency.
Additional Dessert to try:
The Bread Pudding. My husband is a bread pudding fanatic so in turn I’ve become a critic due to him ALWAYS having to try it everywhere we go & I take a taste & compare. This bread pudding is good if you are in the mood for bread pudding, I’ve had better (because I’ve had so many versions) but it’s GOOD.
Enjoy & dine with class
SYOY — See You on Unilocal

Jeez I don’t know what to say really. I loved the atmosphere– the food was very good. but the service just was ok. There were multiple people taking care of us which was nice… but there were many times we had an empty glass. Maybe that was because there was a table near us purchasing multiple wine bottles. Like seriously. Sorry to get on my soapbox but I am sick and tired of servers paying less attention to younger people who are not spending as much on alcohol, etc! I think it’s extremely disrespectful, especially when we are paying $ 150+ to eat here as well!
In short– I’d much rather spend $ 150 on a new pair of shoes, a bottle of rum, and dinner at Buns. Now that’s a good evening.