The Refuge

I ordered a Manhattan, expecting the bartender to ask me which Bourbon I preferred. She didn’t bother, and preceeded adding too many of those awfu bright red «fake» cherries and pouring extra juice into the glass! What, no Luxardo cherries, really?! Then to my horror, she added pomegranate syrup! I told her I wanted a Manhattan, She insisted I taste it, which I did, but it looked and tasted like Kool-​aid! The bartender was nice and made me another drink right away to my specifications, but the Bourbon was watered down, and the selection was poor. It’s pretty hard to mess up a Manhattan. I left very disappointed and will happily pass this place by the next time I’m in town.

It’s about time the Refuge came back. Food was well prepared. My only complaint was that there was too much food. Instead of a cup of soup I got a bowl. Instead of a six piece appetizer we got a 13 piece. I was full after soup and appetizer that I really couldn’t enjoy my entrée. However, the entrée was very very good. Had the Salmon, hubby had the special, Rib eye with a bowl of shrimp, calamari, clams and muscles. Delish!

We stopped on our way to the airport, ready for a nice meal. The Calamari Steak used to be one of their delicious dinners but the calamari I was served was thick, wet, and had no flavor. The texture was like a fried egg white. The coating was wet and the sauce was minimal. What has happened to one of Yuba City’s former great
restaurants ??

After several years of this being the go-​to for «the girl’s monthly dinner», I am very sad to say that we will be looking for another place to meet up. This is our 2^nd time eating here under the current management, and we’ve decided it’s not going to turn around.
First off, when we arrived for our most recent visit we stood in the lobby for a good 5 minutes before I asked the bartender if there was a hostess so we could be seated. The thing is… we were standing & waiting in sight of the bartender, so it’s beyond me why I had to ask to be seated.
Secondly, they are in the process of «revamping» the menu. Unfortunately, there are only about 6 overpriced dinner options to currently choose from. We are fully aware of the numerous changes of ownership that have occurred recently, but we were always delighted that they’d continued to keep the same menu since we always had our «go-​to» items. Off this limited menu, I ordered the calamari steak (which I’ve had before at the Refuge) but on this night, it was honestly the worst I’ve ever tasted. In order to do a good calamari steak it needs to be pounded out properly. The calamari steak was MUCH too thick, was very chewy and the breading just fell off. The lemon beurre blanc had very little flavor but was the only thing that made it tolerable. My friends had a salad and soup (french onion), and a the chicken cordon bleu. They said that the soup was too salty and the chicken was just OK, but she thought it was overpriced.
Lastly, the staff has completely changed and needs to be trained properly. The 1^st time eating at the Refuge under the new owners, the bartender looked «put out» to have to wait on us when we sat on the patio. The margaritas were horrible, and I doubt he knew what he was doing. (This was the same bartender that let us stand in the lobby without asking if we needed help. — For some reason I’m thinking he may be one of the owners?) On the 2^nd visit, our waitress was ok, but because we were the ONLY ones in the restaurant, you’d think the service would have been exemplary… definitely not the case since we had to ask for water and soda refills every time.
With that said, please get your act together… bring back the old menu… and learn how to make a margarita! We really would love to come back because the patio is wonderful in the warmer months!

I use to work there about 25 years ago. Head cook use to call us waitrons. Lady manager use to keep our tips. Treated us like slaves. i hope that the workers are treated better now. It’s crazy how well I remember this place so many years later. The food was good if I remember correctly. It looks like a much different place now. Good luck!

Horrible service does not even come close to describing. I would not recommend.

This place is just plain awful. We went in on a Wednesday night. We were the only people there. I had a salad that had all kinds of brown old bits of lettuce in it. My girlfriend had French onion soup. It was way too thick. We both had the 7 ounce rib eye. It was just gross. Greasy and Gristly. It was a super thin rib eye steak full of fat and nervy tissue. Service was slow and we had to listen to some Asian lady arguing with what I concluded was a vendor, for our entire meal. Couldn’t wait to get out. Worst 84 dollars I’ve ever spent. The drinks were pricey too by the way, and half of what you ask for they’re out of or Is no longer on the wine menu.

Horrible experience. Ordered an appetizer and it was not as described. Tasted so gross. It was cold inside the lounge, so we went outside so my friend could smoke. We both came inside to use the restroom and as we were walking the waiter started waiving our check around and asked us where we thought we were going. We said to use the bathroom, and I told him all our stuff (keys, phones, etc) were still outside on the patio. He just looked at us. After we came back from the restroom, we grabbed our stuff and paid the bill. We got half and explanation from the waiter for his behavior, and we left no tip. When he saw that we didn’t leave him anything he replied, «Oh, thanks,» in a sarcastic tone. I’ve never been treated so horribly at a business before. Completely unacceptable. We will NEVER go back!

This is a great place to grab a drink and a bite to eat with friends. They have a great happy hour menu in the bar with delicious appetizers for cheap. I recommend sitting out on the patio– it’s gorgeous. Decent service here and the food is good.

We showed up on a Monday at 5:15PM. Parking lot was empty so an immediate concern. We were pleasantly surprised. Nice décor. Looks like a steakhouse. The four of us were seated immediately and bread showed up soon. Drinks were prompt. We kept putting the waitress off as we were not ready to order. She kept showing up at a decent interval to see if we were ready. Turns out she was new and had to go back to the kitchen many times to answer our questions about the food. This was a good thing that she went to check to be sure. Our food, Steaks and Calamari and a Salmon appetizer was tasty. The steaks were cooked just a bit too much… just a little… not enough to complain… and they were very, very tasty. One of the steaks had a texture that made us question whether it was a rib eye. We decided it was… just a bit of a different grain. I was very happy with the Calamari and the garlic mashed potatoes. So, in all, good service, tasty food. A few more people showed up as we dined so I think it is a popular local place. I will return.

Horrible Service. Useless Management. High Priced & Poor Décor. Truly disappointed all the way around.

Took my girlfriend here for a date and the entire restaurant was empty yet when a large group of PG&E workers came in fresh off the job site, they were seated right next to us. It was awkward having a nice romantic dinner in an entirely empty restaurant with a loud party sitting 4 feet away.
Also, ordered whiskey on the rocks at the bar and was charged $ 7 for a shot out of a $ 25 bottle. Way overpriced for food and drinks that were simply average.
It wasn’t horrible but I won’t be coming back.

I was meeting my step-​son in Yuba City for dinner. This was the place he suggested. I pulled into the parking lot and I was fearful. Empty on a Friday night for a Bar and Restaurant during the holidays. My first thought, this is going to be a big loser.
We went in, nobody in the bar. Two tables in the restaurant occupied by octogenarian couples — the nightmare continued. Got the menu, didn’t look bad, the waitress gave us a few minutes to order and gave us our drinks.
Between the four of us we got a clam chowder, burger, french dip sandwich and fish & chips. Everything was excellent. Seriously, probably the best burger I have had in the last 10 years (avocado & blue cheese toppings).
The service was great and friendly. We needed time to talk, they gave us plenty of time and endless refills. That’ll teach me to judge a book by its cover. I will definitely come back to eat here again.

We had a wonderful dining experience tonight! Our server, Mary, greeted us promptly, explained the specials and had a clear understanding of the delectable menu choices. The range of menu items was excellent from burgers (husband’s choice), planked meats (Dad’s choice), salads, pastas, salmon tacos (my choice) etc… The food was creative, seasoned very well, and no less than delicious. The service was attentive and discreet-​our server was obviously seasoned and trained in the fine art of restaurant service. Additionally, the pricing is very much below the quality of our dinner.
A huge plea to anyone interested in keeping a great place to dine, try the Refuge – you will be excited to return again and again!
Susan Polhemus
Yuba City, CA

Really like the new remodel. They have a patio area located outside the bar with a beautiful fountain, nice patio seating and umbrellas. I’ve been there for lunch on several occasions and the food and service has been great. They also have really good lunch specials. A little on the expensive side, but overall the food is delicious, atmosphere is outstanding and service has been good. We’ll definitely be back to check out the dinner menu.

Having moved here from LA I was concerned about finding a place to have a nice meal. The food, atmosphere and wait staff were all incredible! It’s nice to have a local restaurant that has the feel of something you’d expect in a bigger city, but the price and friendliness of a small town! Great place!

It’s Yuba City… Not a mecca for fine dinning… I have always been happy enough with the food. I wouldn’t hesitate to eat at the refuge… just monitor your expectations.

Went for our anniversary dinner. Husband had the Basque lamb; tough, fatty, overcooked. I had calamari and couldn’t find it in all the greasy breading that tasted like Contadina breadcrumbs. The hubby’s rice pilaf tasted moldy and my mashed potatoes were horrible. The green beans were wrinkled up and tough, inedible. The best thing was the appetizer pork lollipops. Service was good and the place is nice, but I won’t be going for any more special occasions. Drinks and appetizers will probably be what I go for, if I go again. Oh! And their solution to our disappointment was to give me a free dessert, tiramisu, which was pretty good. No one came to our table to apologize except our server. That was IT for me.

A very nice higher end restaurant and have been in business since the late 70’s. They’ve revamped some of their menu items. We had a great experience eating in the lounge area. The Grilled Straberries with Burrata and Ham and the Pork Lollipop was recommended and it DID NOT disappoint!

The restaurant is now under new ownership, apparently since about October 2011.
I went there recently to have drinks & dinner with a girlfriend. We ended up just staying in the lounge area. The outside looks about the same but the interior is new & improved. The owners are a friendly family (no I don’t know them personally) they took the time to chat us up and also introduce themselves as the new owners. There were quite a few regulars in the lounge, folks coming off of work, everyone was kind, not pretentious or too rough around the edges.
Oh yeah, the food… It was great! I had some mini tacos as an appetizer and they were great & I had the calamari steak for dinner. Proportions are nice, not too big, but you feel as though you are getting your monies worth.
I would encourage you if you haven’t been to the refuge lately you should really give it a shot! I plan on taking my husband here next time we have a date night!