I can always count on Michael J's to provide excellent dining experiences! The staff is professional and a pleasure to be around. The food is always money well spent, even a basis. dish like Lasagne is awesome there. read more

Make sure to make reservations! The food was fantastic. I highly recommend the ravioli. It was very tasty. The staff was very friendly! Great service read more

The chicken fettuccine Alfredo is some of the best we've ever had. The shrimp scampi and spaghetti marinara were also delicious. Wine was very reasonably priced! read more

I have eaten here on three occasions now. Each time we ate here, we were greeted by a nice hostess, but, then we were made to feel as if we were inconveniencing the restaurant by wanting to dine at that moment or make a reservation for a later date. Every time this occurred it was the same man: middle aged with short dark hair. Clearly a manager or owner. The last time, we were only able to sit in the bar area which was fine with us. Again though, we were made to feel as if we in some way inconvenienced the bartender. I asked if they had hot tea, the bartender replied said: "regrettably yes, yes we have tea but because of the steps it takes to serve tea, we can't serve it at the bar." It was clear that the bartender was more interested in serving the beer and wine to patrons than tea or water. Then at the end, we tried to pay part of the bill with a MasterCard Gift Card. I was then schooled by how difficult it was for them to run due to issues with tips. I told them not to worry and I'd pay with my credit card. Finally, the overall conversations between the wait staff and bartenders and managers were highly innapropriate for the clientele to be hearing. Discussions about viewing porn on their phones while on breaks, local politics about people in the community they happen to not like, etc etc. With all that being said, the food is ok, not very authentic and very small portions that do not reflect the pricing well. We won't be going back. Ever. They get one star for the nice hostess that greeted us. read more

Excellent food, atmosphere, and service! They recommend a reservation but for just 2 people, they squeezed us into the bar area and it was wonderful. Highly recommend! read more

I will NOT recommend this place to anyone. It seems to be hit or miss from the reviews I've read. First off, we had a reservation at 7, we waited until about 7:15 and was told to be patient even though they were overbooked so we had to wait outside with our baby. It was chilly. Then the hostess finally sat us at 730. We were a party of 5 and a party of 12 was sat same time as us. They were greeted immediately by their server as we had to wait about 20 min until we even saw a server. When she came we ordered drinks and our meal. Waited another 15-20 min to get that. We asked the owner to check on our order and he was polite but still took a while to bring our drinks. Finally about 830 we got our food all but one person at our table. Upon waiting we overheard the owner send back the person in our party's chicken parmigiana to make a dish for the table of 12. That was VERY DISAPPOINTING AND DISRESPECTFUL. We had been waiting patiently and the owner was thankful for that. Appetizers were good but entrees were mediocre at best. But the service was absolutely unacceptable. We will NOT BE BACK. read more

Looking for a pasta restaurant, we liked the menu and reviews for Michael J. We weren't disappointed. Starting with warm bread dipped in olive oil and basalmic vinegar, followed with a small Caesar salad lightly dressed, our exquisite entrees were awesome. My husband had the Cioppino which is his favorite and was loaded with seafood and a wonderfully spicy dipping sauce over linguine. My fettuccine Vondele was a lovely clam dish in a delicate white wine and garlic sauce over fettuccine. The portions were a perfect size that I ate my whole dinner. There was a nice wine list with lots of wine by the glass. We were able to get in on a Wednesday night without reservations but they are recommended. read more

A great meal! We arrived promptly at 5p and were immediately seated. Our friendly waitstaff was attentive and quick to bring our adult beverage, the house red, and a pretty good one at that. Crab cakes started our meal and were delicious. The Thursday special, 3 cheese ravioli, was just a tad undercooked for my wife, but the scallops and risotto was EXCELLENT! read more

Unbelievable Italian cuisine even by big-city standards. A true gem. Great service and mood overall. With a minimalistic approach to the basics of Italian food, the dishes are crafted with finesse yet an overarching sense of familiarity and nostalgia. A must try when in town. read more

Great little Italian place with excellent service. The chef obviously is talented and asventurous. The mussel was done in a saffron creme sauce. A departure from the usual white wine garlic or tomato garlic. It's pretty good but not my favorite. The Ceasars salad was not overdressed and the minestrone soup was full and bold not your usual minestrone. The soup is made with tomatoe puree rather than just chunks of tomato and beans. Main course the veal Parmesean was a surprise. The crust was very flavorful and light. It was nothing line the normal dense crust. We came to find out its a panko crust. One of my favorite type of preparation. It give you the same parmesean crust feel without the density. The marinara sauce has a spiciness that was very interesting and intriguing. The seafood cloppino. Very good and tradional preparation but the protein succulent and tender. What impressed us was the pasta on both dishes was just perfect. read more

Awesome dinner! Salmon crostini was soooo good! Clams were perfect. Be sure to keep the sauce for dipping bread. Hubby had the lasagna - declared it to be the best ever. I had the Veal Marsala. I would have traded the pasta for mashed potatoes if I were to do over, but overall a wonderful meal. Our waitress was super friendly and helpful. Couldn't have been a better date night! read more

The food was amazing!!! Best eggplant Parmesan I've ever had. Not soggy or oily, but still crisp and flavorful. Waitstaff was super friendly as were the owners. Not sure why everyone is saying otherwise. Either way, this place is a must while you are staying in Ruidoso. read more

First time there service was excellent food was superb atmosphere is awesome will definitely be returning

We called ahead to see if we could get a table because we had a bad experience while waiting at a different restaurant nearby. Michael told us they were busy, but they would get us in. As it was a busy Saturday night we expected to wait a bit, but he sat us right away. Our server was wonderful and the food was amazing. We will be back the next time we are Ruidoso, we now have a new favorite restaurant in town. read more

Best fish. Orange roughy with a Mediterranean sauce. Very nice place. They even substituted the pasta for asparagus for me. Crab canes very tender and moist. Yummy. read more

My Wife and I want without reservations. Fortunately for us they were able to seat us. One of the owners came over and waited on us because they were so busy. The food was excellent, the service excellent. My wife and I do not drink, so not a big tab on our meal, but they treated is like top customers. read more

This restaurant is simply fantastic! From the environment to the outstanding food to the magnificent service they know what they're doing. The lasagna was definitely one of the best I've ever had. Only wish I had saved room for the house made dessert. And our server was very friendly and attentive. A must try! read more

We are visiting from out of town and came to this restaurant based on Yelp reviews. We didn't eat here, but had a terrible and unpleasant experience. We parked our car in the front parking lot alongside other parked cars. It had rained earlier and was drizzling when we arrived. Unbeknownst to us, this parking area was dirt, which did not provide traction. Our car got stuck. The owners were aware that the front parking area didn't provide traction due to other cars getting stuck in the past. The owners said they usually have the front parking area blocked with a No Parking sign. The male owner was unplesant, unhelpful and did not take any responsibility for this inadequate parking area. His wife was marginally helpful and also did not take any responsibility either. HOWEVER, the kitchen staff was extremely helpful and with their efforts helped solve our problem. Due to our unpleasant experience, we do not recommend this restaurant to anyone. read more

Have been there once / had to beg manager to let us eat. No customers there, but manager insisted we needed a reservation. Finally a waitress said she'd take care of us....GEE read more

We had dinner here Saturday night and the food was excellent as was the service. Micheal and the servers were friendly and attentive. The food was anything but salty as another person suggested. I called to see if we could get a table and was told it would need to be a small one in the bar in 30 minutes. I appreciated his honesty, and on a Saturday night I was happy to get in and while cozy, the table was fine. We will definitely come back if in Ruidoso. read more

Wonderful!!!! Chicken Piccata was amazing! Very charming atmosphere. Others in our party tried the lasagna. Great also! Wonderful wait staff. read more

This restaurant has a lot going for it, but the chef really needs to reevaluate how to prepare veal piccata. Instead of thinly pounded scallops of veal, the veal was probably 1/2"thick and served over pasta buried in a heavy lemon white sauce. Veal was tough. Other meal was fish over pasta and was quite good. Service was good and setting is nice. Would certainly go back. read more

I can't say enough about this place! My wife and I have been here several times. The only negative thing I could offer, if it can be considered a negative, They are so popular that they get absolutely booked very quickly! My recommendation is to make reservations the day before or maybe even two. read more

Best dining experience in town, hands down. The service does not miss a beat and the food is incredibly thoughtful and satisfying-in taste and expectation (a rarity for Ruidoso). Please go, you'll be glad you did. read more

All around fantastic experience. Michael Js deserves all the great reviews it receives. Went to eat here after I saw it was on some top 10 lists of best eats in Ruidoso. The dim lights, soft music and location creates a romantic environment. I enjoyed the Chicken Parm and my wife had the Cioppino with linguini. Followed it up with cheesecake which was fluffy and not too rich. Service was on point, Andy took care of us. read more

Sooooo disappointed! I have eaten at this restaurant 5 times, never again! From the time I made the reservation till the end I was disgusted. I asked for a table of 5 and was told my table would be needed in a hour in a half. When we arrived and placed our order's the waitress forgot one of drinks. She was rude and sarcastic! They could not pick our plate's up fast enough while we were dining. The food was disappointing. read more

Love this restaurant! I would highly recommend dining here. The salmon crostini was out of this world.

Your food and service was excellent! We arrived for our reservation at 5:30pm and were promptly seated and waited on. Nina was our server and she went above and beyond for us. *Make reservations ahead of time, they fill up quick!* WOW, the food! The Mussels were amazing, the Ravioli Special was out of this world, the Cioppino was delicious, and the Chocolate Torte was spot on! Homemade and hot! Honestly, some of the best Italian we've ever had, and we know food! I highly recommend hitting up this special little gem! Two thumbs way up! Thanks, Michael J's, you guys and gals made our evening extra special. Keep up the good work! We will definitely be back! read more

Came to town for my boyfriend's birthday weekend. Had been hearing wonderful things about this place. A couple months ago we came and made the mistake of not making a reservation... so this time I made a reservation a couple weeks before we came and we are so glad we did. The food was absolutely delicious, starting from the appetizers all the way down to the dessert. Our waitress Elisa was amazing. This place will definitely be our new dinner spot every time we come to town. read more

I absolutely loved this place! I have celiac so eating out is hard but we got into town later than expected and came here and they were so knowledgeable! My bf even ordered gluten-free so I could try his and he said it was amazing and he couldn't tell the difference. read more

Got the Veal Marsala and it had great flavor- Lots of garlic. I ordered it with extra mushrooms. Definitely a must if you like mushrooms. Also, had the bruschetta. It was good but not great. The Caesar salad was good however, the dressing was not homemade. Staff was very friendly and attentive and the music was great. It is definitely a good restaurant to check out while in ruidoso. The best one I have been to here thus far. read more

Dropped in the other night. We were able to be seated. We were greeted with a smile and our food and service was amazing.

After reading reviews we decided to eat here for dinner our last night in Ruidoso and were not disappointed. We called ahead to make a reservation as was recommended which was good as they got busy very quickly after we arrived. My husband had the lasagna which was a nice sized portion and I had the special of 3 Cheese Ravioli with Alfredo sauce. Both were wonderful. We shared a cheesecake to end the evening. The service was wonderful, Nina was great! We would highly recommend eating here. read more

We always go to MJ's when in town. As the owners of three local lodges we are very particular about where we send our guests and we always refer them to MJ's. We don't understand the 3 1/2 stars. They have never dropped the ball when we have been there and their wine list is one of the best in the area. Our guests have always responded possitively once they have eaten there. I highly recommend MJ's. read more

Thank god this place is here. It's one of the best places to eat. And the staff is amazing. The owners are so nice and accommodating making your experience out of this world. It's a must when in Ruidoso. read more

Very cute place, great atmosphere, nice wine selection. The homemade ravioli was out of this world and our server, Amy, was amazing! If you're in Ruidoso, you must eat here at least once. read more

Excellent food, good portions and great taste. Although a little pricey. One place to eat at for sure when Ruidoso.

Tried calling but got busy signal so stopped by to see if we could get a table and the hostess guy was totally rude. Me: "We'd like a table." Hostess: "Yeah, so. I'm completely booked." Really? That's how you run your business? Not a place I care to visit. That's for sure. read more

This is truly fine dining. Reservations made, sat immediately and blown away by the service and restaurant's delightful ambiance. The food was magnificent and the drinks kept filled. I had the thickest, juiciest pork chop in the history of man. I quickly nibbled from everyone else's plate in our party of eight (spaghetti, ravioli, lasagna and filet) and realized this place was in the top three Italian Restaurants I'd ever eaten at; I've been all over the globe five times over so I am no tastebud amateur. #NEVERDISAPPOINTED!!! read more

Favorite restaurant in Ruidoso! Great outdoor patio (weather permitting) with outdoor string lights & great 40's /50's era music. The food is always incredible ! We love the scallops, salmon, veal Marsala, and tiramisu and of course the wine! Service is always above excellent! read more