My wife and I needed some away time as a couple and decided to stay in Northwest Arkansas, specifically Bentonville, for the Valentines weekend. We decided to return to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for Valentines supper. We dined at Ruth's before for Valentines, but at their original location. Apparently, they had moved to their new location since our last experience. I can't say the new location is an improvement. The original location was a dedicated building with easy parking, and elegant atmosphere with a relaxed vibe, and the tables were bigger and less crowded. The new version is a structure that is part of a complex of buildings with parking that seems shared with other businesses. There is also valet parking, which seems unnecessary, that reserves some of the best parking spots. When you enter the restaurant, there is a smallish foyer with the check in desk where you stand with a large group of others waiting to be seated, even with reservations. Now granted, this was a busy Valentines evening, but you felt like you were getting ready to board a flight instead of waiting to dine at a fancy restaurant. In the old location, when being seated, you entered a large dining room and were seated at a spacious table or booth. In the new location, there is upstairs and downstairs dining areas. It's a huge building with multiple dining rooms that we had to wind our way through, following our seater, and there really wasn't a walkway through each room, just winding through closely spaced tables. We finally reached our table and things got better. Our server was friendly and nice, but he stated being new and I don't think he was ready to serve people on a busy Valentines evening, but he did his best. We had to kindly ask for the bread and butter and also for the rose petals that everyone else had scattered on their tables, but otherwise, he did okay.
Now, for the meal. New or old location, the food is beyond reproach in its preparation and quality. Both of our entrees were delicious and well prepared and served hot. We started with the chilled shrimp cocktail, which is served with a cocktail sauce and a remoulade sauce, and you get four large shrimp. The cocktail was tasty, but $20+ for four shrimp was a little much. My wife ordered the Norwegian Salmon for her entree and I ordered the 8 ounce Petite Filet with Shrimp. Both proteins were excellent and perfectly cooked. My steak was a perfect medium rare and almost fork tender. The sides are served family style and are enough for two to share. We had the Fire-roasted Corn, the Cremini Mushrooms and the Grilled Asparagus. All the sides were tasty and well prepared. They have a good wine selection, by the glass or bottle. We opted for the Mer Soleil Chardonnay bottle at $50. This is one of the least expensive bottles, but delicious nonetheless. It was a crisp, dry Chardonnay with a mild sweetness and paired well with the steak and salmon, in our opinion.
Ruth's is not a cheap place to dine, and you should be aware of that going in. Our total bill was around $250 + gratuity. At that price point, you expect others to dress accordingly, and, for the most part, they did. But, unfortunately, there were some that thought they were at Texas Roadhouse, especially the guy with the gray pullover hoodie.
Overall, the food is five stars, but I had to give this new Ruth's three stars due to the less than relaxing building and parking and an overly crowded dining experience. Not sure we'll be back. Atlas the Restaurant in the Fayetteville area is better for relaxed elegant dining. read more