I recently traveled to California for business and while I was out there someone recommended that we try Ruth Chris's Steakhouse. They said as far as steak goes, this restaurant could not be beaten. I went with high expectations, and was not let down.

Atmosphere
Let me begin by saying that this is technically a chain restaurant. There are Ruth Chris's all over the country. I went to the one in Irvine, California (at least I think it was Irvine, it might have been in the neighboring town.) This is the only time I have been to one so don't hold me responsible for other locations.

The inside and outside of the restaurant was really nice. Once large room had windows from the floor to the ceiling. The room was round so you have a view of the entire surrounding area.

I was very impressed with the inside of Ruth Chris's. The decor was very elegant, but at the same time had a "home" feel to it.

Food
We began the meal with a shrimp cocktail appetizer. It was very tasty and they were some of the largest shrimp I have ever eaten. The appetizer was also $10 so I guess it should be pretty good.

For the main course I ordered the Filet Mignon. I ordered the steak medium and it came out cooked perfect. Another aspect of this meal that I loved was the way the meal was prepared. It came wrapped with bacon and on a plate covered with boiling butter. (I know, its very fattening, but once in awhile is okay...right?) The total for the steak alone was $30.

One thing I didn't like about Ruth Chris's is everything is a la carte. The potatoes we ordered were $6 extra. The broccoli with cheese...$6 extra. This makes a $30 meal become very expensive, very fast.

By the end of this meal we were very full. I didn't have any room to try the dessert although I was very tempted by the Chocolate cake. Maybe next time...

Service
The service I recieved while dining was top notch. I guess it should be for the tips they receive, but it's always nice to get really good service. Every time we needed another drink, they came over without having to call for them.

They had seperate people responsible for the water, bread, and meal so there were always people around to get whatever you needed.

The total meal came to $140 for two of us. As you can see, this isn't the cheapest place in the world to eat. It really was an A+ meal, but you have to ask yourself, is any meal really worth $70 a person. I'll let you be the judge...

Recommended: Yes