Ruth's Chris Steak House — Restaurant in Maui

A birthday dinner brought me and my gang to Maui's second Ruth's Chris, located in the Shops at Wailea.

BRIEF HISTORY: The original Chris Steak House was founded in 1927 in New Orleans by entrepreneur Chris Matulich. The business was sold to single mother Ruth Fertel in 1965, who had no experience in the steakhouse biz. She was self-taught on the fundamentals of butchery and utilized her brother's restaurant space and family recipes to start up her new venture. After a fire destroyed the original building in 1976, she moved to another location but the sales agreement prevented her from utilizing the same name at a different address, so hence the new name of Ruth's Chris was born.

ATMOSPHERE: I'm pretty sure the restaurant had a nice ocean view years ago before an empty parcel that backs up to the restaurant developed a hotel/condo that rudely took away their entire view. The inside is simple yet elegantly decorated. Seating is a mix of low tops and huge booths. The vibe was a bit dreary as the place wasn't that crowded, but we did dine at 8:30pm which could be the reason why. Americans eat so early compared to the rest of the world.

MENU: Seafood-based apps, salads, soups, steak, fish, lamb, chicken, shrimp, desserts.

FOOD: Escargot Five pieces came to a dish. Not many places on Maui serve this, so when available, I have to order it! Ruth's version was surprisingly good. The shelled snails were moist, buttery, cheesy and served hot.

Louisiana Seafood Gumbo Thank you to those who posted pics of this as you're the reason why I ordered it! I absolutely love gumbo and had many-a-bowl in the motherland just last year. If I didn't know better, I'd have thought I was back in Naw'lins. Seriously that good. Savory, flavorful and I didn't share one spoonful! Highly recommended.

Petite Filet & Lobster Tail (special) The steak was very good, the lobster tail not so much. It was moist but mushy for the most part. Was it under or over cooked? Old? Should've stuck with shrimp.

Baked Potato I'm glad our server informed us that the sides are big enough for two to share. The menu description listed this spud as a whole pound, so my friend and I thankfully split it as it was huge! The potato was done nice and firm, moist and topped generously with cheese, sour cream and bacon (I nixed the chives).

Roasted Brussels Sprouts This was a great veggie dish to split between the four of us. The flavors and texture were spot-on.

Cremini Mushrooms I'm a mushroom freak and probably could've eaten the whole thing by myself. Whole mushrooms were done in a savory, buttery sauce and went well with everything!

SERVICE: Host greeting was immediate and friendly.

Jared (2019) took exceptional care of us. He has a great personality and sense of humor that made our evening that much more enjoyable. Thanks!

OVERALL: Very good food, sans for my lobster tail. The prices are high but...

Our last night in Hawaii was truly unforgettable, thanks to the incredible dining experience at Ruth’s Chris Steak House in Wailea. From the moment we walked in, everything—from the service to the food to the ambiance—exceeded our expectations.

Reservations & Seating:

A few things to note before dining here: reservations are highly recommended, especially if you prefer a booth. Walk-ins are usually seated at standard tables with chairs, as booths are reserved for guests who book in advance. Also, while the steaks are the star of the menu, they do not come with sides unless you order a combo meal. Otherwise, you’ll need to select your sides separately, which is well worth it considering the quality of the dishes.

Early Bird Special:

We arrived early and inquired about their Early Bird Special, which offers a discounted price on select menu items between 4:30 PM and 6:00 PM. It was a great deal, so we decided to take advantage of it.

Our Meal:

For our entrées, I ordered the Chilean Sea Bass with garlic mashed potatoes, while my wife chose the steak and shrimp combo, which also came with garlic mashed potatoes and a dessert. For her dessert, she picked the Lilikoi (passion fruit) sorbet, which was light, refreshing, and the perfect way to end the meal.

Every bite of our dinner was absolutely delicious—the flavors were rich, the portions were generous, and the quality of the ingredients was evident. My sea bass was perfectly cooked, buttery, and flaky, while my wife’s steak was exactly what you’d expect from a high-end steakhouse: tender, juicy, and full of flavor.

Service & Atmosphere:

The service was exceptional from start to finish. The host greeted us warmly, and each staff member—from the server who brought our water to the one who took our order—was attentive, professional, and genuinely friendly. They made sure we had everything we needed without being intrusive, which elevated the entire experience.

The ambiance at Ruth’s Chris was elegant yet relaxed, with dim lighting that created an intimate and cozy atmosphere. When we first arrived, the window shades were down to block the bright afternoon sun, but as the evening progressed and the sun set, the shades were raised to reveal a breathtaking view of the night sky. It was a beautiful touch that added to the overall charm of the restaurant.

Final Thoughts:

What can I say about Ruth’s Chris Steak House? Their steak is everything you could dream of—a cut above what you’d find at a regular restaurant that doesn’t specialize in steak. If I ever return to Maui, I would definitely dine here again, especially for a special occasion or a night out with family. But for now, I’ll have to satisfy my steak cravings at the Ruth’s Chris location back home.

Thank you, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, for an amazing evening filled with incredible food, top-notch service, and an unforgettable...

My husband and I brought our three teenagers to Maui with us to vacation while my husband attended a medical conference. We thought it would be such a fun memory to treat our kids to a wonderful dinner at Ruth’s Chris on our last night in Wailea. Let me preference this review with the fact that my husband and I are frequent customers at the Ruth’s Chris in Salt Lake City and always respect the atmosphere of the restaurant and dress up for dinners, but were unaware of the restaurant’s hat policy. Though I absolutely appreciate and will always adhere to a dress code, our experience at the Maui Ruth’s Chris was excessive and could have been handled so much better. About 30 minutes in to our dinner the hostess rushed our table and loudly and extremely sternly told my boys to remove their hats immediately! It definitely drew the attention of other patrons and embarrassed my family, especially my boys, profusely. There was no explanation or even an attempt of a quiet whisper of the restaurant’s policy, the hostess wanted to make sure that other patrons saw and heard her severe reprimand. The most confusing part of this encounter was that there was another family sitting at the table next to ours with a boy wearing a ball cap and nothing was said to them during their meal.

I’m sad and so very disappointed that this is how we ended our last night in Maui. This is an embarrassing memory my family will take home instead of the beautiful dinner I had envisioned. Yes, we were unaware of the hat policy and should have reviewed the dress code before dinner, but I would expect the staff at a Ruth’s Chris to be well versed on polite, professional and appropriate ways to handle an incident like this ESPECIALLY when dealing...