The Fruit Yard — Restaurant in California

We went to see Buddy Guy. It was pretty easy getting there for the 6:30 start time. Traffic was light and there was only a short line to park. We arrived at 6:15 and after the short parking line walked up to be searched before entry. Standard concert procedures. This place is a great Amphitheater for concerts. It's like a little Shoreline. Which is part of the up and coming problems they are going to have in the near future. If you look at the website you get the feeling that it's much bigger than it really is. Asking 120 bucks for up close and personal seats would have been a waste of the extra 65 bucks due to the fact that it's so small. For it being so new it's going to be a great place for only a little while. Once the word gets out and more people start making the drive it won't be so great. They made some serious design mistakes that will come back to bite them on their backsides. First one is the section between the seats and the lawn. It's wide open for people to walk from one side where the portable outhouses are and the snack food vendors are located but the lawn should have been raised up about 4 feet at least. As it is now, they have to have a minimum of 3 sercurity guards to keep people moving along that want to stop and look at the stage. If they don't keep the people moving they will be blocking the view for the lawn goers. They also don't have any type of big screen to broadcast to the lawn goers. Which means some people will want to bring binoculars. I don't think they are allowed. Which brings me to the next mistake. They don't allow you to bring in any kind of refreshments of your own. I get they want to make money selling their over priced drinks 12 bucks for a 8oz drink or 8 bucks for a beer. At least The Shoreline lets you bring in soft drinks in an unopened plastic bottle and unopened plastic bottle of water. You don't really think people are going to bring the whole family and pay that kind of money for refreshments do you? I actually called the number on the website just before leaving for the show and after 3 rings I get 'Hello?' Yep, just one of the owners answering like you just called him at home while he was watching tv. I found that kinda funny and also very endearing. He was very polite and friendly while we talked for a couple of minutes. The family has a great start to something that could be really good for them and us. I sure hope they can see what the price of a refreshment should really be. I don't mind paying a little more that's expected and accepted. But paying 8 bucks for one beer when I can buy a six pack for the same price is just a tad out there. And by the way, it was a warm night and the show was excellent as always with Buddy Guy. He still makes his walk through the audience which is a big thrill for anyone that has never gotten to see a master of his craft up close and personal. I've seen him a couple of times a year when he gets close. The drive is nothing to see a legend. We won't have him for much longer so make sure you get out to see him at the first chance you...

Update: Saturday, December 10, 2022, p.m.

Second time we’ve been here in two weeks. The first time the experience was just OK. Tonight we went back looking forward to the combination appetizer. Last time it was hot, fresh and excellent. This time we had to send it back. Only a couple of items were cooked fresh. The rest had been cooked earlier and were soggy and not good.

I ordered prime rib. It was just OK. Barely warm. $39! My son said his filet was good. $40. We both had the baked potatoes would had been cooked several hours earlier and were not hot or good at all. We pretty much do not touch them.

Our bill was $109! Nope, we won’t be back.

————————— I’ve eaten here a couple of times in the past but it’s been quite a while ago. My son and I were looking for someplace different in the Modesto area. I decided to take him here. As we drove up all he saw at first was the gas station and the little fruit stand/store. I think he was almost disappointed. But his disappointment changed as we round the corner to the restaurant! He was a lot happier! The best way I can describe the physical restaurant is something similar to a Black Angus restaurant. That’s the vibes it gives off. We started with the variety plate appetizer. We were quite impressed. Nice variety and everything was hot and fresh! Definitely would order this again.

For dinner, my son ordered the filet and I ordered the 16 ounce prime rib. I was a little disappointed when Matthew told me they had run out of prime rib. I had to make another choice so I chose a boneless ribeye. My son got exactly what he ordered. I was served a T-bone instead of a ribeye. Actually, the T-bone had a very good flavor and I was not disappointed. I enjoyed a bowl of the potato cheese soup and my son enjoyed a serving from the salad bar. Since my order was a little screwed up Matthew was kind enough to comp dessert. We both chose a slice of their in-house homemade pie. My son had the lemon cream and I had banana cream. We were both more than satisfied with the pie. Thank you, Matthew for doing that! Overall we had a great dining experience. And we both are looking forward to returning soon. They have all kinds of specials running throughout the week. They have a crab feed coming up this next weekend. They have different buffets throughout the week and brunch on Sunday. I posted several pictures of the different events that they have. It would pay to scroll through those photos and see everything they offer. It looks like they also host big-name entertainment. Special kudos to Ruby our friendly and competent server and to one of the managers, Matthew, who was always checking in on us and making sure we...

My personal experience regarding the memorial event I planned at this establishment definitely had it's drawbacks and discouragements! It was like a sauna under the tent at the Lakeside Pond. It was hot that day and the pond water caused increased humidity. You would think a few industrial style patio fans could be installed to allow air flow to help patrons be more comfortable while in attendance. I found working with and communicating with staffing problematic! I was assured and promised everything would work out and not to worry. After all it was my special day. Not so! There were many glitches. Too many to mention, but one that I am beefing about is the over charge and miss-handling of the food. I had 85 in attendance, but was charged 126 adult plates, because those where the RSVP. But, I was told the food would be brought out as needed. I was even charged full price for the child's plate. Should have been a child's plate at half price. I gave specific instructions as to where I wanted the food tables to be set up and that was in a shaded area. But instead they were placed in the sun without a bed of ice to support the salad and fruit bowls. They got hot and withered to say the least. I was assured there would be plenty of food to take home. After all I did pay for it and it was an all you can eat style-buffet. The food quantity and people I was charged for doesn't add up! The Fruit Yard establishment is understaffed and the employees being shifting around to cover these events are under knowledge!! If this establishment is going to take hard earned monies of people in the community coming to them and trusting them to pull an event off, then they need to be on top of their game and provide the excellence the payee is looking for! Another suggestion...clean up the environment. It's look grungy and...