Ranch House Restaurant — Restaurant in Colorado

When I moved here 8 years ago this was one of my favorite places to eat. After the experience we had last night it’s safe to say will not be back.

We were very excited they were hosting a Chef Tasting Menu by a two star Michelin Chef. Finding that kind of experience in the mountains is hard to come by. This menu was $275 per person. The dinner was advertised from 5:30-9:00 with a Q&A with the chef after.

We arrived at 5:00pm to have a drink before and the bartender told us that this was not included with our dinner. Obviously we knew that but thought it was strange he felt the need to tell us that.

Around 6pm we asked when they were going to start seating because it was suppose to be at 5:30. We were told about 15 min. Finally we were seated around 6:15. By this point we were starving since dinner was suppose to start 45 min earlier. You could tell by how the seating was going it was just going to be a mess the entire night.

We finally received our first course at 7:50 which was absolutely ridiculous. We were not the only people complaining about this. I understand delays happen but receiving your first course almost 2 and a half hours dinner was suppose to start is absurd. The first course was meh. The second course was steak tartare which is one of my favorite dishes. This should be bright red and raw steak. This dish came out grey and was not appealing at all. It was like they made it the day before and it oxidized which is why it was that color. It tasted fine but was not visually appealing which is also part of a meal like this the presentation. Both of these courses we had to ask for our wine that was suppose to be paired with each course.

I couldn’t even tell you what the next course was. Some sort of trout roulette. This was probably the fishiest fish I’ve ever had in my life. The texture was very strange and just not good. It was not a good representation of highlighting the trout.

Now we are at 9pm when the dinner is suppose to be ending and we haven’t even has the last two courses yet. These courses were fine nothing wrong with them but also nothing to write home about. Also the portions were beyond small. I’ve been to countless tasting menus and I know the portions are small because you are trying all kinds of things but you should at least be full when you leave.

By 10pm we have not even gotten to the dessert courses. We could not wait any longer since we paid a car service to drive us to and from because of the wine pairing. We ended up having to pay for an additional hour just because they were so far behind in the meal.

The tables next to us did not order the wine paring but yet they still received all the wine. That was also frustrating for our group since we paid the $275 for the wine pairing and they only paid $200.

All in all this was a complete was of money. Very disappointing for the price we paid and the level of service. One nice thing was at least the entire table was served at the same time.

They definitely need to change some things ASAP because this is was an...

Terrible experience that cost $600 for two...

Service - The server had limited knowledge of the menu and was only capable of quoting the menu itself. This is a problem when one is choosing between $130 steaks and wants to understand differences/nuances. Also, zero knowledge of the wine list. Despite it being a holiday weekend (Saturday), the manager (who apparently knows wine) was not there. When we got to desert, the peach cobbler was essentially inedible - cold, no flavor, etc. We let the server know and she literally said, "oh, okay" (no appology or offer to replace). Surprisingly (or not), she didn't remove it from the bill.

Food - The wagyu beef tartar appetizer was mediocre and served with what appeared to be Ritz crackers - weird. One out of two steaks was cooked properly and was very good the other was overcooked and marginal, at best (each was $130+). Given the missing server, we just powered through the meal. The side of asparagus was good - yay! The peach cobbler desert, was terrible - brick hard ice cream on top of a cold ramekin filled with cold cobbler.

Atmosphere - So unfortunate that the Service and Food were so poor because the atmosphere was really terrific and I'd love to make this a regular go-to. I will also add that the cocktails were good, even though they took a long time to show up (after appetizer had arrive).

Summary - Overall, the weirdest and probably, worst, fine dining experience I can recall. The fact that service was so incredibly poor at such an expensive restaurant was just astounding. It was like they were ghost walking through their job - not a care in the world. Alas, there's another steak place, certainly more casual but delicious, just down the road which will get our business...

Disappointing Experience at Devil’s Thumb Ranch House Restaurant

We were genuinely excited to dine at Devil’s Thumb Ranch House, expecting a refined experience from a highly regarded establishment. While the service from our server was truly phenomenal—warm, attentive, and professional—the food and management response left much to be desired.

The meal began on a sour note, quite literally, with a salad that was bitter, poorly seasoned, and shockingly included a live white worm crawling among the lettuce. This alone was appalling and instantly turned our stomachs. The presence of a live insect in any dish is unacceptable, especially at a restaurant of this caliber.

To make matters worse, the manager’s response to this serious issue felt dismissive. Only the salad, oysters, and crudités were comped. The crudités themselves were overpowered by saffron and oddly reminiscent of green bean casserole with French onion topping- a confusing and unappealing flavor combination. Despite losing our appetite entirely, we were still charged for our beverages and a bottle of wine meant to accompany our main course, which we obviously never received.

The food overall was mediocre at best, with no dish redeeming the experience after the disturbing start. The lack of balanced acidity and finesse in the flavors only compounded the disappointment.

While we appreciated our server’s gracious demeanor, the manager’s lackluster handling of a very serious health and hospitality issue was deeply disappointing. At a restaurant like this, we expected much more—both in terms of food quality and guest care. Unfortunately, this experience has left a lasting...