Ruth's Chris Steak House — Restaurant in Gaithersburg

Went with a friend for the Happy Hour hamburger and fries special for $14.00 in the bar area on Sunday, January 28, 2024. Ordered my burger medium rare; it came burnt and well done...no pink inside at all. My friend ordered hers medium; hers came back well done as well with no pink inside. So, after approximately 12 minutes of not being able to eat our charred food with the waitress missing in action, not having checked back within the requisite two to five minutes of having been served -- by someone else -- to see if our food was satisfactory ("Restaurant 101"), we finally saw her and flagged her down to send both meals back and tried again for our medium rare and medium burgers. While we politely explained to her our reasons for returning the burgers, the young waitress made a point of stating that it wasn't her fault how the meat was cooked, even though we did not at all blame her... just explained why the burgers weren't made to order in the hope she'd understand and articulate that to the "chef." Her reaction was immature and unprofessional; my friend and I, both decades older than the waitress, felt like we were sitting in a dump, not Ruth's Chris Steak House. While we were waiting -- far too long -- our waitress passed our table without a blink, so, we caught her and asked how much longer (really, she should have checked on her own), and she replied soon then went behind the bar, which was not all that busy. It took way more time than it should have, and we knew our burgers were again going to be overcooked...and, when finally served again by some guy who wasn't our server, they were: next to no pink inside. By then we were starving, so, we ate them (the fries were good, at least) but didn't order any dessert or coffee because the service and cooking was so sub-standard for this, or any, restaurant. Heck, McDonald's cooks burgers better and the staff is better trained -- you get no snarky comments to ruin your Happy Meal!

Back in the day, and the last time I had been to a Ruth's Chris around the late 90s, this restaurant chain was known for its expensive but delicious meals cooked to perfection. Now I understand why it wasn't crowded, except for a few drinkers around the bar. So incredibly disappointing. I won't be returning to this, or likely any, Ruth's Chris...

I am leaving this review less than an hour after leaving this premise, Ruth Chris, Gaithersburg, MD. Not only was I disappointed, but my wife and I were infuriated at the condescending treatment and that lack of empathy or understanding that we received from this establishment. Issue is that I had a reservation at this Ruth Chris; unfortunately, they were unable to honor it because I did not arrive on time or within the 15 min window they allow for delays. Yes, my reservation was for 7pm, I was unable to make it by 7:15pm but I was there at 7:16pm. I called earlier on to let them know I was running 10mins late; however, life does have its way. The 10mins did not account for the car in front of us that held us up as the owners waited to park in a slot that a client was exiting; nor did it account for the fact that we would take elevator and come off on the opposite side of the building. So, with that, my hand grabbed the Ruth Chris door as the minute hand hit the 16min mark. The host never gave us even a second to explain or even try to work with us - instead, he gave a remark suggesting we can sit at the bar as it was open sitting. Based on how he communicated to us, I felt some bit of ego, biasness and a condescending attitude: I do not want to go into assumptions but I did ask myself if he would have treated us any different if we were not a minority (black). If you are reading this - avoid this place, do not eat here and do not give them your money. As clients, a mistreatment on one of us is a mistreatment against all of us. Am sure experiences are different, and you will find plenty of people who will swear on the good service that this establishment provides let alone the food. But the question is, when do we stop thinking about us as a people with a commonality and start thinking about us as a society. This type of mistreatment is not right and should not be condoned anywhere.

Edit - response to the request below by owner. Unfortunately, I lack the incentive nor do I need one to respond to your request. Please work on your corporate governance and how you implement policies and controls around creating an effective customer experience...

It's solid as a Ruth's Chris goes. Bethesda and DC location are better, but for upper Montgomeru county, this is very good if not great. Location is very convenient. I went what turns out to be the last day of the RW. Due to COVID-19, there is social distancing and safety measures implemented such as the menu has been simplified to a large sheet of fancy paper (it's not as bad as a regular sheet of paper but maybe 18"x20" nice quality paper/cardstock(?)) The happy hour menu is also paper format. the happy hour offering food-wise has been greatly reduced (down to 3 items). I think the drinks have not been changed, if that helps.

The lounge(?) area has changed a lot. due to COVID-19, the bar itself does not allow people to sit there. Also, due to social distancing, it's sorta an additional wall so that tables for 2 can be placed up against it. Very roomy. It should make people feel safer.

I have gone to this location for a few years now and only realized today that I haven't written a review yet. As I mentioned at the beginning, this is solid, but not great. the free bread this time was not hot/warm, but that could be due to luck and the fact I was there around 445pm or 5pm on Sunday. The butter is nice. It happened to be last day of DC Restaurant Week. The crab stuffed mushrooms were okay. The ribeye was better than okay. (I wondered if it was medium well by accident instead of the meidum I requested, but when I finally saw some pink instead of thoroughly cooked meat, I was relieved. I don't want to waste food...As another reviewer mentioned, it's a hit or miss...this time, it's not a home run. closer to maybe a base hit, maybe) Temprature on plate was sizzling. (Nice) The cheesecake was cute.

This is a good place due to convenience and the value is good. I think the happy hour menu, limited as it is, might be the safer option. Otherwise, ordering from regular menu is recommended(?). It's not cheap, but it's decent value and I'm glad that Ruth Chris has this location in Gaithersburg. ...