The Neighborhood Refuge — Restaurant in Ridgefield

My wife has been trying to get me to go here since it opened just a short while ago. We finally stopped in on a Sunday afternoon. Our first observation is that it looked packed from the street view. It was not! The parking is all along the street which is public and available to anyone who is wanting to access other venues along the corridor. It can be confusing. Don't let this stop you from checking in. Hopefully you can find a spot to park. Upon entering the property it gives off a really cool old world vibe. Classic truck parked out on the front lawn of a really old church. When you enter into the front entrance there is a small library and then into a beautifully decorated speak easy that lends itself to lots of space to enjoy cocktails with friends. Austin, the bartender greeted us warmly and gave us great info on their style of service and what was available. So far so good. A couple of areas that they fell short were, the trip tip sandwich lacked ample flavor. It was all in the sauce on the meat but nothing absorbed into the meat which tells me they don't marinate or they don't do it long enough. Easy fix if they want to. The other issue was that the fries are advertised as Rosemary fries. My wife questioned that. The owner was so gracious and amazing to check on it for us. He truly went above and beyond to let us know that the chef only uses a light seasoning. In the end, the advertised "Rosemary Fries" that come with your sandwich just ended up tasting like regular salted fries. Just a suggestion, if you have a chef serving all this delicious food, suggest to them that incorporating real rosemary and fresh seasonings and oils is really inexpensive and will go a long way in customer satisfaction. Other than a couple of things with the food, we highly recommend you try the Neighborhood Refuge out! You will be so...

As this place expands days open, they have a lot of potential. Friendly service, friendly crew, great ambiance and energy. Very homey, very relaxed, very good hangout. Looking forward to it!

This review will be updated again at the reviewer's next experience but at this time: the cocktails need a little more oomph to match the advertised (maybe leaning towards hyped?) "mixology" experience where this reviewer felt they are rather ordinary and common. Ice, if per "mixology" boogie hype, would have been clear ice to highlight the craft. The current cubes akin home freezer ice machine which unfortunately cheapened the well-intended concoction, which, by the way, was not bad at all (albeit common). Dress it up a little, almost there!

Food quality is very good. Flavoring is abundant with sparkles and well presented with delicious delights. Our compliments to the kitchen team.

Price point is mid-mid high range per person per experience, anticipate $40-$60 all said. This consists of an entry and a craft drink perhaps two or brews. Nowadays considered a mid to mid-high for per person per night.

The relaxing oversized lounge couch make it worthwhile the evening charge ($50 ballpark) for a gathering i.e. couple of hours long or three and your bottom will thank you for not punishing it on a hardwood barstool. This makes the Refuge a gathering spot, although quick bar and service is equally available and enjoyable.

Parking can be limited during peak or event hours. Do plan on street parking a block or so away, but all things considered given the location, this is reasonable if not expected.

Solid 4 stars with potential for the 5th and highly obtainable for this reviewer.

Yes, recommended, do come and...

Update We came here 6 months ago and I gave her a wonderful review You can see it below and how management replied. But ever since then I've been sincerely disappointed. The staff is still wonderful. Environment is still fantastic and beautiful. But I would probably give the food a two star now. They got rid of all the pasta dishes. And they got rid of the cheese for the pretzels. Now you only get Honey mustard and I hate that. I love the new deviled eggs and the chicken on top. But that's the only thing I like here now. I kept the same five stars on top because I didn't want to get rid of all the pictures. But this is the stuff that I used to love down below

It's is sixth month old review the one management responded to below.

This place has only been open for 43 days and they have never repeated a pasta dish once. Let me tell you their pasta is amazing probably the best pasta I've had in my life 💕. The refuge burger was good too. I absolutely adored the pretzels with the cheese dip and that delicious honey mustard. I put it on my refuge burger and it was a really good. My husband and I split the creme brulee cheesecake and boy that is wonderful too 😍. It has a lot of delicious complex flavors. This place is 21 and older so unfortunately I can't come here with a family, but it makes it perfect for a date night or anniversary. They have really gorgeous outside seating too. Austin was our waiter today and we really appreciated him. He was very sweet and and attentive. A fabulous experience here tonight. If you haven't tried this place yourself you definitely should. I dare to say it's even better than the Melting Pot and a heack of a lot cheaper. This place feels like a high-end restaurant with...