(Note: no reply. Letter sent registered mail. Signed receipt returned.)

 

January 5, 2012

Ruth's Hospitality Group, Inc.
Mr. Michael O'Donnell
Chairman, President, and CEO
400 International Parkway, Suite. 325
Heathrow, Florida 32746

Dear Mr. O'Donnell,

I am writing to you today because my wife and I have always had great respect for the Ruth’s Chris name and the outstanding fine dining it offers to customers.  We have always been delighted in the uniquely seared steaks of unmatched quality with its signature of impeccable service.  It is what we have come to expect when visiting a Ruth’s Chris restaurant.

So it was with great anticipation that we watched the construction of a new Ruth’s Chris restaurant in the Biltmore Village area of south Asheville, North Carolina, not far from where we live in Weaverville.  After your new restaurant had been open for a few weeks in December 2011, I made reservations for seating at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, New Year’s Eve.
  
Upon our first visit to your Asheville store, we found the service outstanding with a well-trained new staff running like a fine watch, people calling us by our last names with constant attention throughout the evening.  But when the food was served, it was as if someone fumbled the ball. 

To begin the evening, we found the bread very ordinary and served only at room temperature.  When we asked if we could have hot bread, our waitress brought it immediately and apologized.  My wife had ordered the New Year’s Evening $65 special, while I selected from the menu.  Having arrived within a half hour of opening, we waited an unusually long time for just our salads.  Then after the salad, we had to wait even longer for our entrée with one side.   

Eventually a manager strolled by and asked how our dinners were. While my wife said nothing about her entrée, I told him my steak seemed tough, grisly and chewy. The manager asked how tough was it. 

“It’s tough,” I said, not believing what I was served. Steaks I had ordered before from Ruth’s Chris, such as in West Palm, had always melted in my mouth. He said he was surprised, the 16-ounce steak I ordered was his favorite, and he would check back later. We never saw him again.

Picture of remaining frozen steak from Ruth Chris that the restaurant in Asheville said was 16 ounce, their price $40. But the steak was tough and filled with grizzle, as you can see from the photo. We had previously eaten at Ruth Chris at two locations in Florida and one in New Jersey, always finding the dinners excellent and why we were stunned in Asheville on New Year's Eve of 2011 for the dinner that was served to us.

I also noted to my wife the steak served seemed almost small, not that much larger than a 9-ounce steak at Applebees.  In fact the steak easily fit within the bottom border of the small oblong plate. 

My wife ordered the halibut, garlic encrusted.  But she said if it hadn’t been for the garlic, it would have been almost tasteless.  As a side she had the required asparagus while I had oil-sautéed spinach.  My spinach was excellent.  But the asparagus, while large, was ordinary for her.

I remember larger plates when previously visiting other Ruth’s Chris restaurants, where I could cut my steak and still have plenty of room for spooning sides next to it. In fact the entire plate was so small an asparagus stalk would not fit comfortably on my wife’s plate and dropped to the floor. Some sauce found its way onto my wife's dress with the cloth napkin, thank goodness, catching most of it. The special evening we had been looking forward to was now disappointing. 

After having the table cleared, I asked that the uneaten steak be saved in a take-home bag with the gristle dropped in for consumption by our African Gray.  We were then able to share an excellent dessert before completing the evening.  However the cup of coffee that was served with the desert was just luke warm.  My wife had tea, looking for natural sugar.  But none was available. 

I then paid the check with an American Express credit card along with a $50 American Express Gift Card I had been saving to visit your Asheville store when it opened.  Our two dinners came to $151.  We always pay 20% for the service, so the final bill was around $180.
  
As we waited for our car, I asked the woman at the front desk if she wanted a candid opinion of our dining experience, since the manager had not returned. I then related the story about the steak and the manager’s reaction as written above, being sure to add that the service from our waitress was excellent. I then told her we would be happy to talk with someone about the experience, while making it clear we weren’t interested in any discount for a future visit.  She took our phone number and name, saying someone would call.  But as of this writing no one has.

My wife and I are retired from New Jersey, both 70 years old.  We enjoy visiting on occasion other fine restaurants outside the downtown area of Asheville that includes establishments such as The Corner Kitchen, Rezaz, Pomodoros, Carrabba's, and the Grove Park Inn, to name a few.

You should know after living here for eight years, I had only made one complaint to a restaurant.  It was on Valentine's Day in 2011 at 131 Main in Biltmore Towne Square, located just outside the entrance of a newer Regal Stadium movie theatre.  Unlike Ruth’s Chris, 131 Main’s food was excellent.  However, their service and treatment of us was almost embarrassing. 

We had just left the movies around 4:30 - 5 p.m., and I wanted to take my wife for a special dinner.  To our surprise the restaurant was almost empty. I asked for a booth where it was warmer.  But I was told because of Valentine's Day all the tables were reserved.  So we were seated next to some very large cold windows that looked out onto the street on one side and onto an almost empty restaurant on the other. I was chilled and cold the entire hour we sat there. When leaving at around 6 p.m., we noted at least 70% of the booths and tables were still empty. 

I also wrote a letter to the management of 131 Main in Charlotte.  The Asheville store manager called my wife.  She told him we had entered the restaurant in jeans coming from the movie theatre, and felt those seating us seemed almost offended by our dress.  I told him I wasn't looking for any voucher. But he still sent a letter with a $100 voucher with instructions to contact him when eating there again. However as of today, that voucher still sits in a file with our having no intention of using it. We may go back one day to see if things have changed at 131 Main.

Best regards.