Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, Hawaii Island Restaurant Review

The restaurant reviewed is:
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
68-1330 Mauna Lani Dr,
The Shops at Mauna Lani,
Kamuela,
HI 96743
(808) 887-0800

Kwai’s Dish
1lb Rib eye steak with a loaded 1lb potato (sour cream, bacon, cheese)
Yiki’s Dish
40 USD sunday special 1lb Rib eye steak with a loaded 1lb potato (sour cream, bacon, cheese)
Exterior
Located at the Mauna Lani shopping mall on the 1st floor (2nd floor for our US friends)
Interior
Layout was Chicago gangster style tables and booths with super large tables with clean thick white cloth on top.
Service
Served by one waitress, female mid 40s. Service was friendly and food was transported on a luxury looking cart.
Toilets
Toilets were very clean and well maintained.
Review
First thing’s first – everything here is big! The layout is big, the space between tables is big, the doorways are big, the tables are big, the seats are big, the waitresses are, um…. Anyway the place is comfortable and the mood is very warm with nicely polished hardwood everywhere. It’s like all those old American gangster films where the bad guy orders the hit! So on to the food. We chose the cheapest thing on the menu which on the day was the Sunday special. It comes out on a gigantic plate on a gigantic trolley with a side of a gigantic 1lb baked potato with an enormous portion of random toppings like fake bacon bits. The steak is not cooked on the large flat side like most places or at home, instead it’s cooked until burnt on the outside of the steak. To accomplish this the steak is very thick cut. One advantage is that you can see when the middle is cooked to the preferred done state. One massive disadvantage is the seasoning, the middle tasted of nothing. The experience was texture only, it was so bland in the middle I almost cried. On the outside where it was burnt it was pretty inedible but the parts I could chew, I felt an explosion of salt. In between the burnt crust and the bland middle was a great steak, but the middle and crust took up too much of the steak.
If you are bold enough to call yourself a steakhouse then make sure your steak is great! Big does not equal great, it’s all about the quality! The execution from the kitchen did not meet the expectation of the atmosphere or the service. Overall I was sadly disappointed, it’s like going to a great looking new cinema only to watch the movie on a 12 inch black and white TV.
Score
8/20
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Click here for a review of Ruth Chris Steak House @ The Mauna Lani Mall
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