Remember how I said that Anaheim was a really tough place to find a good place to eat? Well, it’s still true. However, the renaissance seems to be building momentum and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
Enter The Ranch Restaurant & Saloon. A beautifully crafted restaurant and saloon that occupies the ground floor of a modern office building near downtown Anaheim. Step inside and you’ll see. Everything from the floor to the ceiling is immaculate. I’m talking major points for attention to detail. It won’t surprise you then to tell you that the owner of the restaurant happens to be Andrew Edwards, the president of Extron Electronics, Inc., whose name happens to be on the side of the building. Extron has a lot to do with the design of the place, especially when it comes to the audio-visual components that encapsulate the experience.
The restaurant is separated from the saloon. In fact, there are two separate entrances. I didn’t check out the saloon, so all my comments are geared towards the restaurant. It’s my understanding that there are good eats to be had over at the saloon if you’re going to make a night out of dancing.
The food here is the highlight of the experience. Farm to table is the emphasis, and they mean it. The Ranch serves a seasonal menu that is supplied by their own ranch and local farms. Meat and seafood come from high quality ranches and sustainable sources. You’ll believe it when you taste it.
The service is excellent. The wait staff know their stuff. I was especially impressed with the manager. I honestly can’t remember his name, but he wasn’t like other restaurant managers that come by once during service to ask how your meal is going. What stuck out to me was that he led by example. I saw him helping the wait staff expedite service and took the time to go to the kitchen to get a question answered for me, ensuring to come back in a timely manner to give me the answer. That’s the kind of guy that every employer needs. You can’t teach that stuff.
The Ranch Restaurant & Saloon – Anaheim
Yep, it’s my favorite. A Rob Roy. I was actually surprised that the bartender used a regular maraschino cherry instead of a homemade one like I have had at other high end restaurants. Perhaps the only small detail I was slightly disappointed about. Don’t get me wrong, it was Chivas and it was smooth.
It’s a ring of bread. All different flavors. Fresh, warm, delicious and served with a house made compound butter. I always anticipate a restaurant’s food by their bread service, and The Ranch delivered.
Ceviche Trilogy. Shrimp with Heirloom Tomato, Crab with Coconut Curry, and Lobster with Mango. Hell yes! I could eat this appetizer all day.
Escargot. Wild Burgandy Escargot garnished with Hazelnut Spatzle and Hen of the Woods Mushrooms, topped with Parsley and placed upon a bed of Green Garlic Foam. The escargot I have had in the past, even the ones in France, were all served in a soupy buttery mess. This version is a nice departure from that. The hazelnut gives the snail a nice contrast while retaining the rich buttery taste.
The seasonally inspired soup was Butternut Squash Soup. They split it into two bowls for us so we could share. I have no idea what the green liquid is, but the soup was good! There were even pieces of shrimp to make the soup a bit hearty. That was a nice touch.
The Ranch is famous for the Cowboy Ribeye. It’s a 36-40 ounce bone in rib chop. Not having someone to share it with, I wasn’t going to be able to man up to the challenge by myself. Instead I ordered the next best thing, the Colorado Grass-Fed Lamb Chops. Having been to Colorado, I know how serious the foodie culture is there. They take organic seriously.
These were the best lamb chops I have ever had in my life. Besides being cooked perfectly, the lamb was so damn tender. It seemed to almost melt under the pressure of my knife. I don’t know if they have someone two-stepping on the lamb all day to tenderize the meat, and I don’t care, but whatever they’re doing…it’s working.
Certified Sustainable Chilean Sea Bass (AKA Patagonian Toothfish). Seared absolutely perfectly, it’s served upon a bed of lobster risotto.
Lobster Mac’ N’ Cheese. Homemade pasta dressed with Vermont White Cheddar and huge identifiable chunks of Lobster make this dish to die for. Lovers of macaroni and cheese will melt after just one bite.
Green Bean & Mushroom Casserole. If you can’t tell, this was our guilt dish. We had to get something “healthy.” I maybe have this dish once a year during Thanksgiving. Most of the time I was stuck at work and we did what we could, so green bean casserole came out of a can. I gotta tell you, fresh green beans makes a whole hell of a lot of difference. I’m ruined. I can never go back.
I’ve got something to confess. I usually try to make reservations on OpenTable. When you go through the confirmation process, there is a part in the form used to relay special requests or notes to the restaurant. When it’s a special occasion, I always mention it. Really, I’m just looking to get a good table…something not near the restrooms. However, I usually find that the high end restaurants are quite generous and The Ranch was no exception.
I may have let the restaurant know that we were there to celebrate our anniversary and my birthday, which are only a week apart. The night we went was literally the only night off we had together, and even then we felt guilty about dropping off our daughter with my cousin. Anyhow, the manager came by and told us that since we were celebrating two occasions the restaurant was comping us two desserts. Wow!
Above is the Tahitian Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee served with two mini Lemon Poppy Seed Madeleines. You may not fall head over heels because it’s just a creme brulee. But, it’s the hint of vanilla that you have to have a taste for. Fresh Tahitian vanilla bean makes a big difference. One of my biggest regrets when visiting Tahiti was not bringing home fresh vanilla bean.
Homemade Ice Cream Trio. If you don’t do steak. If you don’t do fish. Even if you don’t do drinks, you must come to The Ranch to have ice cream. These flavors can’t be found anywhere else. We got Popcorn, Peanut Butter and Jelly, and Passion Fruit. They’re all made out of the real thing. I don’t normally like popcorn, just because it reminds me of the awful artificial smell in the theater, but this…this popcorn ice cream intrigued me. My taste buds were overwhelmed and delighted by the contradiction. What should normally be served warm was served cold. What normally should be crunchy was creamy. I wanted to break into the kitchen, dash into the freezer, and steal their entire supply.
I have to add a little disclaimer to this article by saying that I do have an indirect connection to Executive Chef Michael Rossi. I never actually have been able to meet him though (he was always at the restaurant), so my judgement is not affected in any way.
Talk to me, Goose.