Good-bye, Ruby Tuesday

If a Ruby Tuesday closes in San Bernardino and there’s no one around to notice, does anybody care?

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Sad to say, that seems to be the case.

We get email here at Dine 909 from time to time asking about particular restaurants.

We got no such queries regarding San Bernardino’s Ruby Tuesday, which closed January 30.

I probably wouldn’t have even noticed had I not gone to Costco (which is across the street) and noticed the restaurant was dark.

I went by later and saw a terse note taped to the inside of the door:

January 30, 2010

To all of our friends, guests and neighbors:

Regrettably, Ruby Tuesday San Bernardino will close its doors today. It has been an honor to serve this community.

If there are any questions, please contact our Temecula location at 951-694-0011.

Sincerely,
Ruby Tuesday


It’s unfortunate that they closed, but hardly a surprise.

I had only been there half a dozen times at most, but nearly every time there seemed to be something wrong with the meal.

I remember one time being seated and then promptly ignored by the waitstaff for about 20 minutes. Apparently one server thought we were at another server’s table, and that server thought we were at the other server’s table.

Another time, my dining companion ordered a steak described as “peppercorn-crusted,” which arrived with nary a pepper fleck in sight.

Sigh.

There were bright spots, however.

The interior was very inviting. It had a sort of retro look that made you feel as if you were sitting in someone’s 1962 living room.

Also, I enjoyed the (smallish) salad bar quite a bit. I think I added the salad bar to every meal I ate there.

The food, in general, was above average. The seafood I had there was quite good, especially the Creole Catch and the Parmesan shrimp pasta.

However, the restaurant was usually sparsely populated after the first time we went there, which was the day it opened.

Of course, Ruby Tuesday’s was one of those places that advertised locally for years even though there were no locations within 200 miles. (Yes, my finger is pointing at you, CiCi’s Pizza!)

Another theory: People from San Bernardino have gotten used to driving to Riverside or Rancho Cucamonga or Ontario to go out to eat, but do any of those folks drive to San Bernardino? I doubt it.

Perhaps if they did, the San Bernardino Ruby Tuesday would still be in business.

The remaining Inland Empire Ruby Tuesday is at 41797 Nicole Lane in Temecula. There’s another Southern California location at 2200 S. Azusa Ave. in West Covina.