It pains me to write a review like this, so don't be fooled by the 4-stars, which represents the experience shared by my guests, but not me. Their food was all delicious and prepared as ordered, and served by a polished, professional, and courteous server. Ripe is comfortable, and its ambience is casual and stylish without being over-the top. I wish I could say the same for my order, which I refused and didn't place an alternate order. I've been enjoying ripe for many years, since before the current ownership acquired it from its founders--a brother and sister team who were always onsite--one, the other, or both. When ownership/management is present, bad customer experiences seem to happen infrequently.On this occasion, two evenings ago, I ordered a burger medium well. Ripe's burgers are GREAT. A thick, 1/2 lb of patty ground beef served on a brioche bun, with inventive toppings if you want them. My burger came with bacon, torreados, and pepperjack cheese. Unfortunately, my guests, all who ordered salmon (excellent) received their orders first, followed by around a short, 5-minute (not too long) delay for my burger. When by burger was delivered, it looked great, but when I cut it in half to avoid making a mess of such a large burger, I discovered a cold-red center, extending outward towards the edge of the burger. I detest rare burgers--and they're unsafe to consume as well. It was a quick 5-minutes before the server came back around asking everyone if they were enjoying their dinner and everyone replied yes, but I asked if she could take my rare burger back. She agreed it was way too rare and offered to bring it back, but I politely refused, as ten minutes had gone by and everyone else was actually nearly finished enjoying their salmon.Folks, we have a meat thermometer at our house and every restaurant does, too. I'm not picky. When I order a burger medium-well, I'm happy if it comes out medium, medium-well, or well-done. I'm really disappointed if anywhere in the inside it's cold and red (not pink--bright red and raw in the middle). Personally, I prefer medium, but too often, the burger is under cooked, so avoid that by ordering medium well. My strategy fails completely when the cook is untrained, inexperienced, or too lazy to test the temperature of a 2-inch thick piece of beef. A total fail, I left hungry because I don't re-order. I've seen Road Trip and what happens when you insult the cook by returning his/her masterpiece.
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"Yes, I was thinking of Napoleon Dynamite too! Fresh made chips and salsa! I would say that's the highlight of this place. I ordered their fajitas since they claimed it was their "famous" fajitas. I went with the steak and it came steaming still frying on a skillet; gosh I love that sound! It came along with some flour tortillas, rice, beans, and pico. The rice and beans were okay, but the pico was great! It had a kick I gather because of the green chili. As for the fajitas steak, I felt like I had to eat it quick because it was frying so fast that I didn't want it to overcook. Some pieces did and became crunchy. I wish they had left it somewhat rare so that as it layed on the skillet, it would allow it to cook to the temperature I would want to eat it. Service was pretty good and the place had a store front vibe. I would come back for the chips and salsa for sure!"
"Great little hole in the wall! Service was great as well as food. It doesn't have many reviews but don't let that stop you."
