Ruby Tuesday's - Orlando Int'l Airport

Where:
Ruby Tuesday
1 Jeff Fuqua Blvd.

Orlando, FL 32827

http://www.rubytuesday.com/

What:
Ruby's Classic Cheeseburger

Build:
Brioche bun with shredded lettuce, onion, tomato, and pickle chips

Comments:
If I had to describe this Ruby Tuesday's burger in one word, it would be, "meh."

While waiting in the airport for our flight back to Jersey from Orlando, my wife and I had some time for lunch so we opted to try Ruby Tuesday's.

For a food establishment that boasts about it's burgers, we were totally let down. The atmosphere is good, the staff was nice enough, the menu selection was ample, but the execution was awful. This was a classic case of poor management, and it's a shame because my burger may have created a lasting memory.

I'm going to let the photos speak for themselves so as not to spend a few paragraphs on a Ruby's rant. Take a look at the photo of the burger on the menu...lots of fresh “toppings”, right? Wrong. Oh, they were fresh enough, but my burger was served with the toppings on the bottom of the burger. This upcoming trend is a major nish-nish for me.

Ruby's Classic Cheeseburger receives a 7.3/10 on the BC rating scale.

Criteria & ratings for Ruby's Classic Cheeseburger:
Meat flavor 6
Juiciness 7
Size 10
Freshness 7
Burger-to-bun ratio 9
Bun type 7
Overall taste with selected condiments 6

Eatibility 10

Temperature 4

Most of these burgers waited a full 10 minutes to be picked up - including mine.

Red White & Que Smokehouse

Where:

140 Hamburg Turnpike

Wayne, NJ 07470

(973) 782-4356
https://www.redwhiteandquesmokeshack.com/

What:
Brisket Sandwich with a side of collard greens

Comments:
The barbecue is good, not great. The bark was the best part of my brisket. Nice people, nice atmosphere, but for me, the menu selections are not conducive to a return visit.

Let me explain...

With the exception of the "BBQ Sundae" menu item, ordering off the menu at Red White & Que is completely a-la-carte. This is where I have a problem. I'd like to order a platter with lots of sides to taste without having to pick all my sides from a billboard menu individually. In this busy world, please don't ask me to make more decisions than I already have to. I want to look at a menu item that comes with sides and other goodies, point, and order. That's it. The "food-truck" style of ordering is great when you're ordering from a food truck, but we were indoors for Pete's sake. Also, sitting family style at a wooden picnic table and having a plastic cafeteria tray delivered to the table is all very cheeky and cool, but I'd much rather be waited on. For me, $20 per pound for brisket warrants table service. 

~End rant.

My father-in-law and my brother-in-law both ordered brisket by weight (1/2 lb = 2 slices) and I ordered the brisket sandwich. My sandwich was very good and the roll was absolutely perfect. One thing I noticed was that their orders of brisket were quite a bit dryer than the brisket on my sandwich. Not sure why, but mine was dripping with glorious rendered fat. The side of beans was very good but the collard greens which are a vinegar-based Carolina style with ham hock and a touch of hot pepper were on the tasteless side. There are five different sauces to choose from on the table (see photos below) so the odds are you'll like at least one or two of them.

Although the brisket sandwich might be worth a return trip, I'm on the fence with this place. If you're in the area of Wayne, NJ you should check it out for yourself and please let me know what you think.

That's not ketchup on my plate, it's rendered fat that dripped from my sandwich!