Goat cheese? Whiskey? Baked corn soufflé? You might be shocked to learn what decides the
battle between Ruth's Chris and Morton's The Steakhouse — because it isn't beef!
Just because you walk into a restaurant knowing you're going to savor a deliciously rich entrée
doesn't mean you can't first enjoy some delectable starters. If you're headed to either Ruth's
Chris Steak House or Morton's, you can rest easy knowing that both spots offer a great
selection of tantalizing appetizers. However, Ruth's Chris does pull ahead in this category.
Morton's offers up a selection of eight appetizers, which isn't too shabby.
But you get to pick from 10 different meal starters at Ruth's Chris — and every single
one of them sounds incredibly appealing. If you're looking to get your dip game on,
you can order the goat cheese and artichoke dip, while seafood enthusiasts can bask in a whole
bunch of options like crab cakes, calamari, seared ahi tuna, and spicy shrimp. Yum!
No entrée is complete without a side or two to help elevate the flavors and give you a
well-rounded meal. A filet of meat needs some delectable friends to mingle with on
the plate, so rounding out the dish with a nice side is in your best interest. And if you find
yourself sitting in the dining room at Morton's, you'll have a larger offering of sides to order.
Diners have the opportunity to pick from 10 different side dishes — each of them
designed to complement whatever main course you choose. Order up some thick-cut onion rings and
matchstick parmesan and truffle fries if you want a couple of sides that don't seem too bougie but
still pack an awesome wallop of flavor. If you're looking for something different,
try the baked corn soufflé, which is one of the restaurant's more unique items.
And for a somewhat healthier meal, you can order the Jumbo Grilled Asparagus or
Sautéed Spinach & Mushrooms. One Yelper wrote in their review of these items,
"The natural flavors of the al-dente vegetables
came through so well and were a perfect complement to my steak."
A thick-cut steak does an absolutely perfect job of delivering a powerfully
rich punch to your palate. However, once your hunk of beef is finally finished,
there's nothing quite like a taste of something sweet to offset the intense savory flavors you've
just experienced. And while both Ruth's Chris and Morton's offer a selection of desserts,
Morton's comes out on top with more choices for their customers.
Guests are offered nine different dessert options, each more delicious than the rest,
so you really can't go wrong with whatever you end up settling on.
Treat yourself to items like bread pudding, hazelnut chocolate mousse,
and Morton's Legendary Hot Chocolate Cake. Your taste buds will thank you.
"Why not eat the chocolate cake?"
At the end of a stressful day or work week, a tasty cocktail can be just what you need to
unwind. Now, Ruth's Chris and Morton's both have fully stocked bars with many unique concoctions of
liquors, but it is Morton's that leads the charge with a larger variety of drinks to pick from.
There's a lovely selection of flavors to enjoy,
which might make it harder for you to take your pick. If you're a fan of martinis,
Morton's offers what they call The Mortini. Choose either vodka or gin and then welcome a
few blue cheese olives to the party. You can also order up their Blooming Hibiscus with tequila,
hibiscus, strawberry, lime, and club soda. Or maybe try their unique Ginger Rabbit.
Those are only a few of the 15 or more cocktails
available. And don't forget to keep an eye out for the seasonal options, too.
Anyone who likes to indulge in alcohol certainly knows one thing: If you start tossing back a
handful of beers or cocktails, you'd better have at least a little something in your stomach first.
And compared to Ruth's Chris, the happy hour menu at Morton's has more options to choose from.
Take, for example, the petit filet mignon sandwiches,
which pack all the flavor of a full-sized steak into a handy snack size. Similarly,
you can also order a pint sized plate of delicious petite lamb chops,
which comes with arugula, sliced red onion, grana padano, and a balsamic
Glaze. You can even get a whole juicy burger at a discounted price during their happy hour.
Looking to have your alcohol along with a full meal instead of just with a snack?
Morton's offers their customers a whole array of drinks to accompany
their meals. Some of the coolest options they have are flights of wine and whiskey,
which allow patrons to get a little taste of a few different beverages.
The whiskey flight is called the "1682 Whiskey Experience," and you get three snifters with one
ounce of a different whiskey in each. The "1682" in the name refers to the number of
miles in between the three distilleries that provide each liquor. As for wine,
there are two different flight options. Whichever flight you choose will come with
three glasses, each with a 3 ounce pour. Choose between the "Camped in
Napa" and "Global Voyage," and enjoy some excellent beverages from great wineries.
Chances are if you've decided to head to a steakhouse for dinner,
there's one main thing floating through your head: a cut of steak. However,
even the most voracious beefeater likes to occasionally mix it up by adding a little surf
to their turf. This is especially true when the steakhouse you're going to has a great selection
of seafood dishes. So, if you're looking for delicious items plucked right out of the ocean,
you'll find that Morton's has a larger selection of seafood than Ruth's Chris.
Whether it's fish you're looking for or a succulent crustacean,
Morton's has you covered. On the fish side of things, you can order yourself the miso
marinated sea bass or ora king salmon. Or, travel the avenue of crustaceans and
order up the shrimp scampi, jumbo lump crab cakes, or a cold-water lobster tail or two.
Those who really love seafood likely get just as excited to see an array
of raw ingredients as they do for cooked ingredients. This is where
Morton's swoops in again like an undersea hero, as the steakhouse offers a fantastic
raw bar chock-full of tasty oceanic treats to accompany your red meat.
Are you the kind of person who loves shrimp cocktail? Well not only can you snag a jumbo
shrimp cocktail, but Morton's also offers lobster cocktail and colossal crab cocktail. Additionally,
the restaurant serves up oysters on the half shell, grilled oysters,
an ahi tuna poke, and an Ocean Platter with everything from the raw bar on it.
When the word "steakhouse" is in the name of a restaurant, you can bet your bottom dollar
that they're filled to the brim with all sorts of cuts of meat to satiate the carnivore within.
"It's a 16 ounce T-bone and a 24 ounce porterhouse. Also, whiskey and a cigar."
As you can imagine, both Ruth's Chris and Morton's serve up a variety of steaks and
chops. But which one should you head to if you're looking for a larger selection?
Surprise! As it turns out, both places have about the same number of options.
There is some overlap between the menus at both restaurants,
which is absolutely to be expected. Both spots offer filet mignon and ribeye,
as well as tomahawk ribeye and New York strip steak. Both spots also include lamb chops,
but at Morton's, you can snag pork chops as well. Both places have a Porterhouse for Two available,
which is a great option, while Ruth's Chris also carries T-bone steaks. But,
what Morton's does have that Ruth's Chris doesn't is the king of all steaks: the wagyu filet.
It's incredibly hard to not only open a restaurant, but have it thrive to the
point where you can operate multiple locations around the country. Many people have tried and
only a fraction of them have succeeded. The founders of both Ruth's Chris Steak
House and Morton's The Steakhouse managed to figure out a winning recipe that helped
them open location after location until they became the household names they are today.
But when it comes to the number of total open restaurants,
Ruth's Chris takes the lead. This means that depending on where you live,
you're probably more likely to see a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse than a Morton's Steakhouse.
Today, Ruth's Chris touts more than 150 locations all over the world. That's quite a jump from when
it started in 1965 in New Orleans as a small 60-seat eatery. Morton's, on the other hand,
has expanded to an impressive 65 locations since first opening its doors in 1978.
As fun as going out to dinner with friends or family may be,
it can definitely put some strain on the wallet.
"I'm not in the mood for steak."
"Oh, you're not in the mood for steak? Huh? You know how many times I have to
drive that bus back and forth each day so this family can eat steak once a week?"
It's especially pricey if you're the kind of person who likes to enjoy fancy
cocktails and upscale cuisine. So it's always nice to find a spot that doesn't
break the bank. But between Ruth's Chris Steak House and Morton's The Steakhouse,
which one will impact your funds less? As it turns out, both places are very similarly priced.
Let's look at some of the menu items that both places have in common and compare
costs. If you're starting your meal out with a salad and opt for the wedge option,
the difference between both is currently less than a dollar. The difference between
the pork chops is negligible, too. You can snag a ribeye at both places for roughly the same price:
with Morton's running a couple dollars higher than Ruth's Chris. At Morton's,
you can add an "Oscar" style crab to any dish for slightly less than at Ruth's Chris. Of course,
there will be some things at each restaurant that are more or less expensive than the other,
but overall, your check will likely look very similar at the end of the meal.
So what do you do if you are operating on a tight budget? Well,
even at restaurants that tend to fall on the expensive side,
if you can find yourself a solid prix-fixe option, you can still indulge in a great meal
without spending as much as you would ordering a bunch of dishes à la carte.
If you're looking for an appetizer, entrée, side, and dessert in a complete package for
one set price, then Ruth's Chris is the spot for you. To kick things off, diners choose between
the Steak House Salad, Caesar salad, or lobster bisque. Then, they pick between two entrées:
a 6-ounce filet with shrimp, or the same filet with a lobster tail. The
entrées come with a side of either creamed spinach or garlic mashed potatoes. Finally,
the dessert is a chef's seasonal selection, so it varies depending on when you visit.
"I know we're a steakhouse, but we like to offer a little bit of
everything to everybody. So we have an array of things out!"
So, is your money worth spending at Ruth's Chris Steak House? Or is it wise to head over
to Morton's The Steakhouse for dinner instead? Well, there are certainly some people who swear
by one or the other, and they'll likely stay lifelong fans. Sometimes you can't change
anyone's mind regardless of the information you show them or what they read. However,
if you're someone who has little experience with either of these restaurants, you should
make your way over to Morton's — so long as there's one within a reasonable distance.
There are several reasons Morton's takes top honors. For anyone who
wants some really fresh raw seafood as a meal itself or to pair with a steak,
nothing competes with a raw bar full of awesome ingredients. In terms of beverages,
Morton's serves up unique flights of wine and whiskey, a larger selection of cocktails,
and a more robust happy hour menu. It also offers a larger selection of desserts.
At the end of the day, all of this adds up to a big win for Morton's The Steakhouse!