Ranch House Cafe - Restaurant Impossible Update

Photo - Robert Irvine Facebook

New episodes of Restaurant: Impossible begin this week and in this episode, Robert Irvine and his crew are in Ash Fork, Arizona to makeover Ranch House Cafe. Ranch House Cafe is owned by Felicia Ramirez, who has been sacrificing her time with her children to try to make the restaurant work.  The business is failing and Felicia is overwhelmed by guilt due to her mounting debt.  Robert will need to help Felicia change her attitude and strategy in hopes of saving the restaurant and her family.

As I normally do with Restaurant: Impossible episodes, I searched around the Internet to read stories, comments and reviews about Ranch House Cafe to get an idea of how the restaurant is doing since Robert Irvine visited, and here is what I found (note - all reviews are post Restaurant: Impossible):

Positive Reviews:

• "Excellent service. Food was great for the price The remodel has done wonders for this establishment Friendly people."
• "Great little small town diner. Staff is friendly and quick to serve with a smile. Dinner was good. Prices are reasonable"
• "Great little place for dinner. Only went here once but will try again for sure. Good portions, great service, and fair pricing. Will definitely be back"
• "I just love a road side cafe....nothing fancy , building was old and menu was limited, but the food was good and was a spot for locals...I would definitely stop here again when in the area !"
• "Wanted a breakfast stop on route from Grand Canyon to Vegas but avoiding the tourist traps. Ranch House Café was perfect.Great local diner off the Interstate with friendly people and good food. Breakfast was delicious and freshly prepared and the good coffee non stop (I couldn't finish the 3rd cup!!)."
• "In a small town just off Interstate 40 in Northern Arizona (Ashfork) sits a small eatery, with good grub and SUPER friendly staff. We had breakfast there on Friday, June 10th. The hubby had the chorizo & eggs - with hash browns, very good & not greasy. I had pancakes & eggs - tasty fluffy pancakes! Apparently they recently had a cable-TV makeover and the outside does not divulge the inside decor; quite comfy & still rustic. We would definitely recommend it!"

Negative Reviews:

• "Everything was perfect until I went to pay the bill. They forgot to tell us when we sat down that the prices on the menu were incorrect, and they had gone up substantially. Our order was $8 higher than I anticipated. It cost me $36 plus a tip for two breakfast and coffee. The menus we were given said It should have cost $28 plus tip. Not cool! I didn't like being surprised like that at the cash register. I paid it, but I won't be back. Why didn't they just mark through the prices on the menu, or just tell us right when we ordered. Makes you wonder if only local residents get menu prices?!!"
• "Oh Robert why did you have to change this restaurant? This was our little favorite hole in wall place going to or from Vegas. This is the first time we stopped by since Restaurant Impossible came to revamp it. The insides were so cute before. He tried to update the decor but it's just ok. The menu is a fraction of what it was before. We both had the Frisco melt with fries. The last time we had it, it was a big juicy burger with fresh hot crinkle fries. This time it was a small over cooked patty, the onions were nowhere to be found, the lettuce was a couple of pieces of the rib part of romaine and the fries were regular frozen French fries that were luke warm and few. They also upped the price significantly. If you are going to raise the prices that much you have to keep or exceed the quality. Sorry Ranch House we won't be coming back."

Other News and Links:

• The Restaurant Impossible makeover for Ranch House Cafe happened in May 2022.
• Here is the Ranch House Cafe Facebook page and it appears they do not have a website.
• Ranch House Cafe is located off of famous Route 66 and is one of the only food options in Ash Fork, AZ.
• After the makeover, the restaurant posted on Facebook, "I'd like to thank everyone who has come to visit us and check out our new look. Also thank you for your patience and understanding as we are still working out many kinks that come with the new changes. Soon we should be running smoothly. Once again thank you"
• Here are the reviews for Ranch House Cafe from Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google.

Conclusion:

The reviews for Ranch House Cafe since the Restaurant Impossible visit are mostly positive with people liking the food and small town atmosphere.  It seems like the restaurant attracts a lot of locals and also people passing through the area on Route 66.  There are a few negative reviews about menu prices increasing, but that usually happens after a Restaurant Impossible visit.


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