Ruby’s Diner

I orderd eggs and bacon to go, and they gave me eggs and potatoes… Wtf. And the potatoes were burnt

Burgers and shakes are good — that’s it. Pass on the salads and soups :/

Walked in at 2:00 pm on a Friday afternoon and waited to be greeted/​seated. They had tables and I saw at least five employees but I grew tired of waiting and left

Always a solid choice to get a decent burger. The staff is always nice and happy to see and help you. Tons of burger choices or you can be like me and make your own. Fries are always nice and crispy and thin and they are refillable so if youre really hungry you can get like 3 baskets and fill up on that. The shakes are always a must have and have that old timey soda fountain feel where they give you the malt cup with your extra shake leftover from making it.
Every once in a while they’ll do a throwback and offer a $ 1.99 burger and fries but come early because this place becomes a mad house. My kids like this place and I like burgers so I imagine I’ll be coming here for years to come.

Ruby’s is a typical chain diner. It’s alright. The food is fine, the prices are fine, and the service was nice. Overall they aren’t a place I would make plans to go to specifcally, but if I was in the area and wanted a place to grab a quick bite, I also wouldn’t avoid them.

came here after legoland to use my $ 30 worth of gift cards that i won! woot woot!
we were seated promptly in a nice large booth under the train tracks (yay!) my 12 year old doesn’t get nearly as excited as he did as a toddler. i was more excited by all the old school metal toys in the display cabinets… super cool! it was like an episode of one of those people who pillage through packrats homes for cool stuff.
we had one kids meal… mac n cheese (it was precooked and microwaved kraft)…it came partially hot and partially cold (hence why i knew it was nuked and not stirred)…they re-​nuked it and brought it back piping hot.
we had 3 other burgers. all were pretty good… it’s no burger from flemings (what i had last night) but pretty darn good. son had the burger with bbq sauce and onion rings… hubby had the one with sourdough and avo .wish i had gotten that one… so good! i got patty melt and added lettuce, tomato and onion. it was just ok… kinda a sad little burger.
i had mine with a side salad… boys had fries, which are refillable.
service…splendid
food…above average
speed…A+
kid friendly A++
nostalgia/​décor A
i’d be back… but there are so many other options nearby. may be a while before this is back in my rotation. maybe we will come back for just a shake… double vanilla is what i crave!

Mad props to Rizalyn for amazing service under extremely busy circumstances. Day after Christmas crowd, and she never missed a beat!
Second visit, tried the Ahi Burger and it was pretty bad. Far too spicy, and I wound up only eating the Ahi, leaving the bun and spicy slaw behind. Should have been noted on the menu! From now on I’ll stick with what I like and not try anything new here…

Great place for kids. It’s entertaining and the food is actually pretty decent.
Each burger meal comes with a never-​ending basket of fries, so you will be satisfied and full! And if you’re not into burgers, there are alternatives like green salads and other sandwiches for lunch and dinner. And there’s a reasonable selection of items available for breakfast too.
But the insiders know that the specialty of Ruby’s is the shakes– fresh ice cream mixed with fruit or sweet mix-​ins. My favorite is the black cherry!
Join the birthday club for free kids meals and free sundaes on your birthday– why not go old school? And if you have a craving and don’t have time to eat-​in, you can always do a pick-​up order to get your favorite fix– with a reserved parking spot right in front!

How could you do this ruby?! We had great memories together as youngens! Why?! I was a victim of your flimflam. You wear a nice retro red and white on the outside but in the inside you are just flimsy flench flies and arid rations.
As a kid I loved ruby’s, I had no distinction in my palet and cheeseburgers were cheeseburgers nd fries were fries. Now that im all grown up (Oo) I can tell you if im eating shrimp or beef. This place does not live up to my memories anymore, sadly.
The employees all seemed very nice. Our server was nice as he sat us, however it becomes an annoyance when you see a bunch of employees but not your own server. It was a challenge getting refills, etc.
I had the Guacamole Burger. Hey I love flench flies, burgers, and guac so it was a no brainer. The burger was… hmmm how do I put it… well it was a burger. Nothing to rave home about at all. Over cooked meat and the tiniest smear of guacamole, seriously a avocado could wipe its butt and produce more guac… (yes, visualize). The fries were pathetic, skinny, flimsy, and definitely under-​seasoned.
Carl’s Jr has a better Guacamole Burger.
The end.

Ruby’s diner is always in the corner of my eye while shopping at the Carlsbad Outlets. I have stopped in twice now and have left satisfied each time. The atmosphere is fun, with trains and planes scattered throughout the restaurant. The waiters and waitresses all donned cute diner outfits and were friendly.
The food is good and set at a medium price range. The burgers all come with an endless basket of fries, but we never had enough room for a second round. The first time I tried a beef burger and the second time I had turkey. I actually prefer the turkey burger. It was moist and the flavor was just right. I also highly recommend the strawberry shake, very creamy and tasty.
This is a solid 3.5 star place (I’ll give them 4 for this review) and I would recommend it if you’re looking for lunch in the middle of your shopping.

I’ll start with the basics. You gotta eat when you’re at the outlets. There are some outlets staples out there and I consider this place on of my fav! I did the Hickory burger with garlic fries. (Look for the pic if you get a sec. It tells the story.) they come in all you can eat and I can eat fries! The entire fam is on board with this Ruby’s. You get a big table with all the 50’s diner décor. Staff is nice and attentive. The burger is very good. Big and juicy with bbq and bacon. Only complaints are as follows:
1) The fries are way too greasy, even for garlic fries. They’re were not crispy enough and may have even tasted on the underdone or under salted/​spiced side. But even mediocre fries are worth snacking on.
2) The bacon was not bacony enough. Uneven and fat in one piece and crispier and thinner in another slice. It’s like — make up your mind bacon?! What are you?
Overall, I had a good time with good service and a tasty meal. The wife did a tuna type sandwich and the kids Mac n cheese. It tastes like… You guessed it! Kids Kraft Mac n Cheese. I’m a fam of Ruby’s Diner.

Came here to try their shakes. My son ans his Dad have this contest trying to find the best shake in SD. He heard they were int he top 10. They tried the Oreo shake and liked it but can’t move it up into the top 5. The burger was very greasy and made us feel a bit sluggish. The service was fantastic and they have a great fall menu of pumpkin pancakes and coffee. I think I’ll be sticking to lean grass fed if I decide to eat another burger.

Wow, Ruby’s is de-​licious! From the food to the customer service, everything was great!
It has been years since my last visit & after my latest experience, I will be coming back more often. Our server was friendly & took our order by memory & did not mess it up! This was definitely a surprise because I am very particular about my burgers. My boyfriend & I ordered:
The Siracha Burger, substitute Refillable Fries for Cajun Fries — Spicy!
The Classic RubyBurger, substitute Refillable Fries for Garlic Fries — OMG! My mouth could not be happier! The bun was extra crispy & toasted with butter. The meat patty was juicy. The cheese was thick & creamy. & the vegetables were fresh & crispy. My type of burger! & the fries were delectable! They were drenched in garlic & I love, love garlic!
Dirt Cup Shake — Seasonal item. Exactly what you think: chocolate milkshake, Oreo crumbs, gummy worms. Yum! & they give you extra in a glass!

Visited on 9÷7÷15
By the time we got there, they were out of cod for the fish and chips and no strawberries for the banana split. I shared my turkey burger, fries, and salad with my partner. My son got a cheese crisp with applesauce, and ate it all. We all shared the banana split. Our waitress was helpful, friendly, and apologetic for the issues with our order.

Food: we tried the Siracha Burger (12.99) and the Classic Rubys Burger on our visit. Siracha Burger was ½ lb juicy patty w jalapeños, pepper jack cheese, the normal veggies (plus cilantro), and a small amount of Siracha. This burger was very tasty and moderately spicy. The jalapeños were pickles and not fresh. The rest of the veggies were fresh. The bun was definitely dry on both burgers. The Classic Rubys Burger ($ 8.99) had a smaller patty and came with their special sauce. The patty was also juicy on this, but the bun was pretty dry as well (maybe frozen and then thawed?). Fries were ordered as standard and were a little plain. Definitely needed salt, but they were crisp and freshly fried. The fries are refillable, but not the onion rings if you upgrade. The Rubys Rings (upgrade for $ 1.50) are amazing! They go perfectly with ranch. Butterfinger Shake ($ 5.99) was great as well. It comes with whip and a cherry on top. You can definitely share it with another person because it fills up two cups. We ordered our shakes after we ate to make sure we had room… and we did.
Service: very nice server who seemed to be overworked. He was serving and turning over his own tables at one point in our visit. He was very friendly and attentive. He offered our daughter crackers because she dropped her cucumber on the floor, which was nice of him. It wasn’t busy when we went (Monday at 5p) so we were seated right away.
Parking: large parking lot shared with the entire mall. No issues on a weekday night in September, but is a different story around Christmas and weekends. You will definitely have to walk a bit then. There is a shuttle to get you there if you don’t want to walk and have time to wait, but it will take you less time to walk bc the shuttle has to sit in the traffic too.
Atmosphere: 1940s diner theme here with a SD beach twist. Toy train runs along the ceiling, old pictures on the walls, red plastic seats, ketchup and mustard squirt bottles, and paper hats that the employees wear. Very old school feeling here. Lots of booths and few tables.
Definitely give their onion rings a try and get a shake after you eat. Hit or miss on the burgers because of the dry buns. Beware that parking can be horrible and turn you away. Expect a wait on weekends and peak season.

and i thought i dreaded writing the last update …
truly awful experience. ordered medium rare (add bacon and avocado), my burger was burned to a crisp — slid right passed wa-​a-​a-​a-​a-​ay overcooked to briquet. inside and out, that patty was the same color as a cast iron skillet. i’ve fished jerky strips out of a jar on a gas station counter that weren’t half as dry. had the texture of gravel. compare my photo to the one on the RUBY website — not even close. fries were cold.
wife and kid’s food was awful too. dinner was nasty.
no amount of perky service from a darling young lady in a ponytail could bail out a kitchen putting out food that BAD.

I decided to eat here today after walking around the Outlets and ordered clam chowder and fish and chips. The clam chowder almost killed me… well i meant the taste was ridiculously horrible!!! it’s not clam chowder at all and should not be named «clam chowder» and i would be ashamed if i was the cook/​chef, the sucky part was, i ordered a BOWL! :-(Anyways moving forward to the fish and chips, i like how the fish was deep fried and i love the tartar sauce! I struggled to eat all four pieces of them but after an hour and a half i was finally able to eat them, except for the fries but i also like their coleslaw, it blends perfectly with the fish and sauce.
The service was just perfect! i like how they regularly check on me since inside the diner feels crowded so i sat outside. My server always have a smile on his face every time and same goes to the other server or floor supervisor. I love their service. I would recommend this diner but if you’re a clam chowder enthusiast then i will not recommend trying the chowder at all. LoL

Next time, I’m coming for only a milkshake. Not because the food isn’t good, but because you will be full of you order a burger plus a milkshake. The milkshakes are huge. It’s like getting two for the price of one. No really, the milkshakes are two servings but man are they delicious.
Burgers– I’m a huge fan of the classic. So that’s always good. We decided to share the siracha burger as well bc we love spicy foods. It was spicy!!! Be prepared because it’s a huge burger. Fries were alright, although we asked for a refill. Apparently our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. Onion rings are delicious too!
Service was fantastic! Our waiter was super nice and very accommodating. He even offered to cut my husbands burger in half! Haha
Definitely a restaurant you could take your kids too. There’s a train that goes around the restaurants ceiling and lots of little old fashioned decorations. If you’re a big fan of the old diner vibe– this is a spot for you to try.
Parking can be extremely hectic depending on the time of day you go. It’s located in the Carlsbad outlet mall and it’s a huge tourist trap. So beware of your timing.

I usually only eat here after a long day of shopping at the outlet.
It can be pretty busy during peak hours. Try to beat the lunch rush or be prepared to wait. There’s seating inside and outside.
I tried the jalapeño poppers here for an appetizer. They were good but the burgers are ok nothing that great, typical diner food. Maybe got brunch once. The milkshakes are great though. I love the strawberry banana milkshake. It comes in a glass and the extra silver container where they mix it in.
I’ll probably go here again after a long day of shopping when I need to refuel and shop some more.

Almost gave this a 1 star
We went to visit the fossil outlet to grab some watches and decided to grab some breakfast/​lunch as well. We were seated promptly and ordered right away. I ordered the eggs benedict and my girlfriend ordered chicken fingers and fries. The server asked how I wanted my poached eggs cooked and I was so stumped. With a culinary background I have never heard of that question… um, I want them poached. Then she said «over medium, soft, or hard», knowing that poached eggs are simply that and not fried I said «soft» figuring that they would be just as usual.
When the breakfast was brought out, it was almost as if the eggs weren’t even cooked at all. I waited and notified our waitress and she immediately offered something else. I then ordered scrambled eggs with cheese and toast. When that came out… It didn’t have cheese. I told the manager and our server who brought it out, no problem and at this point don’t need cheese.
Within 2 minutes the manager brought out another plate of eggs with cheese! I can’t say they were amazing but they were just what I ordered!
The customer service was over the top and that is were the 3^rd star came in. As for the food, I found it lacking.