Ruby’s Restaurant

Sorry yall… this establishment is closed… they have been closed for about a month… began with a green closed by city sign… all of the window advertisements are down, along with the neon sign…

I stopped in because I loved the old place Edna’s. The new owners supposedly were cooks for Edna’s. Well I wasn’t pleased. The place looks exactly how it was 20yrs ago. They haven’t renovated or changed the furniture. NOT GOOD! My service was good & the servers

Had a groupon as this is far from my home but wanted to try it. Not thrilled with the food. BTW restroom nice and clean. However I ordered a very traditional meal, roast chicken, greens, stuffing, Mac and cheese. Sooooo lacking in love. Food came from a buffet. Chicken not fresh as it was cold next to the bone. Greens must have been cut four inches square and did not bend to put in your mouth. Mac and cheese ok. Stuffing ok. Wait staff very nice. At least the lady That waited on me. However I got the feeling there was a general lack of enthusiasm all round. Very local place so I would not bring friends there. By local I mean too laid back. No snap. However I bet their breakfast is great. This is the sort of place I would go for breakfast. Wish they were closer and I could try more. The area is daunting for an old lady from the southside of Chicago. I am 70 and was born and raised in Chicago. My knowledge of the Westside made me cautious about going there and I said a little prayer when I parked my car. But, fear not. Friendly clientele, love a man that smiles at an old lady, and there are real efforts towards neighborhood improvement. Ruby’ i so want you to succeed, bring on some loving care.

What a glorious place! My partner and I are moving to the neighborhood, and we wanted to find some good soul food. Well, we came to the right place! When you walk in, you are greeted very kindly and invited to come up and look at the buffet full of ready-​to-​go soul food: chicken, yams, mac & cheese, collard greens, veggies, potatoes — more that I’m forgetting. Yum. I wanted the catfish, but my partner was in a hurry, so we ordered sandwiches. They were good, but the Cream of Chicken soup (with real pieces of shredded chicken) was my favorite, along with the cornbread. The people working there are super nice and friendly, and they’ll talk to you about the food.
To top it off, I took home a piece of lemon cake for dessert. It was the best lemon cake I have ever had. I’ll be back soon, Ruby’s!

The food here was amazing. Short ribs, dressing, and Greens. Best I’ve had in years. Service was great everyone was cheerful. The dessert… I have to cut this review short. I need to go back for seconds.

Service is terribly slow, and the food is mediocre at best. I’ve given this place a few tries since it has remodeled and each visit gets worse. This is my last time wasting time here

I ordered the short ribs. I told them I had a groupon before I ordered. They told me the short ribs were $ 17.95! I have to tell you this, I only got ONE short rib! For $ 17.95? Come on now folks! I asked the gentleman at the counter, if they gave me «the special groupon rate», he replied «you know it!» I don’t think he knew I was being sarcastic. The food was good, but not great. At that price, I have great expectations!
If I did not have two more groupons to use, I would not return!
On a positive note, the staff was pleasant.

Hell naw. It’s been 62 minutes since we ordered. Only supposed to take 30 mins for fried foods. Maybe that’s what we get for eating fried foods. The waitress who seems somewhat competent said that another incompetent waitress grabbed our food and gave it to another table. Why didn’t our waitress feel the need to communicate that with us sooner? The water is just Ok, I haven’t tasted the food so I only comment on the water. They have the Lil dude from «that’s so raven look a like bussin’ tables (he literally 11)… He’s maybe 11. Hmmmm… And don’t ask for the restaurant history because they don’t know.

Ham and Egg omelette was good but their potatoes were mushy and the biscuits were average. Butter wasn’t offered for the biscuits. In addition, I presented a group-​on that I let the waitress know was expired. She said no problem to present it at checkout. When I went to pay the woman charged me the full amount and then she said she had to check if they could accept it. She came back and told me that they couldn’t accept it because it was over a year old. I pointed out that it had been only six months but she still denied it. I will never return.

Great catfish. Sides are southern-​worthy.

So… I have been wanting to try this place (also when it was Edna’s) for the last ten years. A Groupon was the push that I needed to make the trip happen. I had hoped to bring my husband along, but his business travel made me a solo lunch goer today, on the final day for the Groupon.
My work schedule did not allow for the thirty minute wait for anything fried (specified on the menu), so I will be back to try the fried chicken. Instead, I tried the blackened catfish, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, biscuits, and cream of chicken soup. Oh… I also got some peach cobbler which I will be trying later. The catfish and sides were good. I actually really, really enjoyed the mac and cheese, and the gravy on the potatoes was fabulous. Two fish filets made for a big meal! My one disappointment was the biscuits, which I had read about (read that they were great). Yikes. They were small, slightly hard, and not fluffy or buttery. Did I come on a bad day? I will reassess when I come back for the fried chicken! The soup was quite good, especially with some added pepper.
My server was young but very friendly and thorough. Every employee I encountered was nice and eager to make my experience nice.
The room was basic and similar to a diner. Many seniors/​retirees but also young people and business people (in suits) were enjoying meals. Several races of people were represented.
The neighborhood is dangerous, so I recommend visiting during the day. However, street parking made quick entry easy.
I will be back for my chicken…

How can you not like a restaurant where mac and cheese and homemade dressing are listed as Vegetables on the menu??? Stopped in to this historic location (formerly Edna’s) with a friend for Sunday lunch and thoroughly enjoyed the braised beef short ribs with all the fixin’s that the server recommended. Although it was busy with the after-​church crowd, the staff was attentive and friendly. Easy street parking, although I would probably limit my visits to daylight hours.

I grew up on the west side but this is my first time at Ruby’s. We ordered the chicken (tenders) and waffles, fried catfish, yams, mac & cheese, potato salad, and biscuits. Everything was fantastic! I have eaten mac & cheese before so I didn’t try it until my friend told me it’s thee best so… I tried it. Very cheesy & tasty!
The catfish was seasoned perfectly. The yams are always my fav so they were awesome here too. The biscuits were buttery soft. The potato salad was greeny good. Waffles were thick and good.
Basically, everything was good. Not too busy when we went on a Saturday afternoon. Our waitress was Angela who was nice. We didn’t try dessert since I had to go but I saw 3 triple layer cakes that I’d love to try on my next visit.

easter sunday i decided to give ruby’s a chance since i never got a chance to eat it when it was edna’s i knew there would be a wait for such famous dishes like the fried chicken but no one told me i would be made to feel as though i was invisible for nearly 20 mins no came to take my order i received a glass of water and that was it. i decided to leave and i ended up at wallace’s which is further east of ruby’s. i really wanted to try rubys dont sit at table #56 because none of the servers will help you. don’t get me wrong though it was easter sunday it wasnt that crowded or busy there were atleast 3 tables open. if the waitstaff were that busy let the customer know ”we will be right with you .” im truly disappointed im a westsider and i felt like an outsider.

Love Love Love This place My Family is in here once a week. The staff is the best. You Must stop in And you will feel like ur at home all the time!

I was so excited to try Ruby’s due to the overwhelming review in the Chicago Tribune last week. On top of that, the Unilocalers gave the place outstanding reviews. I went to the restaurant today filled with anticipation and excitement. The place as described by the others really isn’t in one of the safest neighborhoods, hence my decision to take out my order. I ordered fried chicken, fried perch and a slab of ribs; and of course, for the sides, I ordered macaroni and cheese, collard greens, fried okra and mashed potatoes. For desert, I ordered candied yams, red velvet chocolate cake, coconut cake and a peach cobbler. I know I sound like a mad man ordering all of the treats mentioned above, but just want you to know that I shared the feast with six of my friends.
I was welcomed by a wonderful server (Jackie) and she delighted me with what was on the menu. She served me water even if she knew I was just going to order everything «to go». So, I’m sure that had I dined in, service would have been great!
For my review, I was very disappointed with the fried chicken, it was seasoned well, but it just didn’t reach my expectations. For the baby back ribs, it was too dry and tough. I don’t know if it was a fluke since that was the only time I’ve been there but I was not happy with it. The only good meal that came out was the fried perch — crispy, perfectly breaded and seasoned moist fish.
As for the sides, the collard greens were amazing. Mac and cheese were so-​so. Mashed potatoes were yummy. Fried okra was bleh.
And last but not the least, the desserts were just so-​so. But then again, they’re not a pastry or a dessert shop.

Note: Only giving four stars because I didn’t dine-​in.
We decided to pick up our soul food Sunday meal today… Ruby’s did NOT disappoint. Five star flavor.
The fried catfish is perfect. I don’t even like eating catfish! All of our sides were tasty, hot, not greasy. Mac n cheese, collards, dressing, yams. Go for it. I also recommend the short ribs.
Oak Park isn’t far from Ruby’s, so I will be back. Take out makes it home HOT and crispy, but I’d love to make a dine in visit because the staff is so pleasant.

The collard greens here are amazing! Being a vegetarian finding good soul food can be trying. Yet all the sides at Ruby’s are prepared veg-​friendly. You can get a trio of 3 for only 7 dollars and I was definitely full when done devouring. They have plenty of options, I got the collard greens, mac and cheese, and pickled beets which also came with a side of corn bread. The greens were my favorite but the mac and cheese was also very glutenous and amazing.
It’s not located in the safest of neighborhoods, but the staff was extremely welcoming and friendly. They have a parking lot next door which is nice because it can be a little difficult to get to via public transport. I never went to Edna’s when it was around but I hear the menu hasn’t really changed so I’m sure if you liked it then you will like it now.
Overall great food, great service and great price!

Henry Henderson was a genius to hire manager Lillie Joiner and most of the staff when he decided to open Ruby’s on the site of the west-side’s soul food mecca and de facto living room, Edna’s, which closed soon after Edna Stewart passed away.
A fresh coat of paint and minor menu additions are the only noticeable things. My wife, brother, and I hadn’t been here in a few years and while the place looked a little different, the food was the same outstanding southern cooking that we remembered.
Of course, we had the fried chicken, ¼ dark. The entrees come with two sides and your choice of biscuits or corned bread. Our table ordered 2 macaroni and cheeses, collard greens, creamed corn, mashed potatoes with gravy, and pinto beans. The biscuits? Put jelly on one and butter on the other. You’re welcome. They fry to order, so the chicken took every bit of the advertised 30 minutes. If you order a drink when you order your food, it will come with your meal. Tell the waitress if you want it now.
Everything is high fat, high calorie, cooked with butter, and damn it, it tastes good. Everything was great. The fried chicken is the best I’ve tasted in the city, bar none. The collard greens were the only relatively weak point. I should have stopped and put a little salt on it but everything else was so good, I couldn’t stop eating. The creamed corn had a smoky flavor. Most likely it was cooked in a pan with the same oil as something else but they were very good. We didn’t have room for dessert and it was almost heartbreaking. We had our eyes on the apple and peach cobbler.
A note about the location. We went there at noon on a Saturday and yes, the west side doesn’t seem to be the safest place in the world but we were treated just fine and nothing seemed dangerous. Mr. Henderson came over and asked how we were and asked us to come back soon. The wait staff was friendly and the other patrons, shock surprise, treated us just like another bunch of hungry patrons. Sure, it’s odd to have the cashier in a bullet-​proof booth but even she, and I think she was Lillie the manager, told me that she’d have the printed to-​go menu for me the next time I came in. Not, «oh, I hope you come back». She said, «when you come back.» We will. Soon.
To people scared to visit the west side, be respectful as you should be everywhere and you’ll be just fine. When the food comes and you taste it, you wouldn’t care if you were sitting buck naked on the L tracks in rush hour.