One evening at the end of last term, HCX were invited to review the new RUBY Modern Diner, for what turned out to be a great evening of food! If you haven’t had a chance to pop into this new restaurant, we think it’s a must before you leave Exeter this term. WARNING: if you’re hungry before you read this, you might want to go and get something to munch on right now, because this review contains a lot of food – and even better, a lot of photos of great food!
The Highlights
When we first sat down, we were highly recommended to try their shakes – and being the tired students that we were, and in need of a bit of a pick me up, we opted for two of the alcoholic shakes. Wow. These are a must when you visit RUBY! Whether you have a deep love of salted caramel or chocolate like we do, there is a shake to suit you. Recommendations you say? Try ‘The Sweety’ or the ‘To Die For’ as they are the best start to a meal we could imagine. I mean, who wouldn’t want vanilla ice cream, malt, salted caramel sauce & caramel vodka all in one glass? In fact, you could happily have these as a post dinner treat for when your sweet tooth kicks in. Just make sure you don’t leave without having experienced what has to rank as one of the best shakes we’ve ever had.
When the food arrived we were certainly spoilt for choice when it came to highlights. So what’s Lauren’s recommendation here? A tough choice girls, a very tough choice… However, if I had to choose, it would be the RUBY burger. A very well deserved signature burger! What more could you ask for than cheese, bacon, beautiful beef and a signature sauce that tops it all off? Oh wait, it comes in a brioche bun. Incredible. But you have to have a side with this, and it has to be ‘Proper Chips’: chips, but hand cut, skin on chips fried in beef dripping. These are so much better than normal fries (although I happily picked away at those as well…!) and a real must-try at RUBY. Caroline’s Highlight? Got to be the Blue burger – juicy beef, Devon blue cheese and chestnut mushrooms? Yes please.
Any changes?
Virtually nothing. The only little niggle we have is the bowls. It sounds silly, but trying to cut a burger in these bowls is quite difficult! Pedantic right? It didn’t really hinder us – we got stuck right in with our hands! But this just shows how great an evening we had: we wouldn’t change a thing about the food or the ambience, just the bowls!
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The HCX Recommended Menu
Drinks: It has to be the shakes! Whether you fancy chocolate or caramel, alcohol or no alcohol, there is something for every taste here. Do not leave RUBY without having had one of these! We had them along side our meal and whilst they were filling they were so worth it and just the right size to accompany dinner.
Main Course: We were two very lucky girls as we were treated to selections from the entire menu. Our faces lit up when we were brought delicious smoky pulled pork in a brioche bun, mouth-wateringly moreish hot salt beef in a chewy bagel topped with emmental cheese and mustard, and a selection of mini burgers called ‘Sliders’ – we got to try everything! However for our HCX recommended menu, we suggest going for either the classic RUBY burger, or if you fancy something a bit lighter, the delectable ‘Panko’ chicken burger. Juicy chicken fillet in panko breadcrumbs, pesto, Applewood cheese, mayonnaise and basil make this burger a fantastic choice. Alternatively, if you’re feeling adventurous and really can’t decide, why not indulge in a selection of their mini ‘Sliders’ like we did – then you get to try three different burgers in miniature! Don’t worry vegetarians, RUBY caters for you too. Try the fantastic ‘Faloumi’ burger: alafel pattie, halloumi, red pepper, avocado, lemon yoghurt, chipotle chilli sauce – no Quorn burgers here.
Sides: As we’ve already mentioned, the ‘Proper Chips’ were to die for. Yes they may be fried in beef dripping and not suitable for bikini diets, but we won’t tell if you don’t. We couldn’t get over the ‘Maccaruby Cheese’, the most perfect Mac’n’Cheese out there in our opinion. Giant penne, very cheesy sauce made with Hawkridge mature cheddar, Devon Blue, mustard, black pepper and topped with breadcrumbs: what’s not to like? And you HAVE to try the ‘Poppers’ – spicy jalapeño peppers in panko breadcrumbs, stuffed with creamy Philadelphia. Just so good.
Dessert: Dessert has a very special place in our lives – we both have the biggest sweet tooth! So this was a big one for us, and we have to say the waffles didn’t let us down one little bit. Even though we were so full after a gorgeous taster of mains, there is always room for dessert! Try the ‘Leigious’: waffles, with chocolate ice cream and hot chocolate sauce. Mmmm. What better way to finish of a great evening?
We’d like to say a huge thank you to RUBY Modern Diner and their fantastic front of house team – we had a brilliant evening and all our foodie needs were well and truly met. A great place to head for breakfast, lunch, dinner or even a cheeky ‘hard shake’, we can’t think of anywhere we’d rather go for a girly catch-up and top-of-the-range food.
Photo Credits: All photos provided by the management at RUBY