Harris Ranch Inn & Restaurant

I’ve been wanting to try this restaurant forever and I finally had a chance to go today. Its a couple of hours away from Stockton but I feel it was worth the drive. I had the 14 oz Hickory smoked salt and brown sugar rubbed prime ribeye which came with a twice baked potato, farm fresh vegetables and a summer chopped salad. I enjoyed all if it!!! My steak was cooked perfectly and met my expectations! That was my reason for going there. I love ribeye steaks and prime rib… especially when the are cooked and seasoned just right! My cousin had The Big Bull Burger. It looked really good and she enjoyed it! For dessert, we shared the Peach Crumble with Butter Pecan Ice Cream instead of vanilla. Delicious! Dinner was perfect!
While we were dining, they also had a country singer, Jon Eric Tipton, performing. That was also a nice part of our dining experience. My cousin requested a few song that he sang for her… loved it!
The only downside was we had a nice server, but she ended up leaving before we did. We were still hanging out and listening to the music and wanted some tea and coffee after dinner. We had to ask another server, Antonio, to get it for us. He was happy to do so and I appreciate that. Thanks again, Antonio! And thanks for bringing us the dessert menu and suggesting what was good. We’ll be back!

Came here because my dad loves this place. It is right off the freeway, easy to get to. Outside they are bbqing/​smoking meat. Inside they have a little store and expensive stuff. I wouldn’t recommend the «chocolate covered oreos»… they are not oreos, they are nasty imitation oreos. Waste of money, bought 3, trashed 3. My daughter got the kid pancakes, not much flavor, was disappointing. It was about 11 and they were mainly serving breakfast. I tried ordering a few things off of the lunch menu and they said they didn’t have it or it wasn’t ready yet. One was pulled pork or sandwiches. The said I could order a burger, so I did with fries. They gave me a lot of thin french fries and a burger. The burger was very messy but tasty.

We ate in the Steakhouse and enjoyed the service very much. The staff was attentive and very warm and welcoming. The wine list was good and cocktails were well prepared. My wife had a filet and enjoyed it very much. I had the «Jacks» cut prime rib and was disappointed. I ordered it medium rare, which it was, but it had grill marks on it and was tough and chewy; nothing close to what you would expect from a restaurant representing a supposedly prestigious beef producer. Prime rib should be a «signature» dish in such an establishment and this fell way short.
The garlic mashed potatoes and vegetables were well prepared but our Caesar salads were tasteless and a disappointment. In summation I would say that the overall food quality is average but priced in the «gourmet» range. They do a huge business due to their ideal location and the fact that they are pretty much the only game in town.
We stayed two separate nights on our drive down and back to Southern California and found the hotel accommodations to be excellent. The rooms were spacious, comfortable, well appointed and fairly priced. Again, the staff was outstanding and obviously well trained. Beware if the wind is blowing in the wrong because the smell from the adjoining cattle ranch can be overpowering. The good news is that the air conditioning in the rooms is quiet and very efficient and there was no smell getting into the room when the air was on.

Always great, friendly service. Aside from one visit were the food was underseasoned, it is always amazing. Last night, I had the porterhouse and it was perfection. Our waitress was attentive and friendly and it was just an all around great experience. The fruit tart and cheese cake from the bakery are amazing.

3.5÷5
First of all, the layout of the restaurant was a bit confusing as we tried to check-​in to three different hostess booths. When you enter you notice the first room which is adults only/​bar dining. Second being a fine dining that served a menu limited to just their steaks. The third room was the more family friendly room including their full menu: apps, sandwiches, salads, and other entrees. It’s worth noting that food for all tree rooms come out of the same kitchen and are prepped by the same chefs. And although it would seem like that fine dining steak room would serve better cuts of meat, they’re the exact same cuts. We were sat within 20 minutes and greeted immediately by the bus boy asking us what we’d like to drink.
After placing our order we received our dinner rolls and salads. I opted for the Caesar salad. I’d like to note that the dressing is a bit lack luster when it comes to flavor. Our steaks took awhile to come out, but when they arrived they were cooked properly and well seasoned. I ordered the prime ribeye and was satisfied with my selection. A friend ordered the jack cut prime rib and was originally happy with her decision, but noticed as she got closer to the center that the cut was rather tough and hard to eat. My other friend ordered the 20 oz. T-​bone steak and it was cooked to a proper medium rare. He notes, good flavor and incredibly tender. The garlic mashed potatoes were good. Although there be it, the food took a bit longer to show up.

I’ve been wanting to come here and finally got the chance. The venue is super clean, and shields from outside smells and heat. I had the open face t-​bone sandwich. It’s the perfect portion for lunch. The quality of the meat is good, cooked well. However, if you’re comparing it to those expensive, fancy steakhouses, it isn’t cooked as well, and there are no «hot plates». Still this place has good steak. The fries were perfect and extra long. I enjoy this place and will come back if the timing is right. The restrooms and clean too.
The only problem is timing my schedule so I end up passing by while it’s a meal time.

The reason why I give this place 1 star is mainly because I got food poisoned, however there were other issues with the restaurant.
Firstly, I have to say our waiter was really kind and as well as all of the staff.
I ordered the beef Wellington and soup of the day which was cream of mushroom.
The cream of mushroom was pretty good but there was much more cream than I expected, and I’m guessing they didn’t clean their mushrooms well enough because I’ve been on the toilet for the last hour.
The beef Wellington had some issues as well. The sous chef that wrapped my Wellington has never wrapped anything in his life because the Wellington was so loose, my meat basically just fell out. Another thing, they don’t chop their mushrooms in the Wellington, which results in large chunks of mushroom and it it’s harder to wrap. Finally, the sauce was way overpowering and just drenched the entire Wellington.
Overall, great service you get 1 star, food poisoning didn’t award you 4 more.

Service was excellent.
We ordered 2 filets and they were perfect.
We also had the prime rib dip which was delicious. The vegetables were carrots/​peppers/​asparagus and they were wonderful. The rolls were also great!

If you’re driving to San Francisco from LA, or vice versa, or anywhere in between, it’s a must stop. All their food is pretty good, but the meat will overshadow everything else.
This place is so good that if I drive through and don’t stop, it makes my day sad. The service is great, the people are nice, and the quality is superb.
Call it bias, but being a proud Californian, I have to say this is one of the best pieces of meat around. I’ve never had a bad experience here, other than being too full of delicious food that I can barely move.
The price is not cheap, but it’s worth every cent. I would bring anyone I know or will meet here. Thanks for the good food and experience Harris Ranch. Keep up the great work.
Your Loyal LA fan will return.

This would be a 5 star review because the food was amazing, but the service was lacking. Even if they attempted to correct it I would have given the extra star, but there was no attempt to correct their mistake.
Driving home to Sacramento from a week in LA for our honeymoon, we were hungry for lunch. I’ve driven by millions of times but never stopped. I’ve heard many great things and wanted to check it out. We got the crab cake starter and they were the best can cakes I’ve ever had. Then came the garden chopped salad, all fresh ingredients. I asked for the dressing on the side because I don’t typically use a lot. When it didn’t come that way the server said «sorry» and did not attempt to correct it.
3^rd bite into my salad comes the entrée, a beautiful NY strip cooked to perfection, the only problem is that it was literally 3 bites into the salad that she just brought us. We were on a high top table and barely had room for our salad and roll plates. Now comes our entrées and I told the server that she just brought us our salads, which she said «I know, sorry.» and continued to push plates around to set our entrées down.
The steak and garlic mash were perfection! The crab cakes, amazing! But for the price, I would have expected some ownership on the servers part.

BEST STEAK EVER. PSA: make sure you stop even if the smell of cow and poo and lack of civilization nearby makes you wanna run away.
We always stop by this place on our way to San Francisco from LA or back and it never disappoints! The vegetables (asparagus!) are my favorite part – they’re just so fresh. I think Harris Ranch grows these too. This time, we ordered the 40 oz prime rib, T-​bone and fresh vegetables appetizer for four people, and that’s honestly more than enough. I would recommend the prime rib over the T-​bone because it doesn’t have an outside crust and so gives off a more tender feel and flavorful taste. They’re really generous with the size of the cut, so you definitely get full for the price you pay.
The first time I was here, we ordered the chicken tenders in addition to two plates of meat. Oh my god, it was still so good and fresh the next morning. You probably didn’t drive all the way here for chicken tenders, but just a thought in case you decide to become a rebel and go against the norm.
For a steak house, the vibe is extremely casual. The location is a bit inconvenient, but what better place to get steak than a cow farm? Plus the remote location makes every trip here every bit more sweet. Honestly, this is the best cut of beef I’ve ever had, even better than steakhouses in Chicago where their steak tops #1 on a traveler’s things to try.

My second time coming to this restaurant and being disappointed. This time, I asked for a simple burger to be cooked medium. That burger was nearly 20 $ and was just terrible. The burger was extremely over cooked and crumbled. I thought their specialty was beef so I felt confident in my choice that they could grill up a simple patty. In addition, Mom ordered the sirloin steak, asked for it to be medium, and it also came back very overcooked, it was clearly well done and the meat was tough. They may be able to sell their meat but they definitely don’t seem to be able to cook it. I don’t think I’ll make time to stop by again. The food in their restaurant is overpriced and not cooked well at all. I do like purchasing from their deli area, but I will not make a point to get off I-​5 for that unless I have some craving.

We stopped by for lunch at Harris Ranch, home of the meat lovers! There was no waiting and we were seated immediately. We placed our order, and the waiter brought out two large dinner rolls with whipped butter. The rolls were moist and delicious. Next was the «warm» spinach salad that was actually cold. The salad was topped with a generous amount of real bacon bits, crumbled eggs, raw mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes. We asked for cheese on the side, and the waiter brought the creamy dressing on the side also in addition to some vinaigrette. That was a nice touch since we asked about dairy in the salad.
Our main dish came out surprisingly quickly. DH insisted on the prime rib, but this time we got the plate instead of the sandwich. They split it on two separate plates for us. There was no extra charge for this. We chose the baked potato. The other choices included beans, garlic mashed red potatoes, and baked yam. The baked potato was classic and served with sour cream, chives, and butter on the side. Mine was a little dry on the end though. It also came with steamed veggies, which were excellent – asparagus, carrots, and red bell pepper.
The true star of the meal was obviously the prime rib. 8 oz. plus all the sides was plenty for me and DH to split. The crust was garlic-​forward and packed in herbs – a burst of flavor. The center was perfectly medium rare, deliciously meaty, and perfectly enhanced by the au jus. There was also a side of mild-​tasting creamy horseradish. We were too full to eat dessert.
The décor is country rustic. The service was excellent, with our waiter checking in frequently. Overall it was slightly over $ 20/​head with tax, tip, and no drinks. Pretty good deal considering quality and quantity of food. A nice change of pace from the usual fast food.

4÷15÷16: I’ve been to this restaurant many dozens of times. I used to drive back and forth between the Bay Area and LA every couple weeks, and this was just about the only «nice» restaurant along the way, and you know, it’s a great break during the 400mi drive.
Well, I feel I just need to update my last review, as I feel I just can’t keep recommending this place so heavily due to their inconsistency in their meats. I’ve had everything ranging from some of the best prime rib I’ve ever had to some pretty crappy steak (though never «Sizzler’s crappy» of course.) When it’s good, it’s GOOD. But dang, sometimes it just sucks.
Well, this would be one of the below-​average times. Like as in on-​par with Denny’s T-​Bone. I mean, I ain’t bashing Denny’s cause they do their best to deliver for a small amount of money, but stuff ain’t cheap here, and they’re supposedly killing the cows right down the street. It should be a ton better than Denny’s, if not some of the best beef ever. And tonight it clearly wasn’t…
1. Pan-​Roasted Chicken $ 18.95: So, we’ll get to the steak… but first up my gf got chicken. Yes, she nicely asked for my permission to order chicken at a steakhouse, and since I have had steak here a gazillion times, sure, why not. Kinda curious anyway. Well… it wasn’t bad. The chicken was actually pretty moist. The skin was nice and taught, and crisp. But, it was just kinda plain – not too much better than what a good baking mom could do at home with some salt and pepper. Just wasn’t impressive. But if you don’t like real meat, well, I guess you can order the bird. ⁶⁄₁₀
2. Hickory Smoked Salt & Brown Sugar Rubbed Prime Ribeye $ 42.95: And here’s the steak. They have a more traditional ribeye, including a bone-​in version, but I felt like something different and this version was pretty much the specialty of the house. I’ve had it before, and even the flavoring can be a coin-​flip. Sometimes it’s too strong to the point you can’t taste the meat well, but this time the flavor was perfect – good smokey taste, with just the right amount of sweetness. BUT, I always order medium-​rare, and this time it was closer to medium-​well. Not so bad that I felt the need to return it (which I try to avoid of course), but not cooked to my order either. But even the doneness aside, the meat was kinda tough. Didn’t taste like «prime ribeye.» Closer to sirloin of standard grade. Probably wasn’t aged very long either. For $ 40ish, I would expect much better quality meat. ⁵⁄₁₀
2a. Clam Chowder (side): It was alright. Nothing special here. Similar to a good canned clam chowder. ⁵⁄₁₀
So, like I said, I’ve had some spectacular meat here before, so it’s not like they’re capable. But unfortunately it’s too much of a dice roll to give them an above average score.
³⁄₅
#steak #steakhouse

Driving up or down the 5, you know you’re at Harris Ranch when that potent cow farm hits you hard through the vents. Apparently there’s a bar side with more casual dining, and a finer dining area. Both have their own different menus. Unfortunately, they were sold out on their prime rib when we got there (9:30pm). I ordered the hickory smoke ribeye steak dinner that comes with roasted asparagus, carrots, bell peppers, and a side of their warm spinach salad.
Starting with their fresh dinner rolls and salty whipped butter, just what we needed to whet our appetites. The warm spinach salad was delightful, with bleu cheese, bacon vinaigrette, red onions, and candied almonds to tie it all together. The roasted veggies seemed to be hit and miss, with some people’s servings perfectly cooked or slightly under. No biggie there though.
Now the ribeye, that was worth it! Tender, juicy, and slapping your palate with a taste that makes you forget that awful stench on the road. You go Harris Ranch, you go!

One of so few places to sit down to eat breakfast on the long drive to LA, but the political rantings on their walls and on the big, loud TV as you come in was a bummer (and transparently biased).
Coffee came fast which was important though. Server was fairly gruff but efficient. The food was … fine. Nothing exciting but nothing was bad. It’ll likely meet your expectations.
I was very happy to see there are Tesla charging stations there, makes sense given it’s half way between northern and southern California.
The food and service were 3.5 starts, the political BS was 1 star and bothersome. Seeing the same signs by land owners for a few miles in either direction claiming Washington DC caused the drought when it’s a result of global warming and weather cycles was just irritating. They want water to be brought in from other areas, but it’s for a agriculture industry that isn’t sustainable there.
The bathrooms were clean though.

Super disappointing! I’ve heard so many great things about Harris Ranch. It didn’t live up to any hype.
What I Ordered
— 14oz Prime Rib with Mashed Potatoes and Veggies
The prime rib was so tough to eat and cut! I was chewing forever. How do you cook such a beautifully seasoned piece of meat so poorly? What a waste. The mashed potatoes were good but, that was it. I might come back to try the ribeye. Maybe they just don’t do prime rib as well as they claim? Service was good, it made me feel so guilty for lying about how well it tasted. :x One star for service. another for mashed potatoes.

Its been years, since we’ve eaten at the Harris Ranch. A good stopping point between San Fran & LA. (So good, that they’ve set up the Tesla Charging Stations here.)
Inside, they have 2 restaurants, one family and one adults only. We’ve never eaten at the adults only, so we opted to try it out. There was a 5 minute wait. While waiting, another patron told me that we had just missed the lunch time rush; the place had been packed an hour prior. Nice.
Our buzzer went off after 5 minutes and we were led thru the bar to a larger table for 4. The place looks straight out of the 70’s/80’s. There were tv’s playing different sporting events.
I knew I would order some steak, so I ordered a glass of the Duckhorn Migration Pinot Noir.
I had the Classic Wedge w/​8ox Filet Mignon. Steak was prepared closer to medium rather than I had ordered, medium rare, but there’s no denying it was a good steak. The salad was a typical wedge w/​lots of dressing & bleu cheese.
Enjoyed my food, but felt the place is dated and our server could have been more attentive (maybe, she was tired after the lunch rush).

Food: Caesar salad, jack’s steak sandwich, kids grilled cheese. We split the salad and sandwich and that was the perfect amount. I like that you can get fresh fruit as the side. Kids meal came with fruit and a cookie. Everything tastes fresh and they were very generous with the side servings given that we were splitting.
Service: attentive and fast. Drinks refilled and we were checked on.
Location: great halfway point from L.A. to the South Bay Area. Took about 3.5 hours from Mission Viejo. Feeling rejuvenated to hit the road for the remaining 2 hours! This will definitely be a regular stop on the way back home from now on.

Ambiance: bar side had a loud musician in the corner singing covers. Steakhouse side has a casual, cowboy-​throw-​up vibe– cow hides, real lanterns as lighting fixtures, large iron chandelier.
1. There are two sides to this restaurant which is unclear in all pictures, menus, and reviews.
2. You can still order from the better, more extensive «bar» menu on the pricey steakhouse side of the restaurant (s).
3. Service is decent; water glasses were always full, dishes were cleared regularly, bottomless drinks remained bottomless.
4. Took one star off for the fact that it’s apparently «frowned upon» to serve said bar food in the steak house. That’s not cool for servers trying to make money.
5. They have a gift shop.

We went during our anniversary. Overall was a very nice experience and the food tasted really well for what you pay for. Pretty much when we came which was during the presidents day/​valentines day and they were running out of food. I could not get the pork chop, no pecan cookies and they had one salmon left. One other thing is that no freebees like a comp on dessert or something special to make it good either than happy anniversary.
Our server was overall good other than he had to come back and say I am sorry we do not have this and this. The steak was good and cooked to perfection as it came out nice and juicy and vegetables were good as wel. The shrimp soup was a major disappointment as we were expecting it to be more creamy and less watery and it came out very cold. Both salads were awesome, the spinach salad and the gosh, trying to remember the name, the cabbage with bacon blue cheese and ranch, awesome and good. I ordered the salmon and when I tasted it, it was one of the best fish ever and compliments to the legumes and wild rice.
Desserts for the ice cream major disappointment as the ice cream was okay. The almond mocha was gelato was more of ice cream and was in a small scoop as well for $ 4.95 and they forgot our cookies :(We asked our server for the cookie and he gave us two, but the cookies were very hard and cold and was not good. The ice cream and brown was great, but no chocolate flakes. OUr bill ended up being 122 dollars with tip and tax
Overall I want to give it a 3.5 stars on this one as unfortunately I had bathroom problems the following day.

We took a plane from San Carlos airport to here, it was a joy ride and we needed a destination.
Great they have an airport!
Bad — they have a steak house.
Harris ranch is a very depressing place. Mass industrial cattle breeding. The stuff that turns people into vegetarians.

I’ve made a stop or two here and look forward to passing through again to visit, especially to try out the restaurant!
— — Atmosphere & Parking — — — –
The grounds are beautiful here, open, clean, and just nice. There’s a hugeeee parking lot with plenty of space. I noticed they have Tesla chargers available.
Inside you’ll find nice clean and quiet areas. There’s an inn, store, and restaurant. The bathrooms are clean, the store is full of diff goods from snacks, to meats, desserts, and more.
Unfortunately, I’ve only been to take a break and visit the store but would love the opportunity to eat at the restaurant in the future. Seems nice and the food seems of great quality.
Definitely a nice stop to make to check out this place when you’re driving through the I-​5.

I was expecting a bit more after reading all the five star reviews. I definitely didn’t expect my steak to come in so cold, I mean cold to the touch! The food was mediocre, if not worse. It’s still better than most other option on i5N, so give it a shot on your way.
To start off, I have been here twice and once the stench from the farm was unbearable. Just park as close to the entrance as possible, and run! Run as fast as you can, the pungent cattle smell will crawl into your nostrils and refuse to get out. The second time, surprisingly, the air was fresh. It’s possible that it’s from the wind direction, but may be something else.
The place is large and you should definitely be able to find a seat for your group. As much as I can tell, it has around four to five different seating areas including the bar. Each come with it’s own little style, but generally, you’re talking about farm décor with low ambient light.
We got the Harris Ranch garden salad, the chuckwagon soup, and the squash bisque as starters. Although it was nice to know that our garden salad was farmed locally, the minimal effort that went into crafting this salad was abysmal. More or less was the typical salad you get at your middle school cafeteria, a little lettuce with a single slice of cucumber, two small tomatoes and some beans.
The chuckwagon soup was tasty, it’s packed with flavor and extra meat. If you’re planning to have a steak, I wouldn’t go with this option since it’s already filling, especially if you’re getting the bowel and not the cup. The bisque squash was nice, could have been a little more warmer and little saltier. Very soft silky texture as expected.
Now the highlight of the meal — hangar steak with kale salad. I was so disappointed! My steak came in cold. I pointed this out to the waiter and he heated it up in the boiler, but then my steak was back well done! They did offer to make a new one, but I didn’t want to go through the hassle. I was actually seated next to the kitchen and got a peek at how they keep the food warm before serving — they’re still using a cloche! A much better option would be a heating lamp, so that the customers don’t get their steak cold!
The kale salad that accompanied the steak was so so. I didn’t think the pairing of avocados with pomegranate seeds and sliced grapes went well. Too creamy and too sweet, with the rough texture of kale.

Ah Harris Ranch, just follow the aroma of cow excrements and it will lead you straight to the door of this large inn and restaurant. Harris offers quite the plethora of tourist like essentials from, selling their own spices, cow hides and never heard of jams (pepper jam??). What I did quite enjoy was their restaurant which seems to be oddly split for families and more fancy dinners? Either way, it seems they serve the same menu so being in any of the two seating arrangements did not bother me so. This is a ranch so I thought it would have been a sin to not try eating a steak! I asked for a 30oz prime rib along with a 24oz rib eye.
Since it’s a cow ranch, it seemed appropriate the cuts of meat tasted quite fresh. However, they weren’t particularly mind blowing. What they carried were sheer size but just gentle hints of flavor encrusting the outer rims of the steaks. I can really only recommend purchasing these two large and expensive menu items if you’re just looking for some large cuts of meat but prepare to bring your sauces or flavorings if you truly want to enjoy every bite.

Yes yes yes hands down best steak ever ! If you like them super juicy and big lol
Get the bone in ribeye.

After driving on the ugly duckling of all freeways, the I-​5, for hours on end, this place looks like gold at the end of the rainbow. Obviously, it’s not, but it comes pretty damn close with their wonderful assortment of meats. There are two dining rooms, but most people eat at the more casual spot with the bar. At least, this is where we’ve sat the last two times.
My girl has gotten the ribeye dip both times and I was lucky enough to get a taste of it the last time and it was pretty strong. She loves it for what it’s worth. I’ve tried the Harris ranch pot roast, which was composed into a plate of comfort with the broccoli and baked potato on there. The meat was tender and flavorful as can be. On our most recent visit, I was already feeling quite bloated and not too hungry, so naturally opted for their Big Bull Burger. Why not?
It was huge. The meat was great, but the onion ring at the bottom got way too soggy and wasn’t too enjoyable to eat. Also, the bacon was the weakest part of the burger. Whaaat??? Yes, that is the truth, as hard as it is to accept. It had an old and stale taste to it. I saw they offered pancetta bacon on another burger and may try to customize a burger the next time I pop in.
Service has been great every time. Prices are more than reasonable considering the quality of the cuts of meat and the portions leave you very little to complain about. In fact, I have zero major issues with this place and plan on stopping in every time we drive back up to the bay. It’s one of the few things that keeps me on the I-​5 instead of making a nosedive off the shoulder. Meat is good. I like it. So what?