The R House Italian Steakhouse in Ridgefield is old school in the best ways. On a recent visit, I found the experience reminiscent of the restaurant trends I’d grown up with and frequently miss.
Bread is served for no extra charge at the start of the meal. The place is large and spacious; it seats more than 200 people and is 8,000 square feet, according to The Hartford Business Journal. It’s open seven days a week for lunch and dinner and provides a wide range of food options from Italian classics to steak. The vibe, while far from pretentious, is also fancy enough that if you wore a suit, you wouldn’t feel out of place.
The sprawling restaurant space on the edge of Ridgefield’s downtown, was previously home to The Benjamin but changed hands and its name last year. I was never at The Benjamin but was impressed with what I experienced during a recent visit to The R House. I went here with a friend and we both decided to forgo the steakhouse side of the menu and focus more on the Italian side of things, by taking advantage of a prix fixe multicourse offering for restaurant week. We were impressed with almost everything we tried.
The prime meatballs served with marinara and melted ricotta are a delicious appetizer, and my friend was equally impressed with a lobster bisque. These sides are matched by the entrees I tried. A grilled Scottish salmon with a porcini crust, champagne mustard sauce, and sauteed spinach is a standout that features perfectly cooked salmon. Rigatoni bolognese is also strong, with excellent-tasting pasta served al dente with a strong sauce. It’s the kind of dish that would easily be my go-to if I was a regular here. In both the meatball appetizer and the bolognese, the meat is impressive, which is to be expected from a steakhouse.
Of the two desserts I tried, a chocolate mousse cake was decent but a little on the too-rich side. Meanwhile, an order of vanilla gelato was excellent and a great close to the meal. When it comes to drinks, there’s a large wine list, but I opted for a margarita mashup with Aperol that was a decent drink, if not spectacular.
The service is friendly and attentive, with the table cleared between each course. Even early on a Monday evening, the service team brought their A game and seemed to work well in unison.
Because I went with the restaurant week special, I got a lot of different food for a reasonable price. Normally speaking, The R House is on the pricier side, with most entrees in the $30s and only a few in the high $20s. That said this place has high-quality food and feels like a fancy restaurant, so it is worth paying it. At the end of my visit, to R House I was impressed and intrigued overall. It’s a welcome addition to the area and one I will recommend to friends looking for a night out in Ridgefield and beyond.
Erik Ofgang shares his opinions on food and drink in the state. He is the co-author of “The Good Vices” and has written for The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Smithsonian, Forbes and other publications. He pens a Connecticut Magazine column titled “Craft Cruising” about the state’s beverage scene.