Michael J's Italian-american - Ruidoso

Upon our arrival, we were informed that there was no outdoor seating available because other parties had reserved the tables. Naturally, we expressed our disappointment, especially after paying a $150 deposit. The manager, Nichole Flowers, then asked us to leave, assuming that we might be rude to the staff. This assumption was unfounded, especially considering that my daughters, who work in the service industry, were part of our group. There was absolutely no chance that we would be disrespectful to the servers, who were not responsible for our reservation issues. I had been looking forward to their veal dish for weeks and didn't think twice about the deposit, as we had dined there many times before. However, being judged based on our frustration over a reservation that included a substantial deposit was both absurd and unprofessional. While I must say that the food is delicious and the waitstaff has always been excellent in our prior visits, I have serious concerns about the management. It also leads me to question whether bias played a role in this situation, as our entire party is Mexican, while the group occupying the outdoor tables we had reserved was Caucasian. We may never know the truth behind this incident.

I made a reservation for outdoor patio seating two weeks in advance and paid a $150 deposit. However, when we arrived, we were informed that they could no longer accommodate our reservation due to an error on their part. They offered us indoor seating instead, which we accepted. To our surprise, they seemed to assume we would be rude to the staff for some reason. This was quite baffling because half of our family has extensive experience in the restaurant industry, including owning establishments in El Paso. We would never treat any staff poorly, especially knowing that mistakes can happen. I’m honestly shocked and curious why a restaurant would automatically assume their guests would be disrespectful. We remained calm and simply asked about the deposit and their inability to fulfill the reservation. Overall, we left feeling disappointed and somewhat profiled.

During our vacation in Ruidoso, we enjoyed a variety of delicious meals, but this restaurant stood out as my personal favorite. We kicked off our meal with a couple of lobster cakes, which were absolutely delicious, complemented by a flavorful sauce. For my main course, I had a spicy shrimp pasta dish that was incredible—definitely a highlight! I highly recommend it! Additionally, our waiter was very attentive and knowledgeable, and he dressed very professionally. However, it felt a bit out of place to see the female servers in cut-off shorts.

We visited the restaurant. We had reservations and were promptly seated. We placed our order and waited a normal amount of time. Then our server came and told us our meal was given to others, so it would be remade. So far all is understandable. Our meals arrived and all of our dinners were not hot, since they were remade we had issues with this. Others in our party stated their lasagna was one step below Costco’s. I ordered iced tea, it was delivered as expected. I question any chef that would allow any drink that looks like this and more importantly something that tastes so bad. Does the establishment taste what they serve?

Michael J's is by far the best small business Italian restaurant I've been to. The food was delicious, the staff were super friendly, and the price was affordable for the quality of service provided. I had to eat here about five times during my two week work trip.