RUBY Diner

Exeter's high street has come on in leaps and bounds over the past few years. The Princesshay shopping area has transformed both the city's image and the local economy, and the introduction of shops like Urban Outfitters and John Lewis last year have now made Exeter a pretty good shopping destination.

The restaurant scene isn't too shabby either. I can't complain about the usual suspects like Wagamamas, Nando's, Giraffe and the new Yo Sushi, because they're always going to provide consistent quality and service. Exeter may be overrun with ubiquitous Italian chain restaurants, but we do have some great places to eat which are unique to the town. Smaller chains like Bills and Boston Tea Party are always popular due to the quality of food and relaxed atmosphere, but every now and again a cunning entrepreneur sees a gap in the market just waiting to be snapped up. 

RUBY Diner on Queen Street is just such a gap. It markets itself as a modern American-style diner, and only opened at the end of January. I was lucky enough to be invited to the press launch a couple of weeks ago with Her Campus Exeter, the online magazine I run. Dicky (an Exeter Uni graduate) and Erin have managed to create a beautiful and innovative space in which to fulfil Exeter's gastro-burger needs. The restaurant itself is spacious and bright, and makes the most of the features of the beautiful old building with a quirky mezzanine floor. Whilst there isn't a huge amount of seating, and if you choose one of the enormous benches to sit at you will be sharing with another party, this adds to the friendly, chilled-out vibe of the place. Neon signs, framed pictures and bright song lyrics plastered on the walls make the space seem very cool and clean - they've managed just the right mix of 'edgy' and 'traditional American'. 

The food is brilliant - and the fact that it is all sourced locally from a farm in Devon is just another bonus. At the press launch, mini versions of their burgers called 'sliders' were handed round, and I tried the 'Blue': Ruby beef with roasted chestnut mushrooms, lettuce and Devonshire blue cheese. I also tried the 'Faloumi' burger: a vegetarian option with a falafel patty, avocado, mayo, lettuce and grilled Halloumi cheese, very yummy. The beef-dripping cooked chips were to die for, as was the Mac'n'Cheese - an infamous American classic. Milkshakes and salted caramel waffles followed, which as you can imagine I gobbled up pretty fast (I'm a salted caramel fiend; you could put it on anything and I would probably be tempted to eat it). The menu was fairly priced: expect to pay the same as any high street chain restaurant for a burger, chips and a drink. But the variety was what made the menu so interesting - panko-breadcrumb chicken burgers, 'hard' shakes made with shots of alcohol, hot salted beef, pulled pork, bagels and much more makes this diner different from standard American-style eateries. 

Having visited again last week (this time ordering the full sized Blue), I realised RUBY wasn't just out to impress Exeter's press. Although I probably should have shared a portion of chips with my friend (they were huge individual portions) I had a really good meal and the burger was just as scrummy as I'd remembered the mini version being. The waitresses were very friendly and helpful, without taking on that irritating American trait of bothering you every five minutes. If you prefer a more 'private' and intimate experience, make sure you nab yourself a booth. I'd recommend RUBY as a great place to go with friends or even on a date (Valentine's Day is tomorrow after all...). You can't book, so make sure you arrive early for lunch or supper on the weekend.

See the full menu here, and follow the RUBY Diner blog 'Secret Griddle' here for behind the scenes info. Check me out in the Exeter Daily press launch review here!