Reviews for The Branding Iron Restaurant in Merced, CA

A really disappointing birthday dinner for me and my family. I had family visiting from out of town for my birthday. I made... reservations ahead of time for a party of seven. We were seated right away. First thing to note is that I have never seen thisrestaurant so empty on a weekend night, but now I might know why. After waiting more than an hour for our entrees afterordering, we finally got our meals and we were beyond ready to eat at this time. All of our entrees were cold. Everything wasover cooked and dry. We brought this to our waitresses attention and the suggested resolution to this was to warm them up. Theywere going to cook our overly cooked dry meals even more, no thank you. I feel bad for the wait staff having to do deal with thekitchens mismanagement. Three of our meals were comped, but we all left hungry and unsatisfied. No bread is offered whilewaiting anymore and the entrees do not come with a side salad. I don't see this establishment lasting very long if this is howthey run things. I will never go back again and I will not recommend this restaurant to anyone. STAY CLEAR! Go buy some steaksand make yourself a good meal at home. Read more

This place was 5 stars all around for amazing food and steaks. And really great service! Thank you for a great dinner and night... out! Read more

We had wonderful appetizers and drinks in the bar while a local guitarist, Mikel Soria performed in the background. Appetizers... were delicious, the drinks were very well made, and the service was exceptional. We will be back. Read more

It's our first time there and it didn't disappoint. Thank you for the great food and excellent service. Definitely go for the... prime rib and let the waiter tell you about their specials for the night ( had sword fish). We'll be back! Read more

EXCELLENT! I’m a long-time Mercedian and patron of The Branding Iron. I’m also a retired airline purser who has served... thousands of meals in first class and international business class to the most discriminating guests. As such, I’m keenlyaware of food quality and service expectations. The accomplished chef, James, came out to introduce himself and inquire aboutour meals, which is an excellent touch, and he is very friendly and personable. The new BI owners recruited James from San Diegoand he brings years of high-end urban restaurant experience to the BI. The new BI menu is different than the old one—some ofmy favorites have been retired—and it is more expensive, but that’s because the quality of the ingredients is better thanbefore, such as the PRIME grade beef sourced from small family-run ranches. I had the Chilean sea bass special tonight and itwas delicious. My date had the prime rib and he said it was the best he's ever had. Some of the servers are young and thereforeless experienced, but overall the service was very good, and hopefully patrons will be gracious concerning the younger staff. Iwould love to see the first interaction with guests by wait staff polished up a bit with a genuine smile and a friendly butprofessional introduction, and a wine list in hand offered right away. I’m also fond of the idea of staff wearing identical,well-fitting uniforms, but that may be too much to ask. Next, rather than a single bread roll placed on each individual breadplate, I personally think a generous basket of warm breads and plenty of butter, including flavored butters, be placed at eachtable for guests to share. Finally, finished plates should not be picked up by wait staff until all guests at the table havefinished eating, unless of course, a guest requests that their plate be removed. NOTE TO MANAGEMENT: Please update your websitewith the new menu and new photos/prices of foods, as well as Google Maps, Apple Maps, Yelp, etc. Read more

This is a Miso Glazed Chilean Sea Bass… Since changing owners, this has become the new hot spot in the valley. Chef James... Montejano is the best thing to happen to Merced’s food scene since EVER!!! He brought an explosion of flavor and unequaledtaste experiences to the area. After speaking with him and seeing his passion for food, I am more excited than I have ever beenfor the future of the food scene in Merced. Oh, and the sea bass was off the charts beyond amazing…!!! I can’t wait to goback. The changes he has made have even inspired and ignited the staff working with him to bring his creativity, attention todetail and passion to all of us. This was definitely a top tier experience. Read more

Our waitor was so fun and so attentive. A big shout out to George aka Jorge. Excellent food, drinks. Great atmosphere.

I love the feel of this restaurant! If you wanted to you could have a nice romantic date and dress up. Or you can just come in... jeans and a t-shirt with a bunch of friends and celebrate a birthday! This is the second time I've eaten here with my friendsthe first time I got the coconut shrimp which were enormous and delicious I had to take leftovers home. This time I had thefried shrimp with cocktail sauce and it was absolutely delicious! I like how they put a sorbet in a little metal tin to cleanseyour palate after your meal. Everyone enjoyed their meal very much so. The waitress knew my friend personally both times that wecame here. Everyone is very friendly the restaurant atmosphere and decor is adorable! The restaurant prices are in the $20 to$50 range depending on what you're getting so I say it's medium priced.. but well worth it for the portions the atmosphere andthe amazing service. The bathrooms are very clean and organized I especially like the attitude and quirkiness of the lady whotakes you to your table who has pink hair... I didn't catch her name but she is so adorable and so nice! I will definitely makethis a restaurant but I like attending on a regular basis with my friends! Read more