Ruth Ann Udstad Fertel was a Louisiana businesswoman, best known as the founder of Ruth's Chris Steak Houses, which was founded in 1965.
17 Facts About Ruth Fertel
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Ruth Fertel's father was born in Norway and emigrated to the United States where he became an engineer, and her mother was of mixed Alsatian-French and Croatian descent.
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Ruth Fertel's father worked as an insurance salesman, and her mother was a kindergarten teacher.
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Ruth Fertel skipped several grades in elementary school, and graduated at age 15.
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On October 2,1948, she married Rodney Ruth Fertel, who lived in Baton Rouge and shared her love of horses, and they had two sons, Jerry and Randy.
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Ruth Fertel earned a thoroughbred trainer's license, making her the first female horse trainer in Louisiana.
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In 1965 Ruth Fertel, realizing she needed to earn more money to send her sons to college, found a classified ad in the Times-Picayune offering a restaurant for sale, the original Chris Steak House, a 60-seat restaurant at 1100 North Broad St, New Orleans.
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Ruth Fertel initially planned to raise just $18,000 to cover the purchase price, until it was pointed out to her that she would need an additional $4,000 to cover the cost of renovations and food.
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Ruth Fertel personally took a hand in every part of the business.
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Ruth Fertel had to teach herself how to butcher steak, and despite being just five-foot-two and 110-pounds, would saw up 30-pound short loins by hand until she could afford an electric band saw.
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Ruth Fertel staffed her restaurant with single mothers, saying that they were hard workers and reliable.
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Ruth Fertel had recently acquired a second property nearby to rent out as party space.
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Ruth Fertel continued to run the Ruth's Chris business throughout her life.
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Ruth Fertel was buried in Lake Lawn Metairie Cemetery, in a lavish mausoleum she and her friend and business partner, Lana Duke, had commissioned in 1995, and which cost over $500,000.
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Ruth Fertel cooked everything and provided free steak meals to disaster workers and victims in the local area.
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Ruth Fertel paid for the education of numerous children, provided counseling for women starting businesses, and contributed to local schools.
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The Ruth U Fertel Culinary Arts Center at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, Louisiana, is a planned expansion of the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute.