My work schedule allows me to have mid-week weekends.
Some weeks I only work 3 days and if it happens that I get 2 consecutive weekdays off, I get a mid-week weekend. Â
So one mid-week weekend, or Tuesday as some people might call it, we had a day of errands to run and needed a place to fuel up. Â With our first errand completed, I searched for a place to eat. Â Ray's happened to be within 5 minutes of St. Joseph's Hospital in Elgin. Â I used to work at St. Joe's, and I would always hear that Ray's was great for the morning meal, but never made it a point to try it out.
Wish I tried them earlier. Â
This place is on the East side of Elgin, near Rt. 25 and Rt. 20. Â You might miss it, it's pretty small. Â When we walked in, at 0900 am, there were 2 tables left. Â Our server was almost the same server you've seen in movie diners, wearing that waitress dress, white orthopedic looking shoes, plastic-rimmed cat-eye glasses....
Or maybe I was imagining it. Â Because this place just looks like every diner I've ever seen in a movie. Â
Goodfellas. Â When Henry meets with Jimmy to discuss his case and Jimmy asks Henry to whack somebody.
Reservoir Dogs. Â Mr. Pink discusses his philosophy on tipping, while the virtues of the song "Like a Virgin" are pored over.
Pulp Fiction. Â Honey Bunny and Pumpkin discuss various disadvantages of robbing liquor stores, banks and jewelry stores, and why restaurants are the ideal place to knock over.
Casino. Â Ace catches Ginger with that smarmy James Woods, I mean Lester Diamond. Â Lester then gets his tuchus handed to him in the parking lot.
I understand that all of the situations I've listed are gangster-y in nature, but none of the above activities occured at Ray's. Â The only crime committed was the murdering I put on my Denver omelette. Â The short order cooks here are really true to the name. Â I pretty much asked for it, the waitress turned around, turned back around and dropped an omelette in front of me. Â
It also happened to be very good. Â I'm a little particular about omelettes; I'm not crazy about filled omelettes, where the egg is cooked, the ingredients put in the middle and the egg folded over, like a blintze. Â I like where egg and ingredient are molded together in the pan, then folded onto a plate, because that's how I do it at home. Â And that's how they do it at Ray's. Â And the ratio of egg to ingredient was perfect, every square inch of egg had some ham, green pepper, or onion in it. Â All omelettes come with hash browns and toast. Â The tap water tastes good and the coffee is refilled early and often. Â
I vote that you come out to Ray's and eat a home-cooked meal. Â (see what I did there?)
Love. This. Place. Â I just had to write an update for Ray's and give them one additional star. Â We absolutely adore this little old-school family restaurant! Â The family who runs it is so friendly & welcoming - they know how to make you feel like family. Â The servers remember what we usually order...one in particular, even if she is not our server that day, will come over & say hi & notices if we are trying something different. Â We normally go here for breakfast or brunch but we've tried the lunch sandwiches & dinner specials & they were also quite good - down home type food. Â
Their parking lot is tiny, but don't let that deter you. Â And don't be surprised if the line is to the door waiting for a table. Â The wait normally goes pretty quick - and the owner makes sure to let you know if there are seats at the counter if you would like. Â He knows my hubby & I like sitting at the counter so he comes & gets us as soon as two stools together are free.
Frindly people, large variety on the menue, The food is always fantastic with very fresh salads and the selection is great for the kids too... they also have ice-cream :) The best part is the cost. You can bring the family and not go broke. We fondly call the resturant "Under the Bridge" as it is located next to the rout 20 overpass.
Review Source:We stumbled upon this place while going for a Sunday drive...searching for breakfast at 1p. Â We were a little skeptical from the looks of the outside, but know that some of the best food places do look a little drab. Â And, the fact that the parking lot was PACKED was a good sign.
We had to wait a few minutes which gave me a chance to watch the food come out of the kitchen and the servers. Â Everything looked wonderful and the servers, cashier and host, even though they were BUSY took the time to make sure everyone and everything was okay. Â
It was very tight seating and difficult to get through the tables and a bit noisy...like a true diner, it added to the charm. Â The food was GREAT! Â And, they will give you as many butters as you want. Â And, they take debit/credit cards! Â One of our new favorite Sunday spots!
For what this place IS, it's pretty OK. Rather tight quarters...small dining room....exhibiting the typical dingy MidWestern dull and gram-maw like decor....but what the eff, right? First, I doubt that much here is actually "home made". It is standard greasy-spoon "food service" fare, very typical...but served quick and average cost. Seem to have good waitresses most of the time- the service is fairly above average, this is important. The OJ is from a can, so skip that. I guess I am too accustomed to California Fresh Squeezed. Oh- SPECIFY a cheese if this is part of the menu item, or if you do an add to an omelette- in my omelette they used a CHEEZ-WHIZ type excreted product, or what is popular in the MidWest- "American Cheese" which is creepy stuff... Stick to the basics, you may live thru it. Food should NEVER be EXCRETED! At least not until you've enjoyed it and are now, 12 hours later, "dropping a deuce" at the porcelain receptacle. Don't forget to wipe! Had the ham steak and eggs today- $7.50 isn't cheap, but the ham steak was just that, pretty decent meal overall.
Review Source:I've been going to Ray's for over 20 years now. Their breakfasts are awesome. You can't beat their prices. It's a small family owned diner that's been around forever. Their only downfalls are that it's small and it's usually very crowded. I still wouldn't change a thing. If it's not broke, don't fix it.
Review Source:This place is an elgin institution. You always know a legit diner by the amount of old people and regulars there are. Well this place is the most legit place ive ever seen in elgin and they've been doing it right.for years. My dad used to take me here when I was a kid for steak and eggsand it was always great. If you go anywhere else for a diner smack yourself
Review Source:Rays is a perfect spot for a great breakfast have been eating there for 3 years and it is all good.
Nice to see a owner that cares about his food and customer's cannot be beat for quality, quantity and value for your dollar. Give it a try !!!!!!!!!!!!! Only down side it is in Elgin not the best area in the burbs..
oh man!!! all I have to say is TRY IT!!! this place is great. A friend introduced me to Ray's last year and I was really impressed. everyone is nice, they are fast, and the food is great! It's just super hard to park in their parking lot, but aside from that, not a darn bad thing to say about this place. LOVE IT!
Review Source:This is just about the perfect diner. The food is great, the atmosphere is fun, and the prices are pretty good.
The owner is always there to say hello and welcome you in, and the staff remembers you even after just a few visits.
If you are looking for a quick breakfast or a good burger, this is the best place around.
Ray's is a family owned restaurant. Â This place has been around for a while. Â They offer delicious breakfast items! Â It is extremely affordable. Â I took a friend with me here we both got an omelette, the bill came out to be around $10 for both of us!
When you get to this place, expect a short wait. Â This place is very small and compact, but their food is to-die-for! Â The wait is definitely worth it.
What I love about this place is that their breakfast is not as greasy as the other places. Â After you've enjoyed your breakfast, you don't not have that overstuffed grease feeling in your stomach. Â
The owner is extremely friendly, he is usually going around making sure everything came out okay.
My favorite things to get here are:
- Denver Omelette
- Waffles
- French Toast
We really like Ray's for three things: breakfast, speed, and price. Â Two people can get a good sized breakfast, coffee, and walk out spending between $10-15, depending on what they got.
I've tried a full variety of things on the menu and the only thing I didn't care for was the biscuits & gravy. If you have a sweet tooth in the morning definitely get the chocolate chip pancakes--they put love in that batter.
The only downfall is that on the weekends they are always packed to the gills, so if you don't like a crowd this isn't your place. Tables turn around quickly, but they are also very close together. Service is always prompt and friendly.
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