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Hispanic Heritage Month Specials with Chef Gus

Ray’s Executive Sous Chef Gustavo Guerra hails from Lagos de Moreno, Jalisco, Mexico and he’s graciously whipped up his Pollo en Mole Oaxaqueño in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month!

This limited quantity dish will be available in the Boathouse and Café starting Friday, September 15 until it’s gone!

Pollo en Mole Oaxaqueño pan seared chicken breast, chayote, radish, marjoram garnish.

Gus’ mole recipe originates from Oaxaca and includes a delicious blend of chiles, spices, pepitas, raisins, Mexican chocolate and much more. He shares that the key to the best mole is starting with good quality chiles; his favorites are mulato, ancho/pasilla, guajillo and cascabel pods – all of which come dried and are reconstituted to create a deep, rich flavor. It takes at least two-days to prepare the mole to achieve the perfect taste and texture.

Gus makes this mole at family celebrations and get togethers, as well as his other favorite dishes including pozole verde, shrimp ceviche tostadas, and nopales (cactus leaves).

Look for different specials inspired by Gus’ heritage throughout the next four weeks!

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Thanksgiving at Ray’s 2023!

Note – Ray’s Cafe reservations are sold out for Thanksgiving 2023. Please reserve in our first floor Boathouse on November 23 and enjoy our 3-course menu!

Join us for Thanksgiving in our Boathouse and Cafe on Thursday, November 23, 2023! Our upstairs Cafe will be serving a signature holiday buffet throughout the restaurant and bar and our Boathouse will offer a seasonal Fall-inspired 3-course menu.

Reservations are required for all parties on Thanksgiving and can be made online for the Cafe here and Boathouse here.

RAY’S CAFE
Enjoy our signature Cafe buffet upstairs for $75 per person (includes coffee, tea, juice and sodas – excludes tax and gratuity) with a variety of guest favorite items including Seasonal Salads, Northwest Antipasto, Seafood Buffet with Oyster Shucking, Dungeness Crab clusters and Gulf Prawns, Oven Roasted Turkey with all the trimmings, Roast Prime Rib of Beef, smoked PNW Salmon Sides, variety of Fresh Seasonal Vegetables, Dessert Table and more!

Children 5 to 11 years old are $37.50 each (excluding tax and gratuity), children under 5 dine free.

Cafe reservations are available from 11:00am (first seating) to 8pm (last seating) online for groups of 10 or fewer, including highchairs.

RAY’S CAFÉ BAR & LOUNGE
The Cafe bar and lounge will be open. The lounge will accept advance reservations if the entire party is over the age of 21. Only buffet menu available. Cafe bar top will be available for walk ins only.

RAY’S BOATHOUSE & BOATHOUSE BAR
The Boathouse’s 3-course menu offers a delicious seasonal Fall menu of soup or salad, choice of entrée, and dessert for $75 per person (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). Our children’s menu will include a $20 traditional turkey plate (excluding tax and gratuity). Boathouse bar top will be open with the 3-course menu available if the entire party is over the age of 21. No reservations taken.

Boathouse reservations are available from 11:30am (first seating) to 8pm (last seating) online for groups of 10 or fewer, including highchairs.

Kindly review our Thanksgiving guidelines for a seamless experience!
*Reservations for parties of up to 10.
*All reservations are for inside tables only.
*We cannot accommodate window seating requests.
*Walk-ins are only accepted for our bar top seating in the Cafe and Boathouse bars (both ages 21 and over).
*Sorry, no promotional discounts available. Loyalty cards accepted and encouraged!

We look forward to seeing you this Thanksgiving!

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New Summer Menus!

All the fresh summer flavors are here! Our new Boathouse and Cafe menus are filled with sustainable local seafood and seasonal ingredients. Here’s a peek, come try them all this summer!

Cafe
Charred Corn & Crab Salad shredded romaine, lime aioli, cherry tomatoes, avocado, cotija cheese, jalapeno, cilantro
Warm Brie strawberry-balsamic, fresh strawberries, basil, toasted hazelnuts, rosemary croccantini
Tanner Crab Cluster fried Yukon gold potatoes, asparagus, butter sauce, lemon
Seafood Tom Kha PNW salmon and whitefish, clams mussels, prawns, seasoned coconut milk broth, jasmine rice, red bell pepper, basil, scallion
Creamy Lemon Ricotta Rotini seared zucchini, asparagus, herbs, breadcrumbs
Roasted Summer Squash quinoa tabbouleh, lemon-tahini dressing, watermelon radish, fresh herbs

Boathouse
Fried Oysters sweet peppers, pickled shallots, frisée, Calabrian chili aioli, scallion oil
Seared Octopus yogurt, smashed cucumber salad, pickled red onion, radish, mint, dill oil
Penn Cove Manila Clams Tom Kha, pickled serrano peppers, chili oil, chorizo, basil, baguette
Applewood Grilled Sake Kasu brown rice, gai lan, miso glaze, pickled ginger anddaikon
Dungeness Crab Cakes fried green tomatoes, corn salad, cherry tomatoes, cotija, lime, scallions, garlic aioli

Ray’s Cafe: Located upstairs is open Sunday-Thursday 11:30am-9pm, Friday & Saturday 11:30am-10pm. Walk ins only for indoor and outdoor dining.

Ray’s Boathouse: Located on our first floor is open Monday-Friday 5-9pm, Saturday & Sunday 4:30-9pm. Reservations accepted and encouraged for indoor dining, deck is seated on a first come basis.

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Ray’s Father’s Day Specials Sunday, June 18!

Take Dad, or the Father figure in your life, out for a special celebration on Father’s Day Sunday, June 18, 2023! Treat him to lunch or dinner at Ray’s and enjoy these delicious food and drink specials.

Father’s Day Menu Specials:

Boathouse: Applewood Grilled NY Strip Steak fried marble potatoes, roasted sweet peppers, ramp butter. Our first floor Boathouse is open nightly for dinner. Reservations are available online.

Café: Marinated Hanger Steak charred spring onion, sweet corn, jalapeño, cilantro chimichurri. Our upstairs Cafe is open daily for lunch and dinner starting at 11:30am, seating is walk-ins only.

Father’s Day Cocktail Specials (available in the Boathouse and Cafe):

Man About Town
Old Forester Bourbon, Punt E Mes, Aperol, Crème de Cacao, orange bitters, boozy cherry, up. 16

Dad’s Day Off
Michter’s Rye, Amaro Foro, brown sugar-cinnamon simple, one large rock. 15

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Celebrating 50 Years this June!

We’re 50!! Thank you to everyone who has spent the last six months celebrating with us (and to many, the last 50 years). This June we’re diving into our 50th summer season so grateful for this community.

Though our roots in Ballard date back to the 1930s, the Boathouse and Cafe that you all know and love came to be 50 years ago when our owners had the idea to take a steakhouse approach to fresh, sustainably sourced fish and local seafood, grilling and preparing it simply to let the seafood shine.

50 years later we are honored to continue this same approach with the love and support of the incredible Ray’s community!

We remain locally owned and operated in the same location we opened at in 1973. After a devastating fire in 1987, another fire in the 90s, and many economic ups and downs, we’ve always bounced back with the help of our hard working team and unwavering support from you, our loyal guests.

We thank all of Ray’s staff, past and present, for being stewards of our mission and we thank our guests for making Ray’s a tradition that continues on with each generation.

Please raise a glass with us this month and cheers to the next 50 years!!

Highlights of Ray’s history, 50 years & beyond:

  • Ray’s begins: In 1939 namesake Ray Lichtenberger moved his growing boat rental and bait house to the current location and later opened a coffee house. Through the 1960s Ray’s operated as both a casual fish and chips cafe and boat rental. In 1973, Russ Wohlers, Earl Lasher and Duke Moscrip bought Ray’s Boathouse and transformed it into a nationally respected seafood restaurant while maintaining its cordial atmosphere. Moscrip left to pursue other restaurant ventures and Elizabeth Gingrich joined the ownership team in 1975. Seattle Sonics star Jack Sikma would join the ownership team a few years later and is still an owner today.
  • Under Wohlers, Ray’s built its reputation on seasonal dishes prepared simply to highlight the flavors of impeccably fresh seafood and the freshest locally grown produce.
  • Ray’s became part of a Pacific Northwest food revolution by helping to introduce its distinctive regional cuisine built around Northwest products, microbrews and wines.
  • This approach drew national recognition from top food critics, writers, chefs, and personalities including Julia Child who received a personal tour of the Puget Sound from Russ’ seaplane in the 1990s. It also captured the hearts and palates of locals and tourists who packed the restaurants nightly to enjoy the fresh, seasonal fare.
  • Many “firsts:” Ray’s was the first to reintroduce Seattleites to Olympia oysters, the region’s only native oyster, elevated Northwest delicacies such as singing scallops, Loughborough Inlet spot prawns, Copper River Salmon, Bruce Gore “frozen at sea” salmon and the then-novel concept of serving red wine with fish.
  • In 2002 Ray’s earned an America’s Classics award from the James Beard Foundation.
  • Notable Employees: Ray’s has had the pleasure of employing and fostering many local chefs and notable figures including Chris Cornell of Soundgarden who worked as a line cook in the 1980s.
  • Sustainable seafood before it was popular: In 1976, Ray’s was also the first local restaurant to purchase its own wholesale fish buyer’s license, allowing it to buy directly from the fisherpeople, ensuring the freshest catch—light years ahead of today’s “sustainable seafood” consciousness
  • Ownership from within: Two new co-owners stepped into the partnership from within the Ray’s family after Gingrich retired in 2017: Tom Olsson, a longtime Ray’s team member who started in Ray’s kitchens and worked his way to Chief Financial Officer, and General Manager Douglas Zellers, best known for managing iconic local restaurants.

Photo by Ali Nassersaid

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May Seafood Spotlight: Sablefish!

Try our two new Northwest Sablefish specials this May in celebration of our 50 years! 

Sablefish (aka black cod) is a rich, buttery fish that has been on our menu since the early days. Many of you know and adore our Sablefish in Sake Kasu, a now iconic dish which has remained a guest favorite for nearly 50 years.

This May we’re celebrating sablefish with two unique specials – a classic entree from our founding chef/partner Russ Wohlers – Cold Smoked and Roasted Sablefish, and a new appetizer from Executive Chef Kevin Murray – Roasted Sablefish Wraps.

Enjoy them now through May 31 in the Boathouse or Cafe!

50th Anniversary May Sablefish Specials

Cold Smoked & Roasted Sablefish
braised savoy cabbage, prosciutto, granny smith apple, mustard-riesling sauce

Roasted Sablefish Wraps
butter lettuce, shiso leaf, pickled cucumber and carrot, spicy honey soy, toasted sesame seeds

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April Seafood Spotlight: Alaskan Halibut

Enjoy two Alaskan halibut specials at Ray’s Boathouse and Cafe this April in celebration of our 50th year!

Halibut has been a guest favorite since day one at Ray’s. This meaty yet tender fish has the most incredible flavor and is perfection on the grill or pan seared until crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside.

This April enjoy a classic halibut dish from our founding chef/partner Russ Wohlers – Pan Seared Halibut with Smoked Tomato Coulis. As well as a new dish from Executive Chef Kevin Murray – Halibut Tiradito.

Enjoy them both today through April 30 in our Boathouse or Cafe!

50th Anniversary April Halibut Specials

Pan Seared Halibut
creamy polenta, smoked tomato coulis, sautéed king oyster mushrooms, fried leeks 50
Halibut Tiradito
ají amarillo-yuzu leche de tigre, scallion, radish, cilantro 22
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Seattle Cocktail Week at Ray’s March 26-April 2!

Join us at Ray’s to imbibe during Seattle Cocktail Week! From March 26-April 2 we’ll be offering four special cocktails created by Ray’s bartender LeAnne Burk, so make sure to join us in the Boathouse or Cafe to try them all!

Foreign Relations Monkey 47 Gin, yuzu, lime leaf, simple, topped with bubbles

Checking Out Plantation Stiggins pineapple rum, Plantation Barbados 5 year rum, passion fruit, lime, falernum, Giffard bitter aperitivo, pebble ice

Off Tropic Ilegal Joven Mezcal, Giffard ginger liqueur, hibiscus agua fresca up with candied ginger

Lost & Found (Zero Proof Cocktail) Pathfinder n/a amaro, Caffe Vita cold brew, lime, soda, rocks

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Mother’s Day 2023 at Ray’s! Sunday, May 14

It’s time to celebrate the mothers and mother figures in your life!

Join us on Sunday, May 14, 2023 in our upstairs Cafe for our grand holiday brunch buffet or in our first floor Boathouse for a beautiful 3-course holiday menu alongside a la carte guest favorites.

Reservations are strongly encouraged for both restaurants and available for the Cafe here and Boathouse here for parties of 8 people or fewer, including high chairs. Cafe reservations are only accepted from 9am to 2pm on Mother’s Day.

BOATHOUSE
Brunch
From 10am (first seating) to 3pm (last seating) enjoy our 3-course Mother’s Day brunch menu for $70 per person (beverages, tax and gratuity not included) alongside a selection of some of our best-selling appetizers, salads and Boathouse entrées.

Dinner
From 3pm (first seating) to 9pm (last seating) we are serving our full Boathouse dinner menu featuring sustainable, local seafood like Wild Alaskan King Salmon, NW Sablefish, handmade pasta, vegetarian dishes and more!

No reservations needed for the Boathouse bar. Open 10am (first seating) to 9pm (last seating) serving the same menus as above. Ages 21 and over only.

Full children’s menu available all day in the Boathouse.

Boathouse Brunch 3-Course Menu – Choice of one per course

Appetizers

  • Seared Asparagus — wild mushrooms, Dungeness crab, pickled red onion, tarragon creme fraiche GF/DF
  • Avocado Toast — Como loaf, Oregon bay shrimp, hardboiled egg, chives DF
  • Chilled Strawberry Gazpacho — cucumber, basil, mint, lemon oil GF/DF

Entrees

  • Challah French Toast — foie gras ganache, mixed berry preserves, spiced maple syrups, raspberries, fried breakfast potatoes
  • Vegetable Frittata — asparagus, wild mushrooms, white cheddar, tomatillo salsa, pickled red onion, green salad with Champagne vinaigrette GF
  • Dungeness Crab Frittata — leeks, chopped truffle, tomatillo salsa, pickled red onion, green salad with Champagne vinaigrette GF
  • Spice Rubbed Prime Rib of Beef — garlic whipped potatoes, green beans, sauce Bordelaise GF
  • Alaskan Halibut — pan seared, creamy polenta, sautéed oyster mushrooms, smoked tomato coulis, crispy leeks

Desserts

  • Blueberry-Lemon Parfait — lemon posset, blueberry-basil sauce, lemon poppy seed cake GF
  • Warm Housemade Cinnamon Roll — brioche dough, cream cheese icing
  • Strawberry Mascarpone Mousse — citrus olive oil cake, lemon curd, strawberries
  • Olympic Mountain Creamery — Seasonal selection of ice creams and sorbets GF

 

CAFE
Enjoy our Cafe grand holiday buffet from 9am (first seating) to 2pm (last seating for buffet) for $75 per adult and $35 per child ages 5 to 11 (pricing includes juice and sodas AND excludes tax and gratuity). Starting at 2pm we will serve our full Café menu until close.

No reservations needed for the Cafe bar. We will offer buffet seating until 2pm, then our regular full Café menu until 9pm. Open from 9am (first seating) to 9pm (last seating). Ages 21 and over only.

Cafe Mother’s Day Buffet Menu

Salads & Cold Items

  • Farm Lettuces and Greens Salad spring mix, chopped romaine, sliced red onion, white balsamic vinaigrette, dried apricot, aged white cheddar cheese (GF)
  • Roasted beets Salad, sherry vinaigrette, arugula, Goats milk cheese (GF)
  • Caesar Salad chopped romaine lettuce, grana Padano, creamy Caesar dressing, house made croutons
  • Kale and Honeycrisp apple salad, lemon vinaigrette, honey crisp apples, grana Padano, pickled shallot (GF)
  • Market cheese board domestic and imported cheeses, marinated mozzarella balls, dried fruit (GF)
  • Ray’s cured meats platter hot coppa, salame Toscano, sliced prosciutto, finocchiona salame, Castelvetrano & Kalamata olives, marinated artichoke hearts, mama Lil’s peppers
  • Vegetable Platter grilled and chilled vegetables, zucchini, red bell peppers, broccolini, carrots, red potatoes, mushrooms (GF DF)
  • Fruit platter pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes, strawberries (GF DF)

Seafood Bar & Shucking

  • Half shell oysters mignonette, cocktail, lemons (GF)
  • Peel and eat prawns cocktail, horseradish. Lemons (GF)
  • Dungeness crab Clusters lemon, bopo (GF)

Carving Station

  • Spice rubbed prime rib of beef horseradish cream, demi-glace (GF)
  • House smoked NW salmon ginger-peach compote (GF DF)

Breakfast Items

  • Eggs Benedict English muffin, Canadian bacon, poached egg, hollandaise sauce
  • Scrambled Eggs chives (GF)
  • Challah French Toast whipped cream, fresh berries, maple syrup
  • Uli’s Breakfast Sausage (GF DF)
  • Carlton Farms’ Bacon (GF DF)

Hot Entrée & Side Dishes

  • Manilla clams white wine, garlic, herbs and butter (GF)
  • Penn cove mussels coconut curry broth (GF DF)
  • Crispy red potatoes new potatoes, old bay, scallion (GF DF)
  • Tarragon Seared Chicken Breast, braised kale, melted leeks (GF)
  • Pan seared PNW Rockfish roasted cherry tomatoes and mini sweet peppers, lemon-chive beurre blanc (GF)
  • Mac and Cheese
  • Washington Spring Asparagus lemon, herbs (GF DF)
  • Blistered green beans garlic, lemon (GF DF)
  • Scampi Prawns (GF)
  • Garlic Whipped Mashed Potatoes (GF)
  • Roasted mushroom medley garlic, spring fennel, goat cheese, herbs (GF)

We can’t wait to celebrate with you on Sunday, May 14!

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March Seafood Spotlight: Penn Cove Mussels

Enjoy two Penn Cove Mussels specials at Ray’s Boathouse and Cafe this March in celebration of our 50th year!

Mussels have long been a Ray’s guest favorite — these plump, buttery morsels with a rich mushroomy flavor work beautifully in a myriad of dishes and flavors from our beloved Thai coconut curry mussels to pastas, dips and more!

This March we’re reviving a classic mussels dish from our founding chef/partner Russ Wohlers – Mussels Dijionnaise. As well as offering a new dish from Executive Chef Kevin Murray – Chilled Smoked Mussel Dip. Enjoy them both today through March 31 in our Boathouse or Cafe!

50th Anniversary March Mussels Specials

Chilled Smoked Mussel Dip
house smoked Penn Cove mussels, dill, pickled red onion, crostini $17

Mussels Dijonnaise
steamed Penn Cove mussels, shallot, white wine, cream, Dijon mustard, herbs $20