Ray’s Cafe

Got the Cuban sandwich, yuca fries, beef & cheese empanada, & fried plantains… everything was DELICIOUS. Served within 10 minutes, fresh, & hot. The Cuban bread is made daily, I spoke with chef –never had a sandwich like that before, each flavor was light and well balanced –not too much of one thing. The yuca fries were well seasoned, and the plantains were cooked to caramelized perfection. A MUST STOP in the area.

Awesome food, great value. Everyone should visit this fine establishment. Why wait in line for 15 minutes at McDonald’s when you can have a quick sit down prepared fresh in the same amount of time.

Making a good restaurant work is part business, part science and part art. To run one, you need to be a psychologist, businessman, food scientist, bon vivant and wise man. Eric Ray, proprietor of Ray’s Café on Court Street in Marion, is all of these things. That’s why Ray’s Café works.
Ray’s produces good, healthy, delicious food. They have a clever menu that combines American, Cuban, Italian and Greek specialties among others. And they’re very carefully chosen. They’re all tasty and fresh; cooked a la minute (although some of the more complex items like the smoked pork are pre-​cooked and portioned, then heated — the alternative is a 9-​hour wait). The turnover is brisk so there’s no chance the food will be less than super-​fresh.
The place is sparkling clean. And to my delight, you can see the kitchen from the dining area (I eat out enough to really, really appreciate a hygienic kitchen, and having it visible is a very good sign indeed).
The staff, Eric and a few others are all very, very experienced with decades in the restaurant business. This makes for meals that are consistently excellent. The portions are carefully planned — there’s enough food without overwhelming the customer. It’s available to go or in house. Service is quick and responsive. The presentation is proper and effective and not ostentatiously elaborate.
We tried the empanadas, the gyros (see pics below), the fries, the Philly Cheese Steak, and the Cuban coffee. It’s all good, especially the coffee which is strong, hot, fresh as heck, sweet, and reminds me of coffees I’ve had in Miami in the Cuban section (which is to be expected; Eric hails most recently from Miami). If you order the gyros, you might want to order the additional tzatziki (the yogurt sauce).
I think this place is nearly ideally designed for Marion, Carbondale and environs. The meals are interesting, good, healthy food. They aren’t locked into one ethnic group; it’s good food from all over that appeal to the Heartland palate. Ray’s is priced along with Hardy’s, but the food is way superior.
Don’t let the simple décor and lack of frills fool you; Ray’s Café is a carefully planned and executed restaurant, with all the right parts in place. The menu is manageable, food selection guarantees freshness. One whiff when you enter and you can tell the grill oil is fresh and the kitchen is as clean as a whistle. This is a very tightly run ship indeed, which bodes well for the customer.
Ray’s is altogether a good choice. And best of all, I expect it to be around for a long, long time.