Seafood and fried food are decent, options are fine, atmosphere is y'all divey casual with old-school county regulars very clearly passing through the doors each week to share steamed crabs and a banana split.
There is a bar area, an area for some small groups, and mostly long tables and classic church-function chairs that have seen their share of crab shells and NattyBoh.
Ray's is one of those places where, if you grew up with it, it's Maryland comfort food with a no-frills dining room that needs no more than a beer and a bushel. But if you are an outsider, you could be put off by the grimeyness of the place at first glance. If you get past that, you'll do fine with just about anything on the menu, and steamed crabs are reliably good and usually competitively priced.
Their fried seafood is a different kind of fried that what people generally expect from "golden brown" - perhaps it's more of a cornmeal coating rather than a classic batter fry. This gives a crispier, crumbier texture but not the fish-n-chips kind of batter many envision for fried seafood.
With a prime location on the waterfront, Ray's would do well with some covered outdoor seating on its ample lawn area. It is strange that there *isn't* outdoor seating when they are in such a perfect spot for it. And outdoors on the river would be especially lovely because inside is nothing to yelp about. Fact is, the place needs a good cleaning, from top to bottom to windows to seating. But now that you know that, you know to just bring a sanitizer wipe for the chairs, and pop in for some seafood anyway. It may be exactly the funky, in-the-rough place you want to go for a brew and a crab chowder.
I would give 3.5 stars, but since Yelp doesn't do half-stars, I am rounding slightly up for a longtime, non-chain, mom and pop seafood dive on the water. A clean-up and outdoor seating would instantly add a solid 4th star to this local favorite, but then it might also lose some of the very hole-in-the-wall hangouty-ness that makes Ray's, Ray's. read more
