Ray Ray restaurant/ r2restaurant review

Wow blog #2 feels pretty nice. Hope to get better at this real soon. So since I am very hungry I am going to let my stomach tell you about this place that I love.

            Through the eclectic of Vietnamese and Mexican cuisine in the Rosemead/El Monte, CA area there is one place that stands out to me. An American-Chinese fusion (fusion is the rage right?) place named Ray Rays stuck between a e-cigarette shop and badminton training facility. It opened in 2011 and has a new technology feel to it (including social media screens, plasma-TVs and free Wi-Fi). There is no wait to be seated in a medium sized room that sits 50-70 people. The place is fairly laid back and is nice place to snack while you work on your laptop. 

            My first experience here was a pleasant one. I always feel the need to get the most popular dish and was recommended by the server to try the filet mignon cubes with rice. The cubes come with small mushrooms bathed in a sauce that is almost like gravy. Also comes with a side of red rice. Priced at $9.95 it’s a great price for some high quality meat.

            My second experience was rocky at first. After chatting the place up to my girlfriend for a week she was also eager to try the eatery. She ordered the shrimp fried rice ($6.95) and I ordered the beef chow mein ($6.95). Once my girlfriend and I returned home we found out we were missing a part of our order. The people at the restaurant were more than apologetic and even threw in a free order of filet mignon cubes for the confusion. What makes the chow mein different from others I've had is the noodles are fried to the point where they are hard, almost like a cup of noodles. Then you add hot gravy on top that has the meat and vegetables. The shrimp fried rice from what my girlfriend said was one of the best she’s had. The food portions are also very generous.         

            There is a large section of cold/hot teas, boba, fruit slush, and fruit drinks. My two year old fell in love with the watermelon/strawberry juice (I can still hear him saying más, más, más which means more in Spanish). The food, drinks and ambiance are above average but there are some things I would improve.

            The restaurant is fairly new and has no nutrition/ingredient or allergy information posted on their website. The smoking area is located directly in front of the only entrance which makes it particularly difficult on weekends when there are many people out front. 

            In conclusion this has good food at a low price with excellent service. 
Price: $1/2
Food: $$$
Drinks:$$1/2
Ambiance:$$1/2
Service:$$$$
www.r2restaurant.com

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/5/1629270/restaurant/LA/Ray-Ray-R2-Restaurant-El-Monte"><img alt="Ray-Ray R2 Restaurant on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/logo/1629270/biglogo.gif" style="border:none;width:104px;height:34px" /></a>