Raya

Wow, what a beautiful restaurant with amazing beachfront views located inside the Ritz Carlton. It's not a huge restaurant so make sure you make reservations in advance. When I checked in, the host seated us immediately and wished me a happy birthday as it was notated in the reservation. Our waiter also wished me a happy birthday and I just love these personal touches as it makes special days feel extra special! We went for brunch and they offer a 4 course meal for $75 which is honestly a steal for the quality, portions, and the ambiance/views. We ordered a nice bottle of champagne and our waiter wanted to chill it for a bit so he offered us a glass of Veuve while we waited for our bottle to chill. How nice and talk about good service! Each entree was delicious and timed perfectly as each plate arrived shortly after we finished each dish. Dessert was really nice and they wrote happy birthday and included a candle. They also had a live musician who was singing and playing the guitar - he was really good and I enjoyed the music. After we finished dining, we took a walk outside near the beach. It was a fantastic birthday celebration. Be sure to validate your valet parking (goes from $30 to $15 with validation).

It was our first time at Raya and any Ritz-Carlton hotel-- it's a gorgeous place! Placed right above Dana Point Beach. Valet I believe was $15-30 but we opted for the beach parking lot across the street which is not too far of a walk at all, maybe 2 blocks. It was $1/hr and you pay ahead of time. Was not too crowded around 11:30am on a Sunday, although by the time we left around 2pm, the parking lot was quite packed. It was easy to find Raya, just straight into the left once you enter the hotel. You can't miss the gorgeous bay windows overlooking the beach. We showed up early but they are quite timely, seating us right out our reservation time, we got lucky and got windows right by the view. They had a special singer who was serenading the room with his guitar, he was great! We opted for the $75 4 course meal as well as the second seafood tower which included 4 scallops, 6 cocktail shrimp, 6 raw oysters, 6 rock crab claws and 4 oyster shooters. I think the course meal which included 1 shared starter then 1 appetizer per person, 1 entree, and 1 dessert was well worth the price. The guacamole was delicious, large portion, and fresh. We ordered the French toast and lobster roll. French toast was really good! But it has more of a bread pudding texture than a fluffy French toast texture but the taste was great and just the right sweetness. The lobster roll was okay! The French fries were crispy and seasoned well, but the lobster roll we felt was difficult to taste much lobster although there was a good portion perhaps there was more mayo that we couldn't taste it too well, I liked the fluffiness of the bread though! For dessert we ordered the strawberry cheesecake and the churro dessert, churros were warm and fluffy and perfect with the ice cream. The cheesecake was solid and I appreciated the fresh strawberries. I honestly think the 4 course meal is worth it and filling enough! We were overstuffed with the seafood tower included for us two people. Seafood towers are always a little pricier. The cocktail shrimp was one of my favorites as they were plump and went well with the mayo(?) sauce they had! Rock crab always has a harder time eating as it doesn't fall off the bone but it was still good. Oysters were small but tasty and fresh. Scallops were good, they had some texture to them from the sauce. The oyster shooters I think a lot of people can appreciate if they like the taste of mezcal, not too sure what alcohol they used but pretty sure it was our Smokey tequila friend. I tasted more of the tequila than anything but it was still fun to get a little brunch tipsy. Overall it was a wonderful experience and the staff including Javier were very attentive. My partner's ice tea was always full! Thank you Raya for a wonderful experience!

What an incredible view you have here from this restaurant. It was Super Bowl Sunday so the restaurant was not full which actually made it quite nice. The waiters were incredible attentive. What a wonderful ambiance this place carries. We tried many dishes:Swordfish Dip- Absolutely delicious order itOctopus maya-delicious order it Fig salad- okay, maybe try the Cesar Kids chicken tenders- kid liked itAchiote Salmon- delicious order it Seafood enchiladas- delicious order itPeach parfait-pretty goodRaya cream brûlée -pretty good Kids brownie sundae- kid liked it Absolutely worth a dine in here.

We have been coming here for years, the baptism reception of our child was even held here years ago. We stayed at the resort over the holidays. Of course we had to eat here at least 2x. For Breakfast & Dinner.For breakfast we both had a burrito, which was great. They've changed their menu over the years, I was saddened that they removed our favorite lobster tacos and Creme Caramel from their menu. I recall that we would even order from their menu each time we went to 180Bleau because the lobster tacos were so good!Anyways, this time around, we ordered Cheese Rolls and Guacamole for appetizers. Cheese rolls were really good, the guacamole was good too but the large chips/flat bread for dipping were kinda burnt. For our main course, we ordered sea scallops and seafood enchiladas. They were both very good!I asked to remove the pork belly from my dish and instead just have purely scallops and I'm glad I chose that route.The scallops were perfectly seasoned and seared. The creamed corn side was also amazing. It was a perfect combination.The desserts we tried their Peaches & Cream, Churros and another one I can't remember.The peaches and cream dessert was okay, the peaches were not sweet which took away from the experience. The churros were straight forward. Our friend had the other dessert, which I think he enjoyed but for the life of me, I can't remember what it was.The service at Raya is always top notch. Ambiance-unbeatable all the time, whether at breakfast or dinner (sunset is the best time to come) the ocean view always adds to the experience. We always will make it a point to visit Raya!

Since we had checked into the Ritz-Carlton that day, we didn't want to really go anywhere off property. Plus we had a credit to use, so we just went downstairs to Raya after making a last minute reservation. Don't think we needed it with how many tables were available.First things first, the ambience here is pretty nice. The restaurant is located in a space next to windows overlooking the ocean. By the time we got here, it was pretty much dusk so we didn't see much. But we passed by it plenty of times during the day and it was a pretty majestic view. Aside from that, the ceilings were high and the tables were spaced out pretty well so it made for a very comfortable feeling.Menu isn't the biggest, but what we ordered was pretty good and much better than expectations. Ordered a Caesar Salad to start, which was actually really good. They brought out full leaves of romaine lettuce which was topped by heaps of cheese and actual anchovies (which is always a plus). Next up was the Tableside Wagyu Beef Tartare. I was confused as to the tableside aspect of it until they actually pulled up with a full cart to actually make the tartare in front of us. And the beef tartare was great! Really chunky with great flavor. Last main dish was the Brazino Zarandeado, which was deboned and cooked really well. Also ordered some truffle fries, because when you have an opportunity to get truffle fries you have to.Service here is great, no complaints at all.Overall, I had a good experience here. Price is obviously very marked up because it's in the RItz-Carlton. But also fairly comparable to prices that I see at L.A. restaurants.

The views are absolutely incredible. This review is mostly about the food and service though. Though everyone there is as helpful as possible, they are incredibly understaffed so the one waitress or two aren't able to handle all the tables. The broccolini tasted burnt, the mushrooms were too salty, the scallops and pork belly were good but not enough to be filling. The ahi tuna tacos were not inspiring. My favorite dish was probably the Enchiladas - I'd come back for that!Overall, the cost was not worth it for most of the items. We're paying for the view though!

Beautiful restaurant within the Ritz with an amazing view. So glad we came here for a late lunch. Really wanted to sit by the window and after about 5mins wait for so, we were seated at a nice table against the window. The view is just breathtaking. We ordered a bunch of items to share with a few cocktails as my friends and I wanted to catch up. We were not rushed at all and allowed us to enjoy a beautiful spread of food. Our waiter and the staff were so attentive and provided top notch service to our table and the other around us. I will definitely come back. Note: paid valet parking only at the Ritz or you can park across the street and walk about 5mins in. It's $2 for 2 hours. Enough time to enjoy a nice lunch.

Top notch service and surroundings, from the complimentary valet parking to the hotel's interior common area décor, to the staff/service at Raya. Hue waited on us; however, we did interact with several staff members and the service was excellent from all. We stopped in on a Friday evening for some late-night cocktails and a snack before heading home and the bar was still hopping. We were presented with a beautiful tray of complimentary snacks (almonds, wasabi nuts, and mixed nuts) while we enjoyed a Frida y Diego Anejo Old Fashioned ($22) and a Tamarind Margarita ($22). Wanting a little more, we ordered a 5-piece Shrimp Cocktail ($21) and two more drinks, a Ritzy Smoked Old Fashioned ($28) and a Baja Coast Cosmo ($22). All drinks were very well made, and the shrimp were perfect.Yes, it's a little pricy, but the service and quality of the food and beverages are definitely worth splurging once in a while. We had a wonderful "date night" experience and will definitely stop in again.

Recently visited the restaurant located within the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel, perfectly timed to catch the sunset. As soon as we arrived, everyone was in awe of the breathtaking view. The combination of the sunset and the Christmas decorations created an enchanting atmosphere that was simply unforgettable.We started our meal with oysters and burrata, which were incredibly fresh and an excellent way to begin. The main courses, mariscos and steak, were cooked to perfection and very satisfying and the churros and flan for dessert were excellent. The only downside was that the octopus dish was a bit too salty for my taste, but overall, the experience was exceptional.I highly recommend this restaurant for anyone looking for a memorable dining experience with stunning views and great food.

The ambience was amazing. It had a great view, and it was literally the best customer service I ever had from Dean. They were very attentive, very polite. They also had live music not to exaggerate, but this was some of the best tasting food I've ever had but definitely the best customer service I've ever had. I highly recommend to everybody.