Ray J’s

Minneapolis, United States

4

Closed now

20 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

QR code, vCard

Telephone:
+1 612-353-4554
Website:
www.ray-js.com
Address:
500 Central Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55414
Northeast
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
80 ft5 St Se
320 ftHennepin E / 6 St
370 ft6 St Se
Categories:
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Bussiness info

Takes Reservations
No
Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Parking
Private Lot
Bike Parking
Yes
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Groups
Yes
Ambience
Casual
Noise Level
Average
Good For Dancing
No
Alcohol
Full Bar
Happy Hour
Yes
Best Nights
Wed
Coat Check
No
Outdoor Seating
Yes
Has TV
Yes
Has Pool Table
No

Today

Today 10:00 am – 2:00 am
Closed now
Local time (Minneapolis) 6:51 AM Sunday, May 25, 2025

Business hours

Monday 11:00 am – 2:00 am
Tuesday 11:00 am – 2:00 am
Wednesday 11:00 am – 2:00 am
Thursday 11:00 am – 2:00 am
Friday 11:00 am – 2:00 am
Saturday 10:00 am – 2:00 am
Sunday 10:00 am – 2:00 am

Description

Specialties

Whether you’re looking for great food, great service, atmosphere, great beer selection, or need to catch a great game in Northeast Minneapolis, Ray J’s Restaurant and Bar will fulfill your needs. We have a full service bar including 32 of the best All American Craft Beers and a great food menu which is available for take out of delivery through Bite Squad. We were voted best Chicken Wings in Minnesota by WCCO but also pride ourselves on our homemade entrees, soups, and dressings. Whatever you’re craving — Ray J’s is sure to deliver. Come check out our great game day specials, Saturday’s & Sundays (During football games). We have Grain Belt and Miller Lite specials & Famous Bloody Mary bar. We also provide shuttle service to all home Vikings and Gopher Games. Make Ray J’s Northeast your game day home base.

History

Established in 2013.

We are a family owned business with over 50 years of experience.

Meet the Business Owner

Paul J.

Business Owner

My brother and I were brought up in this business as our father owned a restaurant since we were born. He started with a bar/​restaurant in NE Minneapolis and then moved out to Golden Valley. Because of his knowledge passed on to us we have been blessed to have 2 locations and we chose to name the restaurant after our father.

Ray J’s also recommends

Ray J’s

53

reviews

Spillesteder og festlokaler

Paul J. says,

«Our Woodbury Location»

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20 reviews of Ray J’s

No registration required
Place rating: 3
Minneapolis, MN
I came here looking to apply to serve here. After my time here at lunch, I changed my mind. The service was meh, the food was like slippery on the plate and in my hands and the restaurant was empty. I heard the wings were good. Maybe I would come back to try those, but probably not.
Place rating: 1
Minneapolis, MN
Me and my friend went to Ray J’s for lunch. We went to the bar to place an order to go. Jody, the bartender barely made eye contact with us when we sat down. Right away we could sense she was not a pleasant person, much attitude. My friend asked her was she having a bad day, and she said no. We order strawberry daiquiris while we waited for our food. Jody gave us our drinks and we asked for lemons or oranges. She acted as if that was a problem for her. The drinks tasted like strawberry lemonade with no alcohol. We sent our drinks back. She snatched the drinks back, and dumped them in the sink, complaining the whole time. At this point I wanted to talk to a manager, she said they were not there. I left my phone number. Because Jody’s attitude was rude, nasty, unprofessional and unconcerned I will NOT go back to Ray J’s again. I frequent numerous restaurants in the twin cities. Ray’s has the WORST service I have ever experienced. We are the easiest customers but could not get a smile or respect from this establishment. Jody, should take some customer service classes. I hope it wasn’t due to the color of our skin. HMM, makes you wonder?
I just received a call from the owner apologizing for the service we received. He said he would talk with Jody and send us a gift card. His phone call is appreciated and we will give Ray J’s another chance.
Place rating: 5
Battle Lake, MN
You don’t come here for anything but the wings! The drunken are the best, although all of the wings are amazing.
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
I’ve never been a fan of chicken wings but my husband is obsessed. He forced me to come here and I’m officially converted! Love that they are full wing. Nutty Rooster is a great sauce. Wednesday is the best day to go; great deal on wings and drinks! Staff are friendly and attentive.
Place rating: 4
Minneapolis, MN
Edit on 4⁄4: Boosted the review by one star after second visit this week. I decided the food is fair value for the money after another excellent burger and fries on my second visit. Sam was a friendly server but we lost him near the end after a huge party arrived. Still not buying the beer prices. First review: The other reviews are correct on three points: Wings are very good. Prices higher than expected– especially for tap beers– and cordial but time consuming service. Nice selection of beers= yes– $ 7-​$ 8-​$ 9 for a glass? No dice. You know how I feel about silly beer prices. We thought the burgers were very good too. Pricey at $ 12 but it buys a well cooked half pound burger and side item (not potato chips). Special note: The daytime bartender on Saturday was pretty AND friendly. I normally wouldn’t point it out and mean it in the nicest way so please no comments. Bottom line: Higher quality bar food with prices to match.
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
My fiancé and I were looking for something new to try and we stumbled upon Ray J’s. The servers were very friendly and attentive. My fiancé and I had the Monday burger special for $ 5.99. It was definitely worth it. The bun was toasted, but still soft. My burger was huge and cooked perfectly and they were very generous with the tots and fries. I also had a cup of chili it was very flavorful and it was a good portion size. I didn’t drink, but my fiancé loved his mixed drinks and I did notice they had a really good whiskey selection. I would definitely return and next time I will order the wings. I seen them come out and they looked amazing!
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
chicken wings!
really really really good chicken wings. any flavor — any time of day. They are the full wing, and you get a lot of them, but who doesn’t like a lot of wing in their lives.
All the food I’ve had there is excellent. They have pretty much something for everyone in any type of mood you may be in.
The cheese curds are delicious, the pear and bleu cheese salad is light and fresh, the hot turkey sandwich will fulfill any our of season Thanksgiving needs you may have. I mean I haven’t tried EVERYTHING on their menu, but what I have has not disappointed yet.
The bartenders are what really makes this place special. John and Pauly are the best bartenders — Pauly’s pineapple upside down cake shot is something to write home about. The service is always wonderful and what keeps me coming back for more.
Place rating: 3
Minneapolis, MN
Took some customers here for lunch, fantastic food. They could be faster at food to the table tho.
We all had afternoon meetings we missed.
From start to finish we were there 2 hours. We all finished our meals in about 10 minutes lol.
Great place of you don’t have a time schedule.
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
This is a place that I have gone to several times. If you like chicken wings these are perhaps the best in Minnesota. I am a wings fanatic and have gone to some the other popular places around the state (Hickory Hut in St. Paul, The D Spot in Maplewood and Wing Joint in blaine).
The highlight of the wings here is that they are full whole wings and you can get them sauced or seasoned. I tend to get their Homestyle seasoned wings which are amazing an it comes with a great garlic dip. The drunken wings are pretty good as well. Best day to go would be Wednesday when wings are .80.
I cannot review this place without also mentioning the cheese curds. These are the real deal. Best cheese curds you will find just like the fair. As you can see, these are the clumps of cheese curds. Must try when you head to Ray J’s.
Lastly, Ray J’s is in a great location in Northeast and has a parking lot which is nice. Full bar with great beers on special and I have seen the owners come out many time and greet guest which is a plus
Place rating: 2
Minneapolis, MN
Stopped in at noon to try «Minnesota’s best» wings. Very disappointing.
Wings were under done, so the skin was rubbery, meat was chewy and the joints were difficult to crack. Blue cheese was very thin and watery, couldn’t get it to stick to anything.
Everything on the menu is about $ 2 higher than it should be. $ 7 for a domestic tap? Gimme a break.
Place rating: 4
New Hope, MN
I went here once recently after a Vikings game on the suggestion of a friend who said they have amazing wings. He was definitely spot on. They serve whole wings in 2 different sizes. I think there were about 5 – 6 different flavors.
They look to have a somewhat extensive craft beer selection even though I just got 1 Indeed Day Tripper. They have Juicy Lucy’s on the menu which my friend got and said was good. Lots of TVs for sports if that is your thing. Pull tabs by the front door and they have a decent sized patio for the area.
I’ll be back.
Place rating: 4
Washington, DC
This got five stars in my book for one reason: the drunken wings. These drunken wings are probably my favorite wings in the cities. They cook the whole wing and serve ‘em piping hot. On top of that, they have killer deals every day of the week for both boose and food.
Overall, a quality NE bar with damn good food.
Place rating: 4
Minneapolis, MN
Great wings and cheese curds. Lots of (expensive) craft beer on tap.
The drunken wings and the buffalo wings come as whole wings. They are messy but delicious. The burgers are alright. They must have 30+ craft brews on top and some on nitro. Its a great spot to watch a game. It does feel a like a chain though. Some craft taps are $ 8 :/​
Really good cheese curds, but its a Packer bar on Sundays. BOOOO!
Place rating: 5
Minneapolis, MN
I created a Unilocal just so I could praise this place.
We go almost every week for Taco Tuesday, and for $ 5, you can’t beat this deal – three large, fresh, and delicious tacos. We also get the chips with salsa and queso to start and I don’t know what kind of salsa they use, but it’s the best I’ve ever had.
Special shoutout to our server Sophie, who is THE BEST waitress at this place and continually goes out of our way to make sure we enjoy our dinners and that we are served in a timely fashion. The rest of the servers are okay, but Sophie really knocks it out of the ballpark and is half the reason we come.
Place rating: 4
Houston, TX
Nice place, very crowded on a Monday afternoon.
Server was very knowledgeable about all the various regional beers served, much appreciated.
We had the pastrami sandwich, the cuban sandwich and of course the drunken wings. The pastrami had pepperjack cheese and horseradish mustard, quite a bit of fiery aftertaste, but good. The cuban sandwich was unmemorable, the pork tasted of some sort of odd marinade. The wings were excellent.
Server appeared rushed but kept things moving swiftly. Overall, a very nice little place for lunch.
Place rating: 4
Westland, MI
Parking in the back. We walk in and I thought this is a bar not a restaurant. It’s just the feel of the place.
You seat yourself and the waiter/​waitress bring the menu over. Every table had wings so I must order wings.
They sell the wings 1 ½ lb or 3lb. We got 3lb of Asian wings. Very delicious not spicy not sweet. We also got 1 11⁄2 of each hot & drunken wings. They were very good!!! We also got the hangover burger. Mmmmmmmmm I love a fried egg on a burger.
When I went the special was 3 tacos for $ 5. Very good deal because the tacos were big not street size! Also $ 2 off all tequila drinks. You could eat and have a drink for under $ 10
Overall a good place to eat wings & burgers & have a few drinks.
Place rating: 5
Vernon, CT
Great wings! Great prices! I absolutely HAVE to come here on Wednesday if I’m in town. Lol. I’ve had every flavor of wings and I literally almost couldn’t handle the habanero sauce. Wednesdays are their «Wing Wednesdays». $ 0.80 a wing! Not just half a wing like at Buffalo Wild Wings… the WHOLE wing! I love it! I recommend it to everyone.
Place rating: 4
St Paul, MN
some of the best wings I’ve ever had. and that garlic dipping sauce… DROOL
they used to make a spicy bolognese type of pasta that was so good too but I don’t see it on the menu anymore :(please bring that back!
Place rating: 4
Minneapolis, MN
They take great pride in doing things right here. I appreciate that a ton.
First, their WANGS!
Their wings are simple, tasty and well prepared. But the garlic sauce they serve with them is DIVINE. Order it, keep vampires away for a long time.
They also have housemade (!!!) pepperjack queso which is SO worth the like $ 3 you pay for a huge plate of chips + bowl of deliciousness.
They have about a billion beers on tap and have these glass washer things that ensure the glass you are served doesn’t have any residue on it from the soap.
It’s the little things like that which make this place a gem.
Place rating: 4
Minneapolis, MN
Man oh man are the wings good here. I usually cannot handle the messiness of sauced chicken wings but could eat their drunken wings for DAYS. There is definitely a reason they got voted best wings in the Twin Cities. I am glad they have the northeast location, it helps round out the neighborhood a little more. Aside from the wings, I am a fan of the grilled chicken pita sandwich, mostly because of the addicting garlic sauce. I am pretty sure it’s just pureed garlic with lemon and salt but OMG it is SO GOOD. I could literally eat it on anything. Though I’m not a big cheese curd fan, they do serve a mean cheese curd appetizer. You can definitely hear the squeak when you bite into a fresh order.
Service is good, food comes out a tad slower than you would expect but it’s pretty obvious they make a lot of their items from scratch.
There’s a large free private parking lot in the back so that process is relatively easy.
Check out their happy hour specials and consider their living social deals… great price for their wings.