Ray’s Drive In Cafe

We were on a road trip and stopped in Ray’s for burgers and they were delicious! Highly recommend the Texas Burger.

Rays is definitely one of the best burgers I’ve ever had! It is not greasy, it’s quick, and very reasonably priced. The restaurant is newly renovated and has nice patio seating outside, and also has a drive in option available. Aside from everything else though you just can’t beat a Rays burger! (and no complaints on the onion rings either)

Old school drive in café service was good the food looks good but where is the burger? I ordered a Ray’s special with fries the condiments were very tasty but the burger which was not bigger than a meatball is really over rated, my husband had fried shrimp, onion rings and fries his food was OK

If you’re looking for the best local burger joint in the town, Ray’s is your stop. I might even say it’s the best burger joint this side of Texas but I haven’t eaten every burger joint in Texas yet. Ray’s offers more than just Burgers though aside from an authentic American Experience Ray’s offers competitive prices in a huge assortment of food. Burgers not feeling like your cup of tea today? Maybe try a hot dog or some of their famous onion rings that’ll put a smile on your face for sure. Their friendly service will always put a smile on your face and there’s always an open booth or you can sit outside the deck is always clean and I’ve never had a problem at the drive-​in. The only problem I have with Ray’s is that it overlooks a gym and sometimes I feel like «geez maybe I shouldn’t have had a double bacon cheeseburger and extra fries maybe I should go run that off.» All guilt aside, I would definitely recommend Ray’s to anybody visiting from out of town or just looking for a good meal.

While I like the nostalgic feel of the drive in, I’m just not a fan of the food. The staff is always friendly and prompt. The food comes out hot every time. Prices are decent for what it is. I keep going back there to try something I may enjoy with no luck. While I know people who love the food there, I just don’t enjoy it as much. This should not take away from the fact that it is a popular place with a long heritage in the local area and I encourage people to try it anyway.

First time here and it was delicious! The best burgers for a little hole in the wall. They’re huge burgers so choose wisely. The fries are big cut steak fries. The shakes are quite tasty too! Will definitely be back if we pass through again.

A very nostalgic place. The burger was very good and the atmosphere is nice. You can order from the car and the car hop will bring your order or go inside and enjoy the scenery. The staff was very friendly.

I’ve been here a couple of times over the years. I mainly came for the nostalgia (during my college years in Nacogdoches) and the burgers, although the food was always just okay for me. On my most recent visit, I came just for a chocolate shake. Their carhop service is different than Sonic of course. There are just 2 designated parking areas, depending on if you’re getting food to go or eating in your vehicle, or eating inside the restaurant.
We were on the way to an event and were in a hurry, but the drive thru was completely backed up, so we decided to park and walk in. The carhop stopped us and said she could take our order instead of going inside, so we were leary it would take longer but we said okay anyway. Sure enough, we were behind about 8 other cars, so it took about 15 mins. When she finally arrived, we exchanged shakes for the money and the car hops here don’t really give you your change back if it’s within about $ 1 or 2… since my friend paid, he wasn’t liking this part at all.
Over the years, they’ve spruced up the place some for passing cars. They’ve even added a wood deck out front for outdoor seating when the weather is nice enough.
As far as the chocolate shake, it was very smooth in consistently and almost seemed like a smoothie, instead of a hand spun shake like we’re used to getting at some of these older drive-​ins and malt shops. They have medium and large, the medium runs about $ 3.19 with tax.

When I’m in the Lufkin area, I always make it a point to stop by here. It is way better than any of the national fast food chains. Love the car hop service and please people tip the car hops well as they do a lot of work making sure that your order gets taken and brought out to you in a timely manner. My personal favorites are the steak finger basket, the chili cheeseburger and the their frito pie.

I’m afraid people are holding on to what Ray’s used to be. It just isn’t as good as it used to be.

So this is a 50’s inspired drive-​in place, which is basically the prototype for what you see across the street: Sonic. Let me point out that it is ironic that Sonic, a national chain of drive-​in restaurants, is located DIRECTLY across the street from a place that is the inspiration to that chain’s whole existence. To be fair, Ray’s has a sit-​down space inside which is decidedly large and clean. So, if you’re not looking to eat in the car, you’re OK.
The food is typical middle-​American standard fare: burgers and fries. They do some chicken dishes, and other things, but you’ve seen it all before. The food is good, I’ll give them that, and the atmosphere inside is nostalgic and clean. I think they serve beer, so that’s a plus.

Fresh, and made the way I ordered… cookies a little expensive… but average price for two people is 16 – 17

Love the 50’s decorations! Great old fashioned burgers. They still have car hops to come out to your car too!

Pretty good. It’s all basic American food. The chicken patty was too small for the bun.

I’m sad I live 4 hours away from here. One of the best burgers I have ever had. Onions rings are good too. They I have more than burgers as well. If I’m ever back in this area, I will come back.

Best burgers in Lufkin! I’ve been coming here since I was little and it always so good. Bacon burger, French fries and a cherry coke are the bomb. Always friendly service and pretty decent prices. Food is always amazing though. Whenever I crave a burger, this is where I go… no hesitation! :)

As far as the burger goes, this is a five star burger. I had the Ray’s special and it was outstanding. I had a bite of my wife’s western burger and it was excellent as well. The onion rings were overly chewy and not real quality. The tater tots were good but if you got them with cheese, it looked like they threw some grated cheese on them and half the cheese melted and half stayed grated. The girl at the front who took our order looked like she was either having a bad day or needs to not deal with people because she wasn’t very friendly. But if you’re looking for a great burger in Lufkin, Texas this is the place!!!

We went here August 8, 2015 after visiting the Lufkin Zoo. Love the décor and the service. The atmosphere was really chill and it was so cool to see the window trays.
I got the Ray’s Special, which turned out to be a double patty burger with grilled onions, lettuce, tomato, and cheese and a vanilla malt. Hubby got the catfish basket which came with 5 – 6 pieces, hush puppies, and fries, and the toddler got the chicken basket which was 4 chicken nuggets, fries, and texas toast.
The place was cool, temperature wise, and it wasn’t until as we were eating our meal just how great the A/​C really made things.
Finished up our meal, used the restrooms, which are 1 person at a time. No baby changing table inside, though, which was didn’t bother us since the toddler is potty trained but I know that doesn’t affect other parents.
If you just want to sit in your car, there is a huge overhang where they bring you your food on the window trays or you can come inside and order at the register.
food came out fast and was priced well. workers were very friendly.
love this place. will come again if ever we’re in that direction and will recommend to others

Excellent place to get a burger & onion rings! Fun atmosphere, friendly staff. You can drive up and a car hop promptly will meet you at the car, you can also sit on the patio or dine inside in the air conditioning. Very reasonable prices!

Stopped here on a recommendation from a friend. The burgers were delicious. Old school drive-​in with excellent service. The person taking our order recommended the onion rings. I was not disappointed. The batter on the rings was crisp and tasty. The shakes were good as well. The strawberry shake had chunks of strawberries in it which made it very good. If you want a great tasting burger and onion rings, go to Ray’s. You won’t be disappointed. If you found this review helpful, please click below. Thanks.