UYE Ray’s Cafe Dinner #2 Surf & Turf

This review is a little late but it’s because I’m STILL full from this UYE! :-P
I can never eat surf & turf anywhere else because I’ll always know it’s not as amazing of a deal as it was here! Prime rib as big as my head and lobster tails as long as my forearm!
That’s in addition to Ray’s fried chicken (which Ramfis was so kind to order for everyone) and the drinks (also provided by Ramfis) AND the Nanding Spanish Rolls (aka Ding Dings) which Ramfis ALSO brought. Then there were all the desserts (provided by Darrell and Sophie P, Jo Y, & Lyla D) Oh yeah and Ray himself kept offering extra scoops of rice to everyone!
While the food at this UYE was completely amazing and over the top the best part was getting to hang out (in our sassy aprons provided by Nadine C) with all the awesome Unilocalers who were there! It’s always great to see and joke with everyone and I’m glad Lisa T was able to make it to her first UYE!
I think this is my 6^th or 7^th Paul C. UYE I’ve attended and I have to tell you his UYEs are ALWAYS worth going to! Paul is such a great host taking care of every detail and making sure everyone is having fun and enjoying themselves!
…now I’m finally hungry again and ready for round 2!

This UYE was harder to get into than a Bruno Mars concert!!! It too, filled up in a manner of minutes!!!
I’ve been lucky enough to attend both of the UYE’s at Ray’s. This one, thanks to Li (I was a plus 1). It’s always great seeing familiar faces and a few new ones too! I sat on a table with these familiar faces: Darrell P., Sophie P, Ramfis B. and Mark H. As for the new faces: Pam H. (I had seen her before but we never officially got to know each other), Adrienne B., Janice H. and Florence K. were also on our table.
In less than 5 minutes of walking in, I was handed a cute pink cupcake apron from Nadine. She’s so thoughtful. She bought one for each of us so our clothes wouldn’t get dirty. How awesome is that?!?
Ramfis opened up a bottle of yuzu he got from Japan. That bottle was gone in minutes and shortly after, another bottle of yuzu was opened up and that too, went quickly. Pam and Ramfis had brought a few bottles of wine between them. I had brought 2 bottles and Sophie and Darrell had brought some too. The wine was definitely flowing on our side of the room.
We looked like crazy people, blocking the sidewalk and taking photos of the gals and the guys in their sexy aprons!
As we sat down for dinner, our gracious hosts, Paul and David were busy serving the tossed salads and passing around the dressings. The theme was «Surf and Turf». We were served a large cut of prime rib and a good sized lobster tail with 2 scoops of rice. Ramfis was extremely generous and had bought warm Spanish rolls from Nandings nearby. You should’ve heard him! He wasn’t going to get anything less than the fresh Spanish rolls for us. Ramfis even arranged for everyone to have a piece of Felix’s fried chicken. Oh so yummy!!! Everything was perfect… the food… the wine and the fun conversation!
Then the desserts! As if we weren’t stuffed to the gills and full from all of that food! Darrell and Sophie brought chocolate cheesecake, Jo (who didn’t even attend) made a very yummy Kahlua trifle and the guava chiffon pie that Lyla made was to die for! Let’s just say that I needed to be rolled out of there!
I loved everything about this UYE. Thank you to everyone who attended for making it the best one yet!

(U) nique chance to see your fellow yeeps in real life
(Y) elp events like this are so much fun
(E) verybody will have a full tummy afterwards
(E) at and drink till you say mercy
(V) ery good turnout once again at Ray’s Café UYE
(E) xcited every time i participate in these UYE’s
(N) adine C, your Reeses Stuffed Brownies were DIVINE!
(T) he place was packed to the gills
(S) ophie P and Darrell P, mahalo for the Chocolate Truffle Cheescake
(H) appy drunks we all were on this wonderful evening
(O) mg, Janice H you are hilarious and so funny
(S) eeing everyone enjoying themselves makes me very happy
(T) urley Zinfandel was a perfect match for the Prime Rib
(E) arly birds find the best parking in kalihi
(D) uckhorn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon… YUMMY!!!
(B) ullet proof vests weren’t necessary because Nadine got us Aprons
(Y) ummy Homemade Guava Chiffon Cakes made by Lyla
℗ am H is my plus one for life =)
(A) drienne B, it was really nice meeting you for the first time
(U) nbelievable price for Prime Rib and Lobster
(L) ien V, you are a sister from another mister
© heers to David T for being a gracious host
(S) panish Rolls from Nanding’s Bakery were a hit
(H) aving a piece of Ray’s famous Fried Chicken is a must
(O) h and Jennifer S, thanks for the Fried Chicken Skin
(U) nderwear was soaked because it was hot as hell in there
(L) ucky i had another pair of underwear in my trunk
(D) rinking with my fellow Elite Mark H is a treat. Thanks for the Sake
(N) adine C, don’t be so camera shy ok? =)
(E) xcellent Kahlua Trifle made by Joy Y who wasn’t even there
(V) isiting Chef Felix is a daily ritual for me
(E) xcellent prices for such a huge amount of food
® ay’s Café in Kalihi is my home away from home
(B) yob at these events make it all worth while. Kimo S, thanks for da wine
(E) veryone sitting at our table was a riot
(M) alia H, nice to see you as well
(I) truly love my fellow yeeps
(S) eeing Unilocalers like John N, Jacob N, Cathy T, Gary N, and Mahina C
(S) ets the tone for these events
(E) ven seeing UYE first timers Lisa T puts a smile on my face
(D) inner’s like this are priceless and are truly cherished by me
In ending, i just want to thank our unbelievably gracious hosts Paul C and David T for making these UYE Events at Ray’s Café a huge success. The turnouts for these events literally get filled up immediately and they have been nothing short of spectacular. For all you Unilocalers who just think about coming to these UYE Event’s, you sure don’t know what you are missing.
If you don’t believe me, come to this next UYE Event hosted by Paul C and David T and i’ll prove to you that it will be a night you will never ever forget… TRUST ME

My very first UYE… and I couldn’t think of a better event than Paul C and David’s UYE at Ray’s.
I’ve always wanted to try this place and when I saw the posting go up in Talk, I figured «Why not». Little did I realize how lucky I was to score a seat for myself and my +1 partner in crime (Jin B.)
We had no idea what we were getting into… but learned quickly Unilocalers love to PARTY and drink ;) We were both a bit shy (and tired from work) so we didn’t quite socialize as much as I’d like but it was nice to meet people I’ve only seen on Unilocal (Mahina, Kimo S and Lauren). Ramfis was super nice to buy us chicken (so tasty) and Spanish rolls from Nandings. I grabbed 2 and then realized I was in trouble when the plate of food was set in front of me. Oh my gosh! I wasn’t able to finish all of my food but it was delicious. And then other Unilocalers brought dessert. WOW! I was so full I could only manage a couple of bites to try everything.
Overall, an amazing dinner with some crazy but amazing people. Thank you to our wonderful hosts, Paul and David who busted butt making sure everyone’s orders and drinks were filled. Thank you to Nadine (I didn’t actually catch your name but learned it on the reviews) for my cute apron which I will wear when baking cupcakes. And thank you to the wonderful people who provided dessert. Hopefully I will learn to introduce myself and remember names the next time around :)

So after the humiliating experience of having someone having to come out of their yard and tell me I didn’t know how to park (which I already knew, but he confirmed it), I made my way to the group of apron clad Unilocalers standing outside Ray’s…the women in cupcake aprons and the men in zebra print aprons. As I approached this strange looking crew of misfits, I like everyone else on the street thought to myself «what the hell are these people wearing?» until I too was wearing a cute cupcake apron supplied by Nadine who had the forethought to realize we would all likely get covered in food and ruin our clothes.
There was no shortage of goodies once indie and pressed tightly against the wall and seated. The wine was flowing (and I learned to bring red wine next time and not Riesling lol), and Ramfis made a desperate call to Nandings for Spanish rolls (because we didn’t have enough food). He disappeared and reappeared a moment later with delicious rolls and passed around the deliciousness as our «waitstaff» David T. and Paul C. helped pass out our salads.
There was no shortage of laughter or food at our table, and as if the rolls weren’t enough Ramfis even got fried chicken for everyone and lord that was delicious. Colonel Sanders has nothing on that fried chicken. Mmmm.
I had a great time sitting with the people at my table laughing, eating, and laughing and eating some more.
And the meal… Good golly all that food for that price? Crazy! No wonder there was a wait list!
Special thank you to everyone who brought desert, especially Nadine and her brownies and Darrel P and Sophie P and chocolate cheesecake that was so delicious from Cake Envy.
And of course thank you Paul C and David T for putting this together and Felix for keeping the place open for us to enjoy such a great night.

Unilocalers know how to eat!
I skipped second breakfast, lunch, and second lunch for this! I know. I eat like a hobbit. But that’s how I prefer to have my meals. Knowing that this meal was bordering on 2,000 calories, I had to make it fit my diet somehow and this was the only way I could think of.
This dinner was so good! Much thanks to Paul for organizing and hosting this event! It was my first time having Ray’s Café’s lobster tail. Combined with their prime rib, it was heavenly.
Nadine supplied the aprons and chocolate peanut butter cup muffins, Ramfis supplied fried chicken and Spanish rolls, Jo supplied Kahlua trifle, Lyla supplied guava chiffon pie, and Darrell supplied Cake Envy chocolate cheesecake! Thanks so much guys! If you missed this feast, you missed out!
Paul as usual helped Felix bring out the food and drink and helped to collect money at the end. I can’t wait for Ray’s Café Dinner #3!

First off, thank you to Paul C. and everyone else that helped to plan the event, and to all the great dessert makers. Also thank you to Malia H. for the invite! The food for the night was Surf and Turf (lobster and prime rib… «I know you’d never think to find there»), and Ray’s delivered. Everyone there enjoyed themselves left… full and happy. Good food, good company.
Felix, the owner and operator, was also very nice and accommodating, and I’d like to thank him by recommending that everyone pay Ray’s a visit some time. Good local hole in the wall.

Thank you again to Paul and David for throwing another spectacular UYE at Ray’s!
Also, a special props to Felix for accommodating us!
Prime rib and a massive lobster tail for only $ 30? Throw in that it’s BYOB?!? What? Too good to be true!
Special thanks to those that brought dessert, Jo for her trifle, Darryl for the chocolate cheesecake from Cake Envy, Ramfis for his deep generosity with the Spanish rolls and fried chicken. Not to mention the guava chiffon (complements of whom? My apologies, I didn’t catch the name…)
Pam and Ramfis for their potent potables… ballah wines in da house!
Flo with her cookies even though she hardly ate her food. WTH?!? LoL
Good food! Good friends! GOOD TIMES!

Quotes in my previous reviews:
1) «I worry a lot.»
2) «I want people to be happy.»
3) «I want to eat good food and share it with others.»
4) «I count my blessings.»
5) «I have no shame.»
This is how I would summarize this UYE.
In the last UYE I co-​hosted with David T., we were overwhelmed by the support and generosity of the Unilocalers in attendance and before we parted, fellow Elite Ramfis B. shouted out «For the next one, let’s have seafood!» We thought about a clambake and seafood dishes but then the idea of surf-​and-​turf sounded cool so we took that idea on Unilocal’s Talk Thread and were surprised how many would be interested in a pricey dinner and the next thing we knew Yeeps were RSVP’ing to an event we didn’t set a date on!
First of all, I would like to thank Felix for once again closing his restaurant to allow 28 Yeeps take over his joint. Although dinner started at 630pm, I was shocked to see a handful of Yeeps check-​in from 530pm! I was running an errand in Chinatown so I drove to Kalihi and arrived just before 6pm only to find a dozen plus Unilocalsters with cups of «juice» in their hands!
I was immediately greeted by fellow Elite Nadine C., who was passing out the «party favors» of cool aprons she brought back from her recent trip to the west coast. The aprons were to keep our clothes clean from eating lobster!
I then saw Ramfis B., Pam H., Lyla D. and her husband, Cathy T., Darrell P., Sophie P. and Jennifer S. with cups of happy juice in their hands! Felix still had some regular diners in house so once the last customers left he came out and put out all of the chairs to seat our group of 28 Yeeps.
I had pre-​ordered the food so the next thing I know bowls of fresh green salad was brought out with 3 types of salad dressing (french, ranch and 1000 island). He only had 1 waitress so just like the last time I had co-​host David T. bring a plastic pitcher from home and we helped out serving water to everyone.
As stated in the Talk Thread and Events page, Ramfis B. was very thoughtful and generous by providing all in attendance 1-​piece of Ray’s famous fried chicken and brought over a LARGE box of Nanding’s famous Spanish rolls. YUMMY!!!
Soon after Chef Felix brought out his knife and started to slice up prime rib and plated our meals. For those who don’t eat red meat I coordinated with Felix to have catch-​of-​the-​day (AHI) with the 14 oz lobster tail.
Just like regular dining service Felix walked out to survey how we were doing and he started to offer extra scoops of rice, where several of us requested (including me). The next thing I know Nadine C. offers her rice to me and I replied «Must you ask me that question?» I replied «What am I known for?» and she yelled out «You have no shame!» and her 2-​scoops of rice was passed over to me!
To make the night sweeter, we had a circus of desserts! Birthday girl Lyla D. BAKED 4 guava chiffon pies (which were divine!), Nadine C. baked stuffed brownie cupcakes, Jo Y. (who couldn’t make it due to family obligations) made an amazing Kahlua trifle and Darrell P. & Sophie P. brought 2 WHOLE sinful and decadent chocolate truffle cheesecakes from Cake Envy!
As I look back at this evening, I recall the happy faces, laughter in the restaurant, glasses of happy juice in their hands, empty plates as well as MANY MANY doggy bags, all of this work and coordination with co-​host David T. and Felix may have taken a lot of energy and time from me but it was well worth it. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
In closing, I count my blessings as I am overwhelmed of the support, thoughtfulness and generosity of my fellow Unilocalers. I thank my co-​host David T., Felix and his staff and all of the cool Unilocalers who came to support this UYE and made it another successful event.
As we were about to part our ways, the subject of UYE#3 came up with ideas of comfort food, lechon, pork belly adobo, suckling pig, oxtail stew, rack of lamb… Ray’s Café UYE #3 is going to happen but for the time-​being, I am going to sit back and enjoy recalling this evening.
NOTES:
1) We popped the UYE cherry of Lisa T. and her +1 as this was their very first!
2) A BIG MAHALO to Cathy T. and John N. who have attended ALL SIX of my UYE’s I’ve either hosted or co-​hosted.
3) Great to see Todd S. again as I met him for the first time last week at the Peter Pan ballet.
4) Thank you to Nadine C. for the beautiful lei, Lien V. for the yummy bread from Boulangerie and Ramfis B. for the bottle of wine. It was my birthday last week and these 3 were very thoughtful.
5) On my birthday last week my family and I dined at RAY’S CAFE. There were 8 of us and we had a fabulous meal here.
6) Also thanks to Nadine C. for bringing party favors (cute aprons) for everyone in attendance.
7) BIG MAHALO to Ramfis B. by providing everyone Ray’s famous fried chicken to their dinner tonight and a MASSIVE box of Nanding’s Spanish rolls.
8) Thank you Felix for tonight’s special price of $ 30 (reg $ 36.95).

This was my first UYE at Ray’s Café and of course, it was super fun! Hosts Paul C. and David T. were so attentive, organized and definitely prepared to handle the hungry Unilocalers in strides. As always, I enjoyed myself tremendously whenever I’m able to attend Paul’s UYE. Upon arrival, Nadine C. gave each and every single one of us a cool apron to protect us from the mess we may make eating the lobster. She offered 3 different design prints (zebra, single big cupcake and small cupcakes) which we could choose one. Nadine knows how to add fun to our eating experience. Thank you Nadine! She also baked stuffed brownies made from Reese’s peanut butter cups for all of us. Wow!
Thanks to both hosts, we were able to enjoy a great surf-​and-​turf dinner and there was some serious eating here. The prime rib looked so good next to that gigantic lobster tail as each plate came out of the kitchen. Since I couldn’t eat more than a few bites of prime rib, I opted for the lobster and pan-​fried ahi. I appreciate Paul and David working with Chef Felix to make sure we could substitute the beef for fish. Lobster tail tasted fresh, plump, juicy and heavenly with the melted butter. Then there was the onolicious ahi, this had to be the best pan-​fried ahi I ever had. Usually the fish gets really dried but not this ahi; the crust of the ahi itself was pan-​fried to a perfect crispy-​crunch. I had to stopped myself from total gluttony so I saved the ahi for leftovers.
To top the best night off, each of us got a bonus fried chicken piece, courtesy of Unilocaler Ramfis B. The chicken piece was huge, hot off the pan and delicious. Ramfis also brought us appetizer: Spanish rolls from Nanding’s Bakery. Those rolls were so addicting. Thank you Ramfis! We appreciate your generosity and aloha. We also found out it was Lyla’s birthday and Paul’s birthday was less than a week ago. We busted out the happy birthday songs and we all sounded so good. It was all good!
As if dinner wasn’t enough, incredible desserts were brought out and all the oohs and aahs rang loudly throughout the small restaurant. Lyla D. made guava chiffon pie with excellent home-​made crust. Tasty, tasty! She could make some pies for me anytime lol! Jo Y. couldn’t make it to the UYE but she was so kind to send us a gigantic Kalua trifle. What a wonderful delicious treat. Lastly, Darrell P. and Sophie P. presented us with a chocolate truffle cheesecake and this was the dessert that did me in. So good, rich and totally decadent. Thank you all for the wonderful desserts. Maybe we call the next UYE Desserts Only.
Having been other UYEs hosted by Paul, I find this UYE as fantastic as the others while David did a super job keeping us on track. Looking forward to the next UYE from both hosts!

If there was two words to describe this UYE Surf and Turf # 2 hosted by Paul C and David T it would be HOLY SHIRT!
We got here early and met up with Nadine, Lyla and her plus one Ian? I hope I got that right, if I didnt I blame Sophie.
There were still customers in the restaurant and it started to get packed with Unilocalers and I know some customers felt uncomfortable with us starting to pack in but hey you know what, sixthirtyish was rolling around the corner. We got a UYE to get started and the wine was getting warm.
Before we even started the beer and the wine was flowing. Spanish rolls was being passed around compliments of bruddah Ramfis.
As usual Felix didn’t disappoint. The Prime Rib with the Lobster tail was just unreal. I seen Crayfish that give some Pacific Lobsters some competition but these were freaking huge and delicious. There was no Horseradish for the Prime Rib this time around but the au jus sauce definitely made up for it.
The deserts were just as good. Jo. Y donated her awesome Kahlua Trifle and Lyld D bringing her awesome Guava Chiffon Pie! Both are so delicious as I enjoy them writing this review. Bruddah Ramfis surprised everyone with a complimentary piece of Ray’s awesome fried chicken too. freaking unreal braddah! Thank you aunty Nadine for the cupcake brownies and aprons she passed out to everyone that she bought in Vegas!
So great to finally meet Lyla D in person and enjoy the company of Florence K sitting at our table. Btw, thank you for the cookies Florence. If there was any flavor to pick, you picked the right one.
Thank you so much Paul and David for seting up another very successful UYE. If you haven’t been to Paul and David’s UYE, best to start working out that index finger for the next quick click because it fills up faster than a overactive bladder. Special mahalo to bruddah Felix and his staff once again for accommodating all us Unilocalers into his restaurant and throwing out some extra seats to max capacity.

Because I had attended the First Prime Rib UYE Dinner at Ray’s, I was more than ready for last night’s adventure!
Last time, Li, Jennifer & I carpooled & got a space in the loading zone at 6pm. At that time, the place was packed and there weren”t many open seats. This time, I travelled solo & got a metered space a block away before 5:30pm. Too pake to put 2 quarters in the meter, I waited 10 minutes so I spent only 25 cents on 20 minutes of parking! Hey, I’m not rich — I’m just thrifty!
Last time, Ramfis brought us chocolate cream pie from Sunnyside Bakery and Brownie Bites from Kilani Bakery. This time, he brought Spanish Rolls from Nanding Bakery and paid for each of us to have a piece of Fried Chicken! We truly appreciate his thoughtfulness and lavish generosity!
Last time, Darrell & Sophie helped Paul bag cookies for favors. This time, Sophie helped prep the aprons that would serve as party favors. Darrell brought decadent Chocolate Cheescake from Cake Envy! Yum! & sincere thanks!
Last time, Lyla wasn’t present. This time she, Ed, Chris & Keith, & Lien attended for the first time and learned about a new place to dine! This time, Li came after dinner & just had dessert.
Last time, I had prime rib & chicken. This time, I had Ahi & Lobster! Note: I had lobster on a cruise ship and in Las Vegas at the Cal. They paled in comparison! Last night’s Lobster was a huge one! I was ready with my hand wipes and scissors, but the lobster shell was cut so well that the meat just fell out!
I guess my message is that last time was great — and this time was even BETTER! How can that be?
I think it’s because when we get together, something magical happens! We enjoy meeting new friends like Janice — my new Thrift Shop partner. We meet old online friends in real life — like how Lyla first met Darrell last night! We enjoy the company of established friends — like how the gang of +6 hang! We attend our first UYE — like Lisa T. did! We make a new friend or two — like how Pam & I are friends now!
We share the love of food and good companionship. We enjoy laughing, having fun, and learning from each other. We’re amazed at each other’s skills and creativity — like my admiration for Chef Lyla and her outstanding Guava Chiffon Pie! We appreciate each other’s generosity and thoughtfulness like Paul’s pikake lei gift to Lyla on her real birthday; Paul’s ginger lei and Hello Kitty stationary gifts to me; Li Y.‘s birthday gift to Lyla after dinner; and Jo’s Chocolate Trifle — even though she wasn’t able to attend! These acts of kindness are noteworthy and now are documented in the annals of time!
Let’s give Paul & David T. some rest time… They’ll be ready soon enough for Dinner #3! Sure looking forward to it! So, look for the «Talk» Thread, sign up under «Events» and come out to a UYE — you won’t regret it!

Yabbadabbado! We finally got to participate in a UYE that was expertly coordinated by Paul C. And David T. Ray’s Café is a small café, er, hole-​in-​the-​wall in Kalihi. Its owner and cook is Felix and the man can sling out the goods.
Our dinner was a surf and turf. but, what came on our plates was a huge cut aka «brontosaurus-​sized» of medium-​rare Prime Rib and a lobster tail that was the size of a house slipper. Hosts Paul and David kindly took the time to become our service staff in this tiny restaurant. They wove their way from the kitchen and in between tight seatings. Oof, as if that wasn’t enough, Auntie Nadine C presented everyone with a cute apron to protect our clothes from splashes of lobster or butter. Plus, she generously made these cute stuffed cupcakes with Reese’s Peanut Butter cups in each. Other Yeeps, who I just met this evening brought Spanish Rolls*, several types of sakes, beer and wines.
To be honest, I was unaware that this UYE was planned to celebrate both Paul’s birthday and mine. So, when I heard about a UYE, I offered to make guava chiffon pies. Well, there was a plethora of desserts. fellow Yeep Jo Y graced our sweet tooth with a Kahlua Trifle, Darrell and Sophie P brought a chocolate truffle cheese cake from Cake Envy, but my plate was overflowing and I must say since becoming a Yeep, I’ve experienced weight gains! So much, too much food but I’m not complaining because the best part was meeting new Yeeps and getting together with familiar ones.
I was flattered by everyone’s singing and wishes of Happy Birthday. Paul was sweet to present me with a pikake lei and I even got a lit candle to make a wish over… twice, because the first time a picture didn’t come out. Will my wishes come true? One certainly DID, tonight as we shared company with fellow Yeeps.
If I left your name out, I apologize for having short-​term memory loss… that’s my birthday excuse and I’m sticking to it!
*THANK YOU to Ramfis who generously brought the Spanish Rolls from Nanding Bakery and a piece of Ray’s Café fried chicken!