Marlin & Ray's Is A Catch For Stafford

When you enter Marlin & Ray's in Stafford County it has the appearance of a typical seafood chain restaurant with beach art on the walls and a fisherman's vibe, but the food is what really counts and this restaurant gets high marks.

Marlin & Rays has had the busiest opening week in the franchise's history, said manager Jason Thompson. The restaurant has happy hours at the bar from 4 to 7 p.m. every day of the week, which is rare.

"The happy hour is awesome. People love it," Thompson said.

I've never seen so many servers and busboys at a restaurant before and everyone seemed well trained and busy on this Wednesday night. Every table was taken at 7 p.m. and people were waiting in the entryway to be seated. My server, William, visited the table numerous times to fill my water, talk about sports and was overall responsive to his diner's requests—and he gets an extra plus for being a Dallas Cowboys fan.

Fredericksburg Patch reviewed numerous entrees and appetizers this week and found the food to be delicious and well seasoned. Marlin & Ray's is a great place for people who love fish and the restaurant offers Grouper, Tilapia and Sea Bass as some of the special dishes. 

Most meals start off with crispy little cheddar muffins that are sweet and spicy and bottomless salad. For starters, the calamari is amazing—tender, soft and battered thick with a sweet chili dip.

The Shrimp Dip is another popular appetizer at the restaurant, packed with chunks of shrimp and a cheddar cheese dip with crispy, crunchy chips. But don't fill yourself on the starters because the entrees are filling and each special in their own right.

For example, the Sea Bass with a light ginger sauce melts in your mouth. The fish was cooked to perfection, tasted fresh and healthy and was the best dish of the night. The fork barely had to touch the fish for flaky pieces to break off. The mashed potatoes were thick and filling, with a touch of sour cream and chives mixed in.

The Grouper was thick and carried the weight of a steak. The Cajun cream sauce on top provides a spicy kick that melds the dish together. This is a filling piece of fish and it is only $15.99.

The Marlin's Sizzle is a Cajun blackened Tilapia with skewered shrimp and a crab cake. The Tilapia is thicker than what you might buy at the super market, which was surprising. This is another healthy option at Marlin and Ray's and it is seasoned well, flaky and delicious.

The Jambalaya Pasta might be one of the more filling entrees on the menu. The thick pasta is covered in a creamy, spicy Cajun Parmesan sauce and loaded with andouille sausage, shrimp and chicken slices.

"The No. 1 goal is we are going to make sure everyone is happy," said Thompson. "We're going to make mistakes but if something is wrong we are going to make it right."

On this night, nothing went wrong. The service was professional, the fish entrees were really strong and the appetizers were a great start to what turned out to be an enjoyable dining experience at Stafford County's newest seafood restaurant.

Fredericksburg Patch highly recommends Marlin & Ray's to anyone who loves seafood. If you go to eat there, make sure to let the server and managers know Fredericksburg Patch sent you.