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Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Elk Grove Village
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While I don’t consider my self a barbeque expert I know my way around a grill, and one of the things that I know I will be reaching for when I plan a barbeque is Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce. This sauce has been my favorite since I was given a sample of it at Jewel about ten years ago! Imagine my happiness when I found out that Dave Raymond (aka Sweet Baby Ray) and his partner; Mike O'Brien had opened a
Sweet Baby Ray’s Restaurant Elk Grove Village.
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Side Salad
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Sweet Baby Ray's offers a great selection of barbecue dishes their menu of meats includes baby back ribs, spare ribs, pulled pork, beef brisket, ham, and chicken. Don’t like barbecue? Ray’s offers up a mouth-watering choice of seafood, steak, and pasta dishes that are sure to satisfy anyone’s taste. And if you are looking for a lighter fare Ray’s has fresh salads sure to hit the spot.
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Crabcakes
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Ray’s has a variety of starters sure to get your appetite going; my dining partner and I settled on the crab cakes featuring two generous “pan-seared, lump crab cakes served with a roasted red pepper cream sauce” for 10.99. When this dish got to our table; it was almost too pretty to eat…almost. The crab cakes were delectable, with a melt in your mouth texture – the perfect size to share.
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BBQ Combo
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I chose the BBQ Combo for dinner because I got my choice of 1/3 slab of ribs (either baby back or St. Louis spare), pulled pork, beef brisket, or a 1/4 chicken white or dark meat. Two choices would have cost me $13.99, I got the “pick three” for 16.99 so I could happily share and maybe take some home. The dinner included soup or salad and a choice of two sides. I had trouble choosing my two sides; with choice like: green chile mac n’ cheese, red beans and rice, and roasted garlic mashed potatoes it was hard! I ended up going with the coleslaw and sweet potato fries YUM.
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New Orleans Style BBQ Shrimp
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Gloria ordered the New Orleans style barbecue shrimp, which included a very generous portion of pan seared wild shrimp with Chef Paul’s BBQ shrimp sauce and was served with Tchoupitoulas potatoes - $16. 99. Her dinner came with a choice of soup or salad; we both chose salads, but got a little taste of a gumbo which has smoked chicken, andouille sausage, bell pepper, celery and onions thickened with mixture of flour and fat which is cooked briefly and used as the thickening base, this base is called a roux, and the right roux can really make a gumbo – boy did it make this one!
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Key Lime Pie
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We were so satisfied (and full) we almost passed up on desert…almost. While normally a chocolate person I decided to go with a cool and zesty key-lime pie for $5.99. Served with a dollop of whipped cream and a little slice of lime; this little personal pie hit the spot! Gloria chose the Xango also for $5.99. I have to pause for a moment for all the glory that is the Xango… Picture rich cheesecake wrapped in flour tortilla with cinnamon and banana, dusted with cinnamon sugar, caramel and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. It tasted just as it sounds – delicious!
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Xango
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Warm and inviting large wood-paneling covers
Sweet Baby Ray's dining room. The restaurant seats up to 185 comfortably, not including the seats at the bar, which provides a full cocktail and beer menu. In good weather I would recommend taking advantage of Sweet Baby Ray's outdoor seating. It’s large enough for more than 60 people to dine comfortably and that white dinging furniture give it a real picnic feel. If you are thinking of planning a party
Sweet Baby Ray’s offers a room for private parties complete with its own flat screen TV that fits up to 35 people. Carry out is also available with a separate entrance located on the east side of the building.
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Margarita
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Address: 800 E. Higgins Rd. Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 Ph: 847.437.9555 Hours: Monday-Thursday: 11AM - 10PM, Friday: 11AM - 11PM, Saturday: 9:30AM - 11PM, Sunday: 9:30AM - 9PM. Please note that Sweet Baby Ray’s serves breakfast on Saturday and Sunday only from 9:30AM to 11:30AM.
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Dining Outside
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Hot off the press! Sweet Baby Ray's earned top honors at the Naperville Exchange Club's Ribfest over the July 4 weekend, placing first in the Best Ribs competition and placing second in the Best Sauce category.
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