The story
Raya sits inside The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel at One Ritz Carlton Drive, Dana Point, California, where its Indian kitchen has earned a Forbes Travel Guide Recommended rating for 2026. The room suits both a slow breakfast and an evening meal, and it draws locals and visitors alike.
Forbes Travel Guide names breakfast as its favorite time to eat here. Floor-to-ceiling windows look out over local surfers heading into the water. Because the restaurant sits high on the bluff, every table has an ocean view.
Service is described as polished and attentive. The restaurant uses dark napkins instead of white, so guests in navy suits or black dresses avoid lint. The wine program received a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in 2025.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
Raya is an elegant restaurant at the luxurious Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel in an affluent stretch of Orange County, Calif. It attracts all sorts of locals and vacationers, so it makes a great spot for people watching.Breakfast is our favorite time to dine at the Orange County restaurant. As you watch the mass of local surfers hit the water through the floor-to-ceiling windows, dig into flavorful dishes like the Cuban Sunrise, an open-faced sandwich topped with a fried egg, carnitas, Manchego and chile hollandaise.Service is just as smart and crisp as the white — or black napkins — placed in your lap at the start of dinner. Raya goes one step further by offering dark napkins to avoid leaving you with white lint all over your navy blue suit or little black dress.Raya’s stunning pan-Latin cuisine makes its quite popular, but because the restaurant is so perfectly located high on bluff, every table offers an ocean view.
Location