Local Restaurant Brings Culture To Boca
In early 2017, Lynn alumnus Louis Grayson opened the Ramen Lab Eatery in attempts to bring trendy and hip Asian cuisine to Boca.
Grayson, 26, graduated from Lynn in 2012 with an international business degree. Grayson yearned to get out of South Florida and away from the restaurant business. He relocated to Maryland working for a food distributor before being hired by Expedia.
“Every job that I had lead me back to food,” said Grayson.
Grayson is still employed by Expedia in corporate management. Being both a restaurant owner and account manager provides him with the ability to do all of the things he planned for post-grad life.
“Both things are things I like,” said Grayson. “I traveled a lot. I wanted to be in a different country living and working, that was the dream. But I always wanted my own business too.”
It was not until Grayson entered a culinary competition in D.C. called Launchpad Mess Hall Food Competition that he decided he was ready for his own restaurant. He submitted his business plan in conjunction with samples of his own recipes.
“We got selected to enter the finals and presented our food to 300 people and five judges, earning 2nd place and the people’s choice award,” said Grayson.
The victory inspired Grayson to take things one step further. With the support of his family, the owners of Lemon Grass Asian Bistro.
“The menu is inspiration from a lot of different things since I travel a lot for work,” said Grayson. “I’ve been to 23 different states, a lot of different countries, I go to the city a lot and its inspired by what I feel was missing around here.”
With vibrant murals on the walls and dim lighting, the boutique eatery welcomes guests to experience New York City on the inside and Los Angeles on the outside patio.
“I said ‘let’s do ramen’ since everything comes to Florida about five years later,” said Grayson.
Grayson wanted to give downtown Boca a true downtown feel. The inspiration for the menu came from his own preferences of tastes that he wanted to share before they were no longer trending.
“These are things that I like. Things I find when I’m traveling,” said Grayson. “It’s not just Japanese, there’s Thai flavors in there and some Korean influence. I just wanted to do something casual.”
Boca Raton is home to some of the finest cuisine but Grayson believes good food should not always mean high prices. Ramen Lab Eatery is part of the fast-casual dining concept that incorporates genuine ingredients, fair pricing and friendly staff.
Ramen Lab Eatery brings each dish to the table and cleans up after guests are finished. The staff is eager to explain the exotic menu to each customer and accommodates custom preferences.
To learn more about Ramen Lab Eatery visit http://www.ramenlabeatery.com/#ramen-lab-eatery and follow @ramenlabeatery on Instagram.
