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[Ron]

Sorry to say that our first restaurant review isn't going to be a positive one. But maybe, that's what drove us to write the first review to begin with!

Johnny Ray's, across the street from the Leeds, Alabama Wal-Mart Supercenter, is a barbeque joint, nice and clean and bright in the restaurant, with a big screen TV at one end. We checked out the menu first, it looked ok for both of us, and it showed that Johnny Ray's apparently has several localtions in the area, so all in all Johnny Ray's seemed to promise a good time and good food for a couple of hobos like us. Well.....

Cleanliness:
The Restaurant was clean and bright. The Men's room was less than sanitary. It hadn't been cleaned in a while, the paper towel dispenser wouldn't dispense paper towels, the soap dispenser wouldn't dispense soap, the hot water was tepid. Basically, the facilities reminded me of a dingy bar after a long Saturday night, but on the positive side, it was also brightly lit, so that Ron could see the circumstances in which he found himself. Joan didn't try the ladies' room.
Cleanliness Score: 2.5 (4 for the dining room, 1 for the Men's room... average = 2.5 )

Service:
The waitstaff was very nice and persosnable. If they had actually remembered our address, and where to bring our food within a half hour, the food might have been a little warmer. Ok, that's an exaggeration. The food might have been warm at all.
Service Score: 2

Food:
Joan: I had a Chicken Salad that was good, but uniformly lukewarm, not hot and cold. The best part of my meal was the side of baked beans. Johnny Ray's has received awards for their homemade pies, (and I was looking forward to some pumpkin pie), but we were so ignored, that we did not stay any longer than necessary.

Ron: I had a BBQ Jumbo Sliced Pork Sandwich, which was lukewarm, and not exactly "jumbo" in portion size. The taste of the food was excellent, and again, if it had arrived within a week and actually warmer than my mouth, I would have given it a high grade.

To top things off, we had mentioned that we were from Boston and this was our first visit to Johnny Ray's. Result: The waitress patiently explained everything on the menu, and what wasn't on the menu (presentation, sauces, etc.) then after we ordered, we were basically ignored. Their service did NOT epitomize Southern hospitality at all. We have not sworn off local cuisine yet, however. Joan reads "Eat Your Way Across the USA" religiously, ever ready to try new All-American roadside delights. (Thanks,again, Anne and Randy!)
Food Score: 3 (Again, had it been promptly served, this score would have probably been higher)

Overall Score: 2: We won't be back.