Reopening this iconic Richland music venue and restaurant was 3 years in the making

Ray’s Golden Lion reopens this month after eight long years, bringing a new set of owners and a new menu to the iconic venue’s familiar commitment to live music.

Owners Talon Yager and Andrew McVay plan to open the evening of Sept. 30 at 1353 George Washington Way in Richland’s Uptown Shopping Center.

The moment will cap a three-year effort to refresh the 12,000-square-foot Golden Lion without sacrificing the look and feel of the original.

The duo secured liquor and business licenses and are waiting for final inspections and approval from the Benton Franklin Health District.

“We’ll be good to open,” Yager promised.

The opening night lineup features The Savage Henrys, Big Time, The Van Dels and Pazzi Pazzi. Doors open at 7 p.m. The cover charge is $15 at the door and attendance is restricted to those 21 and over.

Ray’s has booked musical acts through early November and began selling tickets this month.

What’s changed, what hasn’t

Like its predecessor, the new Ray’s Golden Lion is a restaurant by day and music venue/bar by night. The most noticeable change is the menu.

The original served Chinese and Mogolian fare. The new Ray’s will serve what Yager describes as unpretentious gastropub food — think sandwiches, Rubens and Cubans, burgers, Philly cheese steak and chicken waffles. There will be vegan items as well.

The bar has eight taps and a line of signature cocktails inspired by dive bars — there’s a Golden Lion gin and cider and a “Malibob” Sunset, a nod to their booking agent.

A minor change is coming to the front of the building, which faces George Washington Way. The neon Ray’s Golden Lion sign is staying put but secondary signs advertising Chinese food will come down.

The changes extend to the back alley, where a fresh mural honors Ray’s past.

Joey Armstrong of Thunderhand Tattoo painted the vivid mural the entire length of Ray’s. It’s part of the Uptown’s campaign to create a walkable arts district in the alleys where businesses accept deliveries and stash their garbage bins.

Armstrong’s mural honors the memory of Ray Chin, who founded the restaurant, and Dustin Stecker, the music promoter who booked the bands that performed there. Stecker died in April but was eager to see the venue reopen.

50-plus years

Wai Mon “Raymond” Chin opened Golden Lion 1963 and ran it with his wife and son until late 2015, when the business was evicted for unpaid rent.

Chin died the following February after being struck by a car while walking across Van Giesen at Richland’s Shelter Belt Trail. He was 83.

Yager and McVay say they’ve heard from people who swear they were going to reopen Ray’s. In reality, only four prospective tenants toured the space. All found it too large to manage.

Yager and McVay weren’t concerned about the size though they confess getting it back into shape has had its challenges.

To begin, they won’t use the entire building. They’re reopening the front but leaving the former Mongolian grill spot in the back empty for the time being.

They may add pool tables and other activities in the future, but to start, Ray’s Golden Lion is a restaurant and music venue.

Musical home

Friends since childhood, Yager and McVay played in bands that performed regularly at Ray’s Golden Lion, which attracted an astonishing list of performers in its heyday, including Tina Turner and Meatloaf. It was, they agreed, their musical home.

Yager performed with groups such as The Drip into his late 20s and toured the U.S. after it secured a recording contract. McVay, who graduated from Pasco High, played with local bands into his 20s as well.

Both began working in the hospitality industry.

Yager, a fourth generation restaurateur, has owned Stick + Stone Pizza at Richland’s Queensgate area since he bought it from the founder in late 2019.

McVay works as a bartender and server and dreamed of running his own bar. His father owns a New Orleans-themed club in northern Louisiana.

They began pursuing the idea of a business at the Uptown about three years ago. They always wanted the Ray’s space, but looked at the former Towne Crier, which was also vacant. Towne Crier is reopening under a different team as Daisy Ranch Saloon.

So they focused on the Ray’s spot. They leased the space and split the roughly $700,000 it cost to clean and repair the space and modernize the kitchen with the landlord.

The project is more repair than renovation, they stress. There were no structural alterations that would trigger costly code updates, like fire sprinklers.

The kitchen is upgraded as are the sound systems, lighting and bar.

They estimate 70% of their music lineup with be metal, punk and rock and roll groups, catering to local interests. A hip hop act is scheduled for Oct. 14.

If you go

Ray’s Golden Lion family-friendly restaurant hours are 11 a.m.-9 p.m., From 11 p.m.-2 p.m., it is 21-and-over bar and music venue.

Follow Rays Golden Lion on Facebook at bit.ly/45X0aNY

For booking information, use the email raysgoldenlionproductions@gmail.com

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