i absolutely agree with @thoferon about the fact that you don't have to matter about the Rails or PHP platform you work with. One solution that won't impact any of your websites, won't require any installation and configuration on a web server, is the usage of a MySQL client software on your local computer.
I don't know what OS do you have, but there are several MySQL clients for every OS. Three links I've found on Google :
- https://stackoverflow.com/questions/9185/what-is-the-best-mysql-client-application-for-windows
- The Best List Of Top MySQL Tools For Mac Users
- What is the best free SQL GUI for Linux for various DBMS systems
