Raf's — Restaurant in New York

Just a terrible experience here at Raf's. Almost everything arrived cold, which was even more surprising since we had a 5pm reservation just as they opened for dinner service. Started with the bread basket, which arrived cold. Then we had the leeks vinaigrette, which was also cold. At this point I asked the server if it was supposed to be cold, and she first said yes, then no, and then that she wasn't sure. She finally agreed to go ask the kitchen, and came back and said it was supposed to be served hot (of course!). But since we'd already eaten half, she didn't offer to replace it. I finally negotiated them bringing us at least a HALF serving, served hot. How can a restaurant not automatically replace a dish they botched?

Then came the mains. My wife's Iberico pork chop ($48) arrived... cold. When we finally got the server and told her, she tried to tell us that it was because the salad served on top of the meat cools it down. Right. Like a few pieces of greens would drop the temp of a pork chop 30 degrees. They replaced it with a version that was so small, it probably only had 6-8 bites of actual meat. I ordered their signature chicken, which was at least warm, but was really not a good piece of meat.

And it wasn't just us. Both tables next to us sent dishes back for being cold. One was the $165 cote de boeuf for two; I could see their dish arrived raw in the center. They sent it back, and when it came back it didn't look much better.

One problem was clearly the server. There are only about 10 tables in this restaurant, so it should've been manageable. But every time I looked for her, she was hanging out at the bar, either chatting with the bartender or having a drink while reading her phone. This while all the food in the kitchen was getting cold, I guess.

Finally the server then seemed shocked that we wanted the check without having dessert. I went over all the problems again, and when the check came, they didn't even take anything off the bill. Finally the manager came over as we were leaving; I told her everything that had happened, and she also didn't offer to adjust the bill. At this point she should've just voided the whole check, and just charged us for the cocktails, which were decent. She did offer to give us a deal on a future visit, but there's no way I'm ever stepping foot in this place again.

This is all pretty bad for a place that's going to run at least $100 per person.

I believe this is the first time I've ever given a 1-star review to any...

Raf’s pastries are all top notch. Very worth its price. Important note: they are all NOT TOO SWEET. The quality of their food is consistent. Their pastries always impress me. My top picks are their candied orange almond croissant and canelé.

＊Orange Almond Croissant ** The croissant was more on the solid side with a crunchy texture. It was cut open into halves and stuffed with generous candied orange almond paste. Every single bite was bliss.

＊Caramelized Onion Roll ** I am a savory pastry person and this roll was insanely delicious. It tasted heavenly after being warmed up. The caramelized onion wrapped inside was sweet and went well with shredded cheese on top.

＊Amaretti (gluten-free) Not sure what amaretti is but it had a cakey texture, sth between madeline and scone imo. It was crunchy on the outside, with a soft and chewy center. The lemon-y flavor was very refreshing.

＊Baci di Dama I got 3 baci di dama in my box, which was an Italian shortbread cookie stuck together by a layer of hazelnut-chocolate. They were too tempting I could easily finish all three in split seconds.

＊Seasonal Peach Galette My favorite item in this haul The glazed peach is sweet and juicy. The crushed nuts on top adds more tecture to the tart. The crust of the galette is buttery. Perfect in every way.

＊Canelé A classic french dessert, yet it is difficult to find a good canelé in NYC. Their canelé has the perfect crunchy outer and pudding-like interior after I reheat it in the oven.

＊Asparagus and Goat Cheese Danish Sadly this is my least favorite as I dislike goat cheese. The danish part is perfectly flaky as always. However, the goat cheese is too pungent and overpowering that I have to give up after first bite. My bf enjoys this...

If I could rate zero stars I would. I never write reviews on here but this establishment is completely unprofessional.

RAF’s charged us a cancellation fee for our reservation on Christmas Eve when in fact, we were there. They had us waiting at the bar for an hour for our table with no apologies or explanation whatsoever. They were acting as if it was totally normal to wait this long for our reservation. It was a Christmas Eve menu for 200 dollars per person (400 with wine). What kind of service is this for such a restaurant?

After an hour of waiting, with no complaints from us, they sat us at the worst table in the restaurant, we were literally in the kitchen. My view was the trash can. We politely asked to change tables, they said that’s all they had. You would think after making us wait for so long they would make an effort with the table.

They came back and told us to wait another 5 minutes to sit somewhere else. We waited 15 minutes. At this point it was 930-945pm, our reservation was at 815pm. We still have not ordered anything. We decided to leave as our Christmas Eve dinner was ruined by this poor service. The only thing we got from the manager as we left was “Sorry it didn’t work out”.

4 days later, we get charged 200 dollars for “no-show”. I send an email to them right away on December 27th. 5 emails later, January 6th, still haven’t heard from them. I decide to leave a comment on their Instagram. Now I got their attention. They reply to my emails saying we got seated in a timely manner and it’s not their fault we didn’t like the table. Being seated an hour late is a timely manner according to this restaurant.

Absolutely disrespectful and very disappointed by this restaurant. Would not...