For 50 Years, Raoul’s Has Always Been Where It’s At

Danny Trinh

Director of design, Meta
First time at Raoul’s: 2013

I’ll never forget my first dinner at Raoul’s. It was 2013, back when there was a private room upstairs. Some of my mentors invited me there. I lived in San Francisco at the time and it made such a big impression on me. Everything was so, so, so good. It seemed so New York, yet so Paris at the same time.

I started coming really regularly when I moved to New York from Paris in 2020. I was still managing a team in Paris, remotely from New York, and I thought of Raoul’s as my “French connection.” My usual order is the steak au poivre, the paté, or the foie gras. Or the beignets and the burger.

I feel like Raoul’s is a place where significant things begin and end. The longest relationship of my life, for example, we first met at Raoul’s. And when we were ending things, we did it in a very French way — we met at Raoul’s and ended things there, just to put a book end on it.

When I’m at Raoul’s, I always think that if these walls could talk, they would share more than anyone would want them to share. So many instances of kismet happen at Raoul’s.

And that’s a bond that I find really special. I just love how warm everyone is and how it feels like home. Raoul’s will always be like that to me: home and like my family.

Sharon Telesca Feurer

Vice president and marketing director, The Dominick Hotel
First time at Raoul’s: 2005

I have been living in New York City since 1990 and somehow I had never gone to Raoul’s until about 2005. I lived on the Upper West Side and back then we didn’t have so much social media. But Raoul’s was one of those places always on the list of places you want to go, in Zagat or wherever. And honestly, I thought, “Can I even get in there?” I remember taking a 5:30 reservation or something and being very excited to go. When I arrived, I remember there was a bench or a table out front, and my recollection was that Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen were sitting there. They were wearing these long black coats, smoking their cigarettes, right out in front of Raoul’s.

Fifteen years ago I ended up working down the block and coming more regularly. Our go-to Raoul’s order is steak frites, medium rare. Profiteroles. Sometimes we’ll get the artichokes, sometimes we’ll get the paté. I love the roast carrots in season. Soft shell crab. Sometimes roast chicken. It’s always consistent, which is so hard to do. And there’s an alchemy that I always laugh about with the interior design. You have the Art Deco bar with the disco ball with deer’s head with the paintings from chair rail to ceiling. And it works.

My quintessential experience at Raoul’s was recently on New Year’s Eve. My husband and I are hospitality people. We don’t go out on New Year’s Eve, usually. But we have dear friends who had a really rough year, and we thought we should do something special with them. I said, “This might be crazy, but what about Raoul’s?” And then we just decided to book it. We had a blast. Naomi was our waitress, and she took great care of us. There was a table of six 30-somethings across from us — we were toasting them, and they were toasting us. There was a couple, he was probably in his mid-70s, in a very fitted, beautiful tuxedo with metallic black thread running through it. And his somewhat younger date was more demure. He was the life of the party, just going table to table, dancing around. And then another group of very handsome men in tuxes arrived — finance guys, maybe. But it was just this great mix of people, with everybody having fun. And then the next thing you know, there’s a burlesque dancer on the bar. She is more than a dancer, a true artist — just amazing. Everyone was crowding up at the bar around her. It was a really special way to see in the new year.

Pepe Diniz

Photographer and author of “My Nights at Raoul’s”
First time at Raoul’s: 1977

I was a busboy at Raoul’s until 1987. After leaving I would go there for a steak-frites-salade and for drinks. I also like the coquilles St. Jacques. When I go back, Eddie [Hudson], the maître d’, always comps me a fine Cognac — my “Delamain” is a sure thing.

Almost every night at Raoul’s was memorable to me. The night I photographed Miles Davis, the night I met photographer Lisette Model, the night I ate my first oyster, the night I deboned a truite a L’Alsacienne for Richard Avedon. But most memorable was the camaraderie I enjoyed with my coworkers, and when maitre d’ Rob Jones, dressed to the hilt, put on one of his theatrical performances and had everyone in the restaurant clapping and cheering.

Rob brought a new dimension to the restaurant. He was truly a character. Rob was professional, efficient and exuded an air of formality, but at the same time could be hilariously funny. I fondly remember one evening not too long after Rob started working at Raoul’s. It was late, the restaurant kitchen had closed and most of the customers were having coffee and after dinner drinks. Suddenly, the restaurant lights went out. I thought to myself, “Damn, another blackout.” It wasn’t. From the loudspeakers I heard renowned French singer Edith Piaf’s well known song, “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien.” Then the lights came back on. We saw Rob descending the spiral staircase which connects the dining room to the upstairs bathrooms. He was lip syncing to Piaf’s song. He came down slowly, one step at a time, wearing a black-and-silver striped body suit over light colored pantyhose, a gray feather boa draped around his neck, and high heels. He had on his usual big, black rimmed eyeglasses over his fastidiously made up face.

He caught the customers by surprise. Hell, he caught me by surprise. The customers, astonished at first, started to go wild, jumping to their feet, clapping and yelling appreciatively. After almost fully descending the staircase, Rob suddenly leaped from the staircase onto the bar by the espresso machine. “Oh my God!” I took a deep breath. And heard others gasp. I was concerned that he’d fall, but he balanced himself like an acrobat. Rob continued his performance by leaping back to the staircase and then maneuvering his body to the floor all the while gesticulating and making faces as he mouthed the words to the song. As he neared some customers, he caressed their faces, and blew kisses to others.

Then the Piaf song abruptly stopped and a new song began blaring from the loudspeakers. It was Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Are Made for Walking.” Rob moved quickly to the front aisle of the restaurant and performed a can-can style high kick.

A busboy named José who was also a dancer, turned to me and said: “Wow! This guy can dance.” Rob just kept moving to the rhythm jumping on top of a chair and from there onto a counter where we typically displayed the desserts. (Thank God there were no more desserts at that point in the evening.)

I heard customers shout, “Bravo, bravo.” Rob threw kisses to his restaurant audience, came down from the counter and disappeared into the kitchen returning a few seconds later to take a bow. After that, Rob was literally rushed by quite a lot of customers who surrounded and hugged him. That was only one of many memorable evenings at Raoul’s.

John McDonald

Restaurateur, Lure Fishbar, Bar Mercer, Cha Cha Tang, Bowery Meat Company, and Smyth Tavern
First time at Raoul’s: 1985

I was born and raised in Phoenix, Ariz., and I started coming to New York in the ’80s as a high school kid. My older sister was a model with Eileen Ford modeling agency and she got me coming to New York City. My first Raoul’s experience was around then, in 1985 or 1986, and I was there with my family. I could never forget having a steak au poivre. I’d never had it before, and it was the spiciest thing I’ve ever eaten. I had to scrape all the peppercorns and the sauce off the steak. If I could have written a Yelp review then, when I was 16, my review would have said, “This place is horrible! Who puts this much pepper on a steak?! It ruined it! I’m never coming back!!”

That is ironic because when I moved to New York later, a little bit older and wiser, not only did I take every date to Raoul’s first, but I don’t think I’ve ever eaten there and not had steak au poivre.

If I really look back to my initial impression, I think it’s the same as today: There’s just a magic and layers of authenticity there. The art, the windows — you can’t design that room. That’s not a consciously designed physical environment. And then there’s the staff. You got guys like Eddie, the maître d’, who’s been there 40 plus years.

I’ve gone to Raoul’s hundreds and hundreds of times over three decades, and one particular story that reflects the magic of the room is about a friend of mine who would go there by himself and sit at bar and order extraordinary wine. One night, I happened to be at Lure having a late dinner, and I got a call from him. I told him that I’d walk down the street to Raoul’s to meet him. It was a Tuesday night, at like midnight. I arrived and my friend proceeds to open a $20,000 bottle of wine and he let everybody drink it: people at the bar, some of the staff. It was just this magical moment that you wouldn’t plan, nothing that you could ever orchestrate — super spontaneous and a moment of sharing joy with strangers.

Julie Weprin

Former director of customer care, Bloomingdale’s
First time at Raoul’s: 1976

My father sold the building to [original Raoul’s owner] Serge Raoul a way long time ago, in the late 70s I think. I’m not sure what year. We would have Sunday dinners as a family at Raoul’s. I remember Prince Street was still wild west territory back then. And then over the years I came on and off. I went to school, had kids.

But I think that the importance of Raoul’s really sunk in during pandemic, when we were eating outdoors only. Raoul’s had such a great outdoor cafe and we started going there more and more frequently for dinner. One night, it was very cold and they weren’t serving outdoors. It was our first time eating indoors again. And we walked in and we were like, “What is this? Is there a private party inside?” But it was just a regular night. So festive. I felt like, “Wow, life is returning for us and yes, there’s still a party to be had in New York.” It was such a moment.

I’ve been there when I was young. I’ve been there when it was more of a party time in my life. I’ve been there as an adult; Friday night is date night with my husband there now.

I’m a big fan of the steak tartare and steak frites. My husband is a dover sole person. We also like the beignets, ham or crab, depending on the season.

We recently celebrated our 25th anniversary at Raoul’s by taking over the entire restaurant. It was wonderful to have the Raoul’s family to ourselves. We had about 65 people, so it was pretty packed, which was great. It felt just like a typical Friday night at Raoul’s. We had the usual music mix on: disco, classic rock. It was the same vibe, but it was just for us. They served the steak and the sole, and we had them passing oysters and beignets beforehand and lots and lots of happy martinis. Our guests were like, “Oh, now I understand why you come here so much.”

Andrew Zimmern

Chef, restaurateur, and television host of “Bizarre Foods”
First time at Raoul’s: 1975

Raoul’s was our family place. We went there a lot. My dad lived downtown on Horatio Street, and we would take the walk over to have dinner. New York in the ’70s was not the New York of today, and SoHo was not [filled with] restaurant after restaurant after restaurant.

I know that my father [first] went [to the restaurant] within months of Raoul’s being open, because he and all his friends — Craig Claiborne, Pierre Franey, James Beard, and Alfredo Viazzi — went to new restaurants; that’s what they did.

I remember having my first shad roe in the spring at Raoul’s. I remember my father being so insistent that it be cooked medium rare. My go-to order today is steak frites, steak tartare, and salad. And I also always ask about the fish. If there are soft shell crabs on the menu, you’re darn right I will order them.

There were so many quintessential New York nights at Raoul’s. One in particular stands out: It was 1980 or 1981. I was in college, and I was home in New York visiting, and I was on a date. I remember being crammed into a great table for two, on a chair that wasn’t quite balancing itself. I was getting ready to ask to move when I noticed my date turn white. She was staring over my shoulder, and I just casually turned around, and behind us were Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. I knew their kids, and I got up and introduced myself because I wanted to impress this girl. They gave me a warm welcome and we eavesdropped on their conversation for the rest of the night. I remember walking out of there feeling like I was on top of the world.

I don’t think I ever went to Raoul’s where there weren’t also people that I knew there. It was, and is, a great clubhouse, whether you ran into a celebrity or someone you know or just experiencing the midnight burlesque cabaret moments that would just erupt.

Kathleen Squires is an award-winning food and travel writer, and the co-producer of “Raoul’s: A New York Story,” which premieres at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 5th. Tickets for public screenings on June 10, 11, and 15 are available here. Follow Kathleen on Instagram.

Michael Harlan Turkell is a food photographer, writer, and cookbook author. He most recently hosted the Modernist Pizza Podcast, and continues to explore the art, history, and science of many foodways. Follow him on Instagram and X. Follow Resy, too.