My wife and I had decided to treat ourselves to a romantic evening meal and made reservations at The Raphael Restaurant with hopes of a traditional atmosphere and inspiring food. The evening started well - the live piano music was entertaining and wait staff were polite and friendly - but the disappointment started as the food began to appear. We started nibbling on the cold, limp baguette and quickly put this aside - first time in a while I've been disappointed in the pre appitiser bread! Appetisers were not offensive but again dissapointing. The salad that followed looked as though it had come straight from the prepackaged section of the local supermarket. The beef tenderloin I had for the entree was tender and tasty although a little too salty on the outside. The asparagus was crispy to the point of being undercooked. For desert we shared a creme brulee - my wife's favorite. As we dug in we were both a little surprised that the surface of the brulee was cold - suggesting it hadn't been freshly prepared. The overall experience was disappointing - we too burst into laughter as we left. I would love to be able to recommend this place as the building has great architecture and the entertainment pleasant - its just the food wasn't that great of an experience - not for the price charged.
Pros: Good live music, decent wine
Cons: Uninspired food
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