Raoul Tenazas

A hidden gem in the wall street area. Beautiful old antique wooden bar brought in from Europe that is well maintained, polished, and stacked with any liquor you could think of. There is a sizable room with tables passed the bar that is perfect to enjoy their delicious dinner specialties -- something you would never expect from a bar. The only reason why I gave it a 4 star rating for the atmosphere is because I have tinnitis which makes it hard to hear conversations in loud gatherings. I was there on a Thursday and the bar was packed . Everyone was having a great time hence loud (but only at the bar area). If it is that packed on a Thursday, I presume that the "party" is constant every day it is open. It is Wall Street after all.

I've been going there for over 35 years. It is run by the most kindness family who just love what they do -- feed and provide you with whatever you need to keep healthy and not poor. A perfect example is before closing everyday, they announce that their delicious sushi that is meticulously prepared are half price. It's not just that they believe that worldwide food waste is a problem and that is primarily the reason why there is starvation in other countries that sell all their resources for profit while most of the people have nothing to eat but because they want to give their neighbors a break during these hard times. Thier philosophy is contagious. There are times that neighboring stores bring their food over to be given free at the end of the day so it does not get wasted and at the same time promote their goods. Kindness is not dead yet.

Great when you need something you forgot to buy. A bit pricey though and unfortunate that the students don't cook. The raw meat stays in there too long. I think they should freeze it so it won't go to waste. Great for a lot of takeout frozen dinners though. A student heaven I suppose.

The have exelent rugs. Some of the are museum quality pieces. All hand picked by the owner who is a scholar in this field. If you peer into his office, you can see a library of books on the subject. Love talking to him about the history of each rug and the generations they went through. I can't believe he sells them for such a reasonable price. My wife and I are artists and can't afford much. We inherited these antique rugs from her family that are of if a kind and took it there to have them restored and cleaned. So with it. Just drop by and you will see what I mean.

I liked the layout of 3 separate intimate rooms and an open back yard with a roofed bar for people to mingle safely -- nothing like open air. The selection of work was incredible. I thought being there for 2.5 hours on an opening was not enough. It draws an interesting crowd that fascinated me. I will miss gems like these when I leave Brooklyn next year.