Soho Spot Named Restaurant 'America Can't Afford To Lose'

SOHO, NY — A new list from Esquire celebrates a Soho restaurant that is so good, the weight of its loss wouldn't just be felt in the neighborhood — but across the country.

The eatery made it onto a list of the "100 Restaurants America Can't Afford To Lose," a ranking compiled by Esquire's editors to celebrate favorites across the country as the industry struggles to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

"What if you were to wake tomorrow morning and learn that that remnant of your life—and that portion of your community's lingua franca—had been erased? Such a prospect has been a real threat all year, with the relentless tragedy of COVID-19 leaving many American restaurants, even established classics, on the brink of bankruptcy," Esquire writes, with a call for readers to donate to restaurant fundraisers.

"We also hope you'll raise a toast to these spots around the country—old and new, scruffy and spiffy—that we consider restaurants that America can't afford to lose. Because if we lose them, we lose who we are."

The Soho spot on the list was Raoul's, a festive French bistro located at 180 Prince Street.

"The steak au poivre is great, tequila Negroni even better, but for me it's about the circus," authors of the Esquire list wrote. "There's a fortune teller upstairs next to the bathroom where who knows what's gone on over the years, but even at your booth the whole thing feels like an event."

The restaurant was founded decades ago by two brothers from Alsace, France. It serves up everything from Prime Steak Tartare to Poached Scallops with Cream to Slow Roasted Organic Chicken.

You can find out more about the restaurant on its website.

Patch reporter Anna Quinn contributed to this report.