Raoul's, a New York Story

Raoul's, a New York Story surveys a landmark restaurant and the city that surrounds it. The film follows a filmmaker who unexpectedly becomes a restaurateur while chasing a project about his father, a fellow artist who moved from directing to running a kitchen. The documentary blends candid interviews, archival clips, and in the dining room footage to trace how ambition, craft, and memory collide. Rather than a straight chronicle, it treats the restaurant as a living mirror of a city that thrives on reinvention. Through the clatter of dishes, late night conversations, and a rotating line of guests, the film shows how art and business press on each other, shaping both legacy and identity. The camera captures ritual and spontaneity.

Directed by Karim Raoul and Greg Olliver, the film arrived in 2025 as a documentary portrait of Raoul's restaurant and its place in New York's culture. It leans on real life, conversations, and archival material rather than scripted scenes globally.

Box office data for this documentary is not publicly available. The film appears to aim for festival runs and streaming visibility rather than a wide theatrical push, relying on word of mouth and the restaurant world itself to reach audiences.

High profile appearances by chefs Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud anchor the film in New York's culinary culture. Their cameos, plus the steady flow of staff and celebrities who drop by, position Raoul's as more than a restaurant it sits at the crossroads of food, film and city life.

Reception emphasizes a quiet meditation on legacy, craft, and the tension between art and business. It invites viewers to observe how family memory, a New York institution, and a camera shape one another. The early audience score sits at 10 out of 10 from one voter and online audiences today.