Rafael's Bistro

A hole in the wall place in Chinatown. Cheap eats and cosy . Free wifi. Owner is Bharat who claims to have the recipe for Chicken in a Basket from Magnolia Bar days in the 60s. Food is ok. Ranges from breakfast to dinner, Western, Indian, Italian. We had garlic clams, marsala prawns, pizza, Chicken in a Basket , steak. Outside seating for smokers.

It was a great experience until .... Ever had that sinking feeling that everything will go south from the minute you enter you a restaurant? No? Well, meet Rafael's Bistro. Salient points from our server on this unforgettable evening: "I opened 2 Diet Cokes instead of 2 regular, is it okay"? "This Chicken 65 my chef made looks like it's very little and so not great, is it okay"? When we complained about our pesto pasta tasting funky, our great server sticks his hand into our plate and samples some pasta and then, "Oh it's this special herb pesto, it's supposed to taste like this. Maybe you should have ordered something else" Overall food - unsalted, questionable, over-cooked. I mean, the guy stuck his hand in our plate. He could have used a fork! Should you go here for a beer? Yes. Should you order food? I mean, the guy stuck his hand in our plate.

Good spot for a drink I guess. Unfortunately I came for lunch. I had the fish and chips. A classic. Didn't feel adventurous. The tartare sauce is not homemade and extremely sweet, but the most surprising was the fish : sweet as well! I couldn't finish it. Why putting sugar everywhere here! I though Singapore had a huge campaign about diabetes and hidden sugar. Fish and chips is definitely not a sweet dish. Although the service was fast and a pleasant spot,I will not come back to eat massacred classics.

What we ordered together - Paneer 65 - reached our table in 20 mins - Soft paneer but the batter had salt missing, we made do with sprinkling salt on top and Tabasco Pesto Pasta- reached our table in 5 mins - Pretty sure this came from a ready to eat frozen meal that was overheated as there was a distinct taste and smell of plastic. We couldn't eat it, so returned and refused to pay Chicken 65 - reached our table in 40 mins - again no seasoning in the batter, the chicken was stale and chewy. Server apologized before serving us this and warned us that the food was going to be bad with this one. Chicken bucket - French fries were unsalted. Out if the 4 fried chicken pieces two were burnt, two were edible. Erdinger on tap - pretty good. Ambiance pretty good. Every business has good days and bad, I understand. But I would urge whoever reads this to scroll down and see how nasty the owner is when replying any reviews. Calling people names and calling them filthy etc. So go here, but if you don't like the food, be prepared to be served a bowl of insults for dessert.

The owner was quite rude and not at all open to even having customer come in and look at the menu! We had a look at the menu and finding that nothing suited our dietary restrictions walked away. Meanwhile one of us used the restroom and the owner rudely told us not to come back. We are more than happy to not come back.