Live at the Rrazz

If I could I would give no stars to this place. NEVER have I experienced such poor customer service (or lack thereof) or bad business. My friend and I bought tickets for a show this last weekend only to drive up from the Peninsula and find out it had been cancelled. No notification and no one there to explain why or offer a refund. I have been calling and trying to email since then to get a refund but no one answers their phone line, all of the voicemail boxes are full and there’s no contact information on their website. SHADY! I feel so ripped off — I want me money back, that’s the least they could do.
I heard they didn’t get their entertainment license or there was a problem with the tenants in the rest of the building, so they’re going out of business (and probably don’t care if they screw people over), but this is beyond unacceptable in my book. You don’t charge people for a service leave them high and dry when you know they’re going to show up, then blatantly not reimburse them.
*If anyone has a way to get in touch with management or someone at The Rrazz, please let me know!*

(reposted from the old Razz Room thread on advice from a Compliment. Thx!)
In the past, in their old venue at Hotel Nikko, this organization has provided stellar entertainment in the Cabaret vein in a sophisticated and sonically excellent setting with almost no bad seats in the house. Sadly, this ability has not carried over into their new location on Van Ness. The new space has all the charm of a re-​purposed bingo parlor, the sound system is spotty in the extreme: underpowered and poorly placed to fill the room. No more tiered seating, no more banquettes, and most floor tables are banquet tables placed end-​to-​end radiating into the room from the stage — hence the bingo metaphor above
The true coup-​de-​grace for this venue though is the decision to have the bar literally inside the venue. During last night’s performance by renowned Broadway diva Patti LuPone, the entire right side of the room was subjected to both kitchen and bar noise throughout the performance. While the bar and kitchen were clearly stressed by the volume generated by a sell-​out house – and so perhaps noisier thatn usual – placing the bar along the right back wall and the door directly into the kitchen next to it guarantees that this will be a problem for almost any show. Just to pile it on: allowing the kitchen to play sports TV at full volume during the performance provided gusts of play-​by-​play through the swinging door as servers dashed in and out.
While the Razz’s promoters may still have the pull to bring in quality acts, neither artist or audience are well-​served by this venue in its current layout.
If you come, keep to the left of the house away from the kitchen and bar. Also, resign yourself to wasting a half-​hour to 40 minutes to be seated for a popular act, and to a house held for 20 – 30 minutes once seated. Even at the Nikko crowd management was problematic for the Razz – and their partial solution in that case was to create a fee’d membership with priority seating instead of adding seating staff. At Van Ness the larger capacity and resplendent yet awkward staircase entry from the old Cadillac sales floor creates a bottleneck of L.A. rush-​hour proportions.
Bottom line: no matter how great the act, if you are shoe-​horned into a church-​basement with four cocktail shakers, plate-​jugglers, and a ball-​game any performance will lose much of its charm. It is a tribute to Ms. LuPone that she still gave a great performance – when she could be heard.

I saw Patti Lupone’s show at «Live at the Rrazz» tonight (the official opening night for the new venue). She was amazing and sang a diverse selection of songs. The venue itself is also great– small and intimate.
However, the service was the WORST I’ve ever experienced anywhere. I enjoy live cabaret shows and have been to the Plush Room and the Rrazz Room at Hotel Nikko (both in SF) as well as Café Carlyle, 54 Below, and the Oak Room in New York. I was expecting tonight’s service to be on par with those other establishments. Sadly, that was not the case.
I ordered one drink before the show started, but it did not arrive until just before the encore (about 1 hour after I had ordered the drink). The venue has a two drink minimum, but no one came by to take my second drink order. When it came time to settle the bill, the manager told that there was a two drink minimum, implying that I was cheap and trying to get around the rules.
I talked to other people seated near me, and most of them experienced the same horrible service. The woman next to me ordered two drinks but only received one. Another couple at a nearby table ordered a bottle of wine, but their server did not bring a bottle opener for the entire show (they left without drinking the wine). Another guest ordered the root beer float but did not receive it until the encore (he thought it was because someone had to run to the store to buy the root beer).
I cannot believe that the staff was so incompetent on opening night. That should be the time to shine and to show guests what to expect from the new venue. I was extremely disappointed. Hopefully the service will improve quickly.

I really wanted to like the new space, but definitely not as nice an experience as the Nikko. We arrived 30 minutes before the show and still only got partial view seats in the back. Patrons were so crammed in the service staff couldn’t do their jobs – we, and the parties near us, never even got asked to place a drink order! Hey Rrazz, you might want to think about limiting the number of tickets you sell. I“m sure I’ll give you another try, but…