the Raymond

Thursday July 22nd 2004 10:19 AM PST

Jen and I went to the Raymond last night for dinner. If you don't know the history of this little restaurant, its is quite interesting. There was hotel on Raymond hill, and coincidentally it was called the Raymond Hotel. And even more astonishing was it was built by a man named Walter Raymond. In 1895 it burned to the ground, and Walter decided to build an even bigger hotel. In 1901 the NEW Raymond hotel was built and with it Raymond built a small cottage. He lived in the cottage and also rented it out to very special guests. In the depression the hotel fell into disrepair, and the cottage is now the only part that survives. Its tucked away on the side of Raymond hill, and if you're driving too fast on Fair Oaks (which the south pasadena police just love cause it makes em a lot of money) you'll miss the Raymond's drveway.

Jen and I lived a block away for a years and we never went. Jen's first experience was with her father a month ago, and we finally went together last night. All i can say is the restaurant makes you feel comfortable. It reminds me of my grandmother's house. Everything is very elegant, but warm. The food was incredible and the service extremely polite. We sat there for a couple hours just having a great time.