Raffi’s Place is a well-known restaurant for Persian and Middle-Eastern cuisine in Glendale. It is one of Glendale’s best and most well-regarded restaurants, and this reputation is greatly deserved.
What a coincidence that the owner’s nickname is Raffi, and so is the name of his restaurant! It all started in December of 1993, under the ownership of Rafik Bakijanian, with assistance from his wife, Gohar.
This widely recognized diner has been operating for more than thirty-one years! Whoa! Is that legitimate, or what?
Bakijanian, his wife, and three children were originally from Tehran, and they always enjoyed and were passionate about, making Persian food before they moved to America and opened their restaurant. According to an article in The Los Angeles Times, Bakijanian got a job at the InterContinental Hotel, and he later built and opened the first restaurant of his own back in Tehran, when he was only eighteen years old. This occurred after the revolution between Iran and Iraq and the First Gulf War.
When Raffi’s Place first opened at the end of 1993, it was a little restaurant with just one or two tables, featuring Gohar’s homemade salads and dips. After a year, Rafael Morales—who was then only nineteen years old—became their first employee and is currently serving as their manager. The restaurant has employed about eighty staff members over the years since Raffi’s Place opened.
Bakijanian has everything he needs to make Raffi’s Place the best restaurant it can be. He always ensures everything is orderly, spotless, and operating efficiently before the guests arrive, by checking and inspecting the area first thing in the morning. He even once said, “There’s always something. It’s a lot of hard work.”
The Bakijanians’ wishes came true, and their Persian restaurant became one of the most popular sites in Los Angeles. As the restaurant’s popularity grew, and more people came to dine, the family gradually purchased other companies and buildings to extend their restaurant’s capacity, creating courtyards, dining areas, and unique rooms for special occasions.
Despite this fact, their guests don’t understand the amount of work and process that the employees and owners have to go through every day. The cooks cook over 3,600 pounds of rice each week, building the foundation of tahdig (crispy rice), stirring ghormeh sabzi, gheimeh, and so many other amazing dishes. They also have another station just designated for the kebab grills, where they prepare over 100 skewers of chicken, beef, kebab, koobideh, and barbecued lamb each day.
Each dish may appear ordinary, and like something you might see daily, but it is anything but
hat. The food at Raffi’s Place is excellent, unique, and undeniable in Persian culture.
While it might be easier to prepare these dishes at home and save time, at Raffi’s Place, the chefs dedicate their time and effort to making each order perfect. It means something to them, and hopefully to their guests as well.
I have been to Raffi’s Place with my family on numerous occasions, especially on special occasions, like holidays or birthdays. We always feel like we are in Iran when walking into the restaurant.
On occasion, they even play music in Farsi, and the waitresses communicate with the customers in that language. But the aroma inside the dining room is the one thing you can never ignore! You wish you could stay in this restaurant forever because it seems like you’re in heaven.
An additional fascinating fact is that I consistently witness a wide range of customers visiting the restaurant, including not only Persians but also people of many diverse races and cultures. Despite having Persian food as its basis, diners from all backgrounds are welcome to enjoy the food there.
If reading this article makes you feel hungry or interested, swing by Raffi’s Place, or try similar restaurants in our community, such as Shiraz Restaurant and Nersses Vanak Restaurant.
Stay hungry, Nitros!
