Rao's
Rao's is a historic Italian-American restaurant brand founded in East Harlem in 1896 and later extended into packaged pasta sauces, pasta, and olive oil.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Rao's is an Italian-American restaurant brand whose original location occupies a small site at 455 East 114th Street at Pleasant Avenue in East Harlem, New York City. Founded in 1896 by Joshua Anthony Rao, the restaurant emerged from the Italian-American community historically known as Italian Harlem. Rao, who had immigrated to the United States with his parents, acquired a small shop and operated the restaurant until his death in 1909. His sons, Vincent and Louis Rao, subsequently continued the family business. The New York restaurant is known for its unusually limited seating and reservation scarcity. Rather than developing as a conventional high-volume chain, the brand built its reputation around a tightly controlled neighborhood restaurant experience, long-standing personal relationships, and continuity with East Harlem's Italian-American culture. The original site has remained the symbolic center of the brand, while its public profile has been reinforced by celebrity patrons and references in film and television. Reported patrons have included John Gotti, Rudy Giuliani, Robert De Niro, and Bo Dietl, although such associations are part of the restaurant's public mythology rather than evidence of a broader corporate positioning. Rao's has also operated restaurants outside New York. A Las Vegas location opened at Caesars Palace in December 2006, initially under executive chef Carla Pellegrino. The site included two dining rooms, outdoor patio seating, and later a bocce bar offering lessons and cocktails. The Las Vegas restaurant closed in 2021. A Los Angeles location opened in Hollywood in September 2013 after being announced by Frank Pellegrino Jr.; it closed on February 28, 2026, after the restaurant said its lease was terminated following the sale of the Hollywood property. A Miami Beach location opened at the Loews Hotel in South Beach in October 2023. The Rao's name is also used for packaged food sold through gourmet markets and supermarkets. The product range identified in reference material includes pasta, sauces, and olive oil. This retail activity extends the brand beyond scarce restaurant reservations, allowing consumers to reproduce an approximation of its Italian-American cooking at home. The packaged-food business is therefore complementary to, rather than a replacement for, the highly distinctive original restaurant identity. Rao's remains closely associated with the preservation and visibility of Italian Harlem. Its cultural setting overlaps with local traditions such as the annual Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Dancing of the Giglio, events connected with the historic Italian community of East Harlem. The brand's significance consequently rests on several layers: restaurant heritage, exclusivity, family continuity, Italian-American food culture, popular-media visibility, and packaged-grocery distribution.
History
Rao's traces its history to 1896, when Joshua Anthony Rao established a small restaurant in East Harlem at the corner of East 114th Street and Pleasant Avenue. Rao had moved from Italy to the United States with his parents and became part of the Italian-American community that gave the neighborhood its historic identity as Italian Harlem. The restaurant was initially a local business serving the surrounding community rather than a national hospitality concept. Joshua Anthony Rao remained involved until his death in 1909. His sons, Vincent and Louis Rao, then assumed responsibility for the establishment and continued its family connection. The available historical account does not document every subsequent ownership or management transition, but it presents Rao's as a multigenerational institution whose central location and identity endured over time. The original restaurant later became known for its very small capacity and difficulty of access. Its scarcity helped distinguish it from conventional restaurant chains: Rao's reputation developed through regular patrons, personal connections, celebrity visibility, and the atmosphere of an old New York neighborhood institution. Publicly associated patrons have included John Gotti, Rudy Giuliani, Robert De Niro, and Bo Dietl. The restaurant also became connected to East Harlem's Italian-American heritage, which remains visible through local traditions including the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Dancing of the Giglio. During the 2000s and 2010s, Rao's tested a selective multi-location restaurant model. In December 2006 it opened a Las Vegas restaurant at Caesars Palace. The location operated with two ten-table rooms and additional outdoor garden-patio seating, and Carla Pellegrino was identified as its executive chef. In 2009, the site added a bocce bar with lessons and cocktails. The Las Vegas restaurant eventually closed in 2021. Rao's continued its geographic expansion with a Hollywood, Los Angeles restaurant. The location was announced in 2013 by Frank Pellegrino Jr. and opened in September of that year. It subsequently closed on February 28, 2026, after the restaurant said its lease had been terminated following the sale of the Hollywood property. In October 2023, Rao's opened another location at the Loews Hotel in South Beach, Miami, giving the brand a presence in a further major American hospitality market. Alongside its restaurants, Rao's developed a packaged-food business distributed through gourmet markets and supermarkets. The documented products include pasta, sauces, and olive oil. This retail extension translates elements of the restaurant's Italian-American identity into consumer goods and makes the brand available to people who cannot obtain a table at the original New York restaurant. The available sources do not establish the precise launch dates, ownership structure, financial performance, or current distribution footprint of the packaged-food operation. Rao's has maintained a substantial media profile. The restaurant has appeared or been referenced in films, music videos, and television programs, including The Wolf of Wall Street, Jay-Z's video for "D.O.A. (Death of Autotune)," Top Chef: All-Stars, Kitchen Nightmares, Guilty Pleasures, and Billions. A Law & Order episode used a fictional restaurant named "Raimondo's," reportedly drawing on a 2003 shooting at Rao's. These references have reinforced the brand's image as an exclusive and culturally recognizable New York restaurant.
- 2026
Hollywood restaurant closes
[1]The Los Angeles location closes on February 28 after the restaurant reports that its lease was terminated following a property sale.
- 2023
South Beach location opens
[1]Rao's opens a restaurant at the Loews Hotel in Miami Beach's South Beach area.
- 2021
Las Vegas restaurant closes
[1]The Rao's location at Caesars Palace ceases operations.
- 2013
Hollywood location opens
[1]Following a public announcement earlier in the year, Rao's opens a restaurant in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
- 2009
Las Vegas location adds a bocce bar
[1]The Las Vegas operation expands its outdoor hospitality offer with a bocce bar, lessons, and cocktails.
- 2006
Las Vegas location opens
[1]Rao's opens a second restaurant at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
- 1909
The Rao family continues the business
[1]After Joshua Anthony Rao's death, his sons Vincent and Louis Rao take over operation of the restaurant.
- 1896
Joshua Anthony Rao establishes the restaurant
[1]Joshua Anthony Rao starts a small Italian-American restaurant at East 114th Street and Pleasant Avenue in East Harlem, New York City.
Products and positioning
A heritage Italian-American restaurant brand built around the exclusivity and cultural continuity of its original East Harlem location, with packaged grocery products extending the brand into the home-cooking market.
Restaurant dining · 1896
Rao's restaurant meals
The core offering is Italian-American restaurant dining associated with the original East Harlem location. Rao's is distinguished by a small dining room, limited accessibility, family-style cultural associations, and a reputation built around long-standing patrons rather than high-volume chain operations.
Packaged food
Rao's pasta sauces
Rao's-branded sauces are sold through gourmet markets and supermarkets. They extend the restaurant name into home cooking and provide a packaged-grocery expression of the brand's Italian-American culinary identity.
Packaged food
Rao's pasta
Packaged pasta is among the grocery products associated with Rao's. The product line supports the brand's move from destination restaurant to retail food label, although the available reference material does not specify the complete assortment or launch date.
Packaged food
Rao's olive oil
Olive oil is another Rao's-branded product sold in gourmet and supermarket channels. It complements the pasta and sauce range and broadens the brand's pantry presence.
Controversies
2003
Shooting at Rao's
Reference material notes a shooting at the restaurant in 2003. The incident later served as reported inspiration for the fictional restaurant and murder plot in a Law & Order episode. The available source does not provide enough detail to characterize the incident further.
Marketing campaigns
- 2009Jay-Z's "D.O.A. (Death of Autotune)" music video
United States
Jay-Z filmed the music video for "D.O.A. (Death of Autotune)" at Rao's, bringing the restaurant into a prominent music-media setting.
Outcome. The appearance contributed to Rao's continuing visibility in popular culture; no formal commercial campaign results are documented.
Brand decisions
2023
Opening of the South Beach restaurantProduct launchBackground
After the Las Vegas location had closed and while the brand retained its original New York identity, Rao's pursued another destination-market location.
Action taken
A fourth Rao's restaurant opened at the Loews Hotel in South Beach, Miami.
Aftermath
The reference material identifies the opening but does not provide operating or financial performance data.
2013
Expansion to Los AngelesStrategyBackground
Rao's continued to test whether its New York restaurant identity could be transferred to another major American market.
Action taken
A Hollywood restaurant was announced and opened in September 2013.
Aftermath
The Los Angeles location later closed on February 28, 2026, after a lease termination connected with the sale of the property.
2006
Selective expansion to Las VegasStrategyBackground
Rao's had an identity centered on a single, highly constrained East Harlem restaurant.
Action taken
The brand opened a second restaurant at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, using a smaller-scale format with two dining rooms and outdoor seating.
Aftermath
The Las Vegas location operated until closing in 2021. No financial results are provided.
Recent events
- 2026
Rao's Hollywood location closes after lease termination[1]
Other
The Los Angeles restaurant closed on February 28, 2026. The restaurant stated that its lease was terminated after the Hollywood property was sold.
- 2023
Rao's opens a Miami Beach location[1]
Product launch
A fourth restaurant location opened at the Loews Hotel in South Beach, Miami.
- 2021
Rao's Las Vegas location closes[1]
Other
The Rao's restaurant at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas closed after operating for approximately fifteen years.
- 2013
Rao's announces a Hollywood location[1]
Product launch
Frank Pellegrino Jr. announced a third Rao's location in Hollywood, Los Angeles; the restaurant opened later that year.
- 2009
Rao's adds an outdoor bocce bar at its Las Vegas location[1]
Other
The Las Vegas restaurant added a bocce bar with lessons and cocktails, broadening its hospitality offering beyond the dining rooms.
- 2009
Rao's becomes a subject of popular-culture references[1]
Campaign
Rao's appeared as the setting for Jay-Z's music video for "D.O.A. (Death of Autotune)," adding to the restaurant's media visibility.
- 2006
Rao's opens a second restaurant at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas[1]
M&A · Other
Rao's expanded beyond its East Harlem flagship with a Las Vegas restaurant featuring two dining rooms and outdoor patio seating.
Sources1 sources
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