The Refectory

So — horrible owners — shows on the managers they employ — and now, as predicted they went out of business. Maybe it will be a good place one day with a new owner.
Justice done. Mischief Managed!

Closed — only a matter of time really since it’s a dump!

Arrived to attend a friends bday party. I wasn’t sure if he was turning 86 or 46.
Huge place that cranked in the 80s… but now, just folks in their 80s come here to get wasted and eat Prime Rib.
Was a mediocre experience. Entered large room that had a bar and was getting ready for some DJing for their evening entertainment. I ordered a beer and an obligatory snack — -it’s a foggy night and didn’t want to imbibe without food.
My birthday friend showed after I left, so had to be entertained by his friends. It was one of those group parties. Anyway, the manager Eddie seemed to know everyone and made some good jokes. The entrée food looked legit.-Steakhouse type fare.
I had ordered something safe, potato skins — -and asked the bartender for some hot sauce, knowing the skins would be bland. He handed me an empty (mabye two drops left) of a tabasco sauce with no lid on it and the entire top was crusted over. He didn’t even care or notice that it was empty and gross. But he had this sort of air about him that was…‘i’m sorta cool’. I had a separate waitress for my food, because bartender suggested I don’t order food from him, once he gets busy. No problems, I get that… She was very sweet and had good nature.
Spanish coffee looked pretty mean.

The Oregonian reports they are closing at the end of February. I only went here for the prime rib, which I liked. Never went into the bar. Sorry to see it go. Too bad they couldn’t decide whether to be a restaurant or a night club. One of my high school friends was a busboy back in the mid 70’s under different owners. I haven’t been back since 2011, but my family ate here for decades.

I’ll admit it; I like The Refectory. I don’t expect it to be anything more than it is and we get along just fine.
When Mr. Kupcakes and I first moved to the neighborhood, we were hurting for a good happy hour that was really close to us. I kept teasing him that we should go to The Refectory since I’d only been there before on a Barfly Bus and there was a wedding reception going on. It was weird, yet amazingly entertaining.
When we finally went in we were very surprised. The service was great and the happy hour food menu was really decent. Plus, they had well drinks for $ 2.50 and let us have pineapple juice in our drinks with the happy hour prices. We haven’t come by that very often. We were happy with our food, the service and especially the bill.
If you expect too much from this place, you will be disappointed. Instead, just think of it as a cheap neighborhood bar and you will be happy. We’ve never eaten in the restaurant, so I can’t speak for that, but we’ve never wanted. The lounge fit the niche that we were looking for– a good close happy hour to our house.

Saying the food is average is a compliment.
The steak was like shoe sole.
Happy Hour is decent.
Service is 4 stars and bartenders do a solid job.
Friendly staff.
But they need to change it up inside.
Maybe add a few windows, paint it.
Change the menu up every season.

Ok, went here for the blues jam on Sunday night. On the website, the have a picture of a table with a white table cloth and a plate with steak and lobster. Was this taken in 1972?! The first thing my husband said was «Oh my God, it’s the Krusty Krab!» Old… really old. décor, carpet, smells really bad, like old smoke and barf.
Let me say, if I hadn’t gone expecting white table cloths and great food, I probably wouldn’t have been so disappointed. If you just call your «duck» a «duck» then no one would care. The staff was extremely friendly, if stretched very thin. They only had 1 Carona in the whole place. The musicians were good, but they were set up on the floor which made it very difficult to see. Sound system was poor to say the least. They do have a huge dance floor, which I avoided like the plague, as it was filled with nothing but octogenarians (weird) which is fine, but I was expecting a somewhat younger crowd perhaps? Made me feel like I was on a field trip with a retirement home, but man could they boogie down!
If that’s your thing, then you will have a blast! Right down to the guy next to me on his Hover-​Round, and the many cougars (ie sabertooth’s?) on the prowl.
Don’t think I’ll be going back anytime soon…

All the reviews for 2012 serves this place right. I use to go here and it was good. I went back because I was hungry and near this place. I walked in at 8 PM, I waited up front to be seated for several minutes, a worker finally got done chatting it up on a bar stool and came to seat me. She looked in the dining area and said «I guess the servers went home and they aren’t serving in the dining area, but you can get the full menu in the bar.»
The fact that the dining area was completely empty on a day in which they have a $ 15 prime rib special should have been my first clue this placed sucked. Anyways to make this semi-​short, the prime-​rib was served cold, the mashed taters I took one bite and couldn’t even eat anymore. The best thing was the salad. Also, the flavor and texture of the P.R. tasted nasty.
I will never go back to this place, it’s horrible now.

Second time here for a UFC fight, probably the last. Least amount of severs on duty, to cheap to have more when the place is packed especially when their collecting a $ 5 cover

I had an Entertainment book 2 for 1 thing I intended on using here. My boyfriend wanted to take me out to eat and I thought going somewhere with a discount would be great. Neither of us had ever eaten at the Refectory before.
The waiter was helpful and attentive, though clearly disgruntled. I could tell by the way the boss-​man interacted with him that Mr. Boss man was a bully and THAT is super lame.
But that aside, I got a Filet, but they’d run out. How does a steak house run out of filets on a Thursday night? So I got the NY instead. It was the worst cut of meat I’ve ever had for $ 25.00. It may have been seasoned with some salt and pepper but otherwise had no flavor. The only thing they got right was my medium rare specification.
My boyfriend got the ribs special and we didn’t realize we couldn’t use the coupon which was too bad. His ribs were pretty good for the price.
I definitely would not return to this restaurant, not just b/​c the food was sub-​par at best, but b/​c the boss man was kind of mean to the waiter and that seems unnecessary to me.

Me and my coworkers used to go here quite a bit for lunch, they have ok food and it’s always quite around lunchtime. Service was always slow which was ok because there is only one waitress/​bartender at this time of day. They have a lunch special menu that has buy one get one free and usually we would order off of that. The last time we went in, we all got our food, and my coworker bit into a big wire that was in his burger! The waitress said it was a bristle from the grill cleaning brush, and refused to comp his meal or do anything because it was already a part of the lunch special. Keep in mind, this wasn’t a coupon that we brought in, the lunch special is an advertised, daily menu. Needless to say, I won’t be going back there again.

Yeah, this place has an identity crisis going on. I’m sure it was a really fine dining establishment like 25 years ago. They try to uphold the image but its just gone out of style and, like me, aged! You can smell the OLD cigarette smoke when u first walk in. (Unlike me)
I got past that and had lunch at the bar. There are lots of big and small tvs with sports but the volume was off and decent, modern music in the background. Yes it sucks that there are no windows but there is a small outside patio. Service was fast and friendly and the food (side salad and house cured pastrami sandwich) was decent and reasonably priced.
Its not a foodies paradise and I would not make this a destination stop but if ur in the hood and want a beer or to take in a game its ok. It can accomidate large groups so you could make your own fun.

Where to start.
First, the location. 102^nd? Really?
Second, no windows? Makes one wonder if it is a strip club (it is not) or a very nice steakhouse (also no).
Happy hour prices are reasonable. Dinner is pricey. Food quality is ok, but nothing that would merit another star.
Finally, the clientele. Wow. A little on the sketchy side. The usuals are drawn by the video poker and bud light.
I say ‘skip it’ unless you *really* want a steak and are stuck in the outer east aide.

«You’ve gotta see this» the GF said before dragging me to this place last Saturday night… holy shit, she wasn’t kidding. Feeding time at the zoo.
This bar reminds me of the scene in Bedazzled where the main character in a fit of despair stumbles through the Devil’s bar in daylight; what looked good while he was being enticed is revealed as a macabre parody of enjoyment where everyone is gyrating in a hellish dance without being able to stop. The clientele reads like a who’s who of 80’s style desperation. Pregnant Asian chicks vie with «Carlos the 80 year old Party Guy» who is sticking his face in a girls ass on the dance floor, and Forever 21, a girl who passed that milestone about 21 years ago but didn’t notice (but damned if she can’t get some dude to buy her drinks all night). The dance floor is a hellish 80’s orgy that moves to the pulsing rhythms of the desperate; this bar is where self respect goes to die.
Not for this crowd the sleek rhythms of a club (the music itself is only inoffensive bad quasi-​club music at low volume), nor the disinterested malevolence of the hipsters of Hawthorne, here the message of «someone is coming home with me» is loud and clear. The desperate attention whoring of the club lesbians-​for-​the-​night belies the sheer sadness that pervades this bar like the second circle of hell. Lest it be said only the women are pathetic, the fawning of the untouchable men over any piece of ass that might potentially give it up is nothing short of monstrous.
How can one forget the girl in gold spandex dancing in front of a mirror when her eyes literally never leave herself? Or Forever 21 flirting with some equally appalling 30 something guy dressed like a 18 year old extra from West Side Story, and easily getting drinks from him then wandering off to flirt with someone else. Or her friend who sat silent until she flitted off, and THEN chatted up the same guy, also for free drinks (it worked). I saw a 50 year old dude dressed like a gang member apparently trying to hook up his 25 year old son? Buddy? Dressed in the same clothes. Almost literally identical. The creepy dude sitting at the edge of the dance floor with a camera, however, won the prize for the night.
On top of it all? Drinks aren’t cheap.
I mean the people are nice enough, staff is fine, drinks aren’t watered, décor is fine. But you really can’t imagine. I can’t even type what I saw there, not really. I will never forget it, or stop telling the story in its entirety to my friends.

I have to admit – I laugh when people are disappointed that this «club» isn’t amazing. #1, it’s more of a restaurant/​sports lounge, and #2, you’re nowhere near downtown.
I can’t judge this place for its attempt at being a «club» or a restaurant, but I can judge it for being a sports bar. There are plenty of TVs, so it’s a great place to catch a game. The Happy Hour prices are pretty agreeable – inexpensive food, and decent tasting too. Chicken strips were awesome. All bar food, but it was good. I’ve had the steak bites too, and I liked those as well.
The drinks were good – the Old Fashioned was pretty inexpensive ($ 4.50-$ 5.50 depending on the quality of whiskey). Long Island ran about $ 7.50.
I’m a fan.

I used to danced the night away when I lived in NE 100 something area about 6 years ago or so because that’s the only «club» nearby. Then 6 years later, I found myself walked in to The Rejectory once again.
The cover charge is still $ 5. They are still playing 50 cents — In Da Club & 112 — Peaches & Cream. The crowd is still «amusing» or if you have a different dictionary then mine, please find the word amusing under trashy, ghetto superstars, and funny looking people.
I like the fact that they have plenty of seatings, a bouncer that looks like an NBA player (Joel Przybilla *hint hint*), and they played Lady Gaga — Bad Romance TWICE in one night. Just because of GaGa, I have to give The Rejectory a three stars. Woot Woot.

I was really mad that this place charges a cover, albeit 5 bucks… but I am not sure why I paid to get in if I had known what I was in for.
Slow slow slow service, weak drinks, crappy food. Our waitress was missing a tooth. I swear! Do yourself a favor and stick to the beer — when I asked for a Tokyo tea, I got watered down Midori 20 minutes later. The dance floor seemed «happening», but the crowd is pretty trashy; I didn’t want to solicit attention so I stayed seated.
The Refectory is in the middle of nowhere, so there’s little to do nearby. It’s not so easy to just wander off to the next bar if you decide to leave (plus you just paid $ 5 to get in!).

Wow. Five dollar cover for no apparant reason and the place is a cougar den. Filled with lonely, desperate souls looking to hook up with some douche with his baseball hat cocked 45 degrees. Not to mention it’s way out on 122^nd street. The wait staff was of a deflated, sulky sorts; the feeling of quiet abandoment written on their pouty faces. Pretty depressing overall… No reason at all to go their unless your an easy 40+ cougar or the younger male prey

The Strange Tones — Mar 6 2009 8 PM
The Refectory will be a DANCE par-​tay!
Also Wed March 4^th for John Nemeth — $ 8, 7PM.
No Ghetto, No DJ! No Funk, No old stereotypes, Just FUN.
Good place for a quality, quiet dinner, since the dining area is always cozy and separate from the bar. Entertainment Book gets you a 2-​fer now — 7 days a week — so you can also afford a nice bottle of wine.
2-​Fer Tuesdays for those w/​o the Book. and bar Menu is mostly half-​off during the Sunday Blues Jam — excellent Ruben and Salmon Bites with dip is what I had last week.
Dinner service is excellent, and the food truly worth a return.
Sunday Jam host is Kevin Selfe, who has been having a very good Blues music year… lots of booking. Unpretentius, likeable Dude. jam starts 6-​ish, with good Menu and a Full Bar. Discount on House Wine — so you can skip the mass-​marketed brews. Lots of seating… including a room behind a moveable wall — EVENT PLANNERS — The R would be fantastic for a huge private party. Great places ebb and flow. Get here while it’s still sumthin.
The Bar is huge, and the menu seriously worth a look. (I love Slims Bar on 1^st Sundays however, so it’s mostly latter Sunday o’month for Kev & Co)
Odd stuff about the Refectory:
Rep — Used to be a notorius skirt-​chaser bar.
WAY TOO MANY LEATHER SKIRTS.
Some called it the, ahem… the ReFuktory.
Booking Maven Jan B. informs me of another past AKA;:
ReJECt-​ory.
(LOL! Love that one… and hope it didn’t happen to you)
— A guy hit on me — once long ago — on my ONLY foray into the Bar.
Dressed all in black, fedora hat to ebony Snakeskin boots, black shirt tucked in skin-​tight black jeans, black belt with big buckle, and finished with a charcoal Bolo. He was a charicature of himself. Even bragged about being an international ARMS DEALER. (I dodged that bullet, and never went back, for about 20 years… until recently for dinner)
Thankfully, the Lounge is no longer a notorius Meat Market.
Well, that is if you stick to Blues nights anyway.
I hate to make myself a Liar, so maybe I’d bettah report this one:
— During dinner, I watched The fattest people I ever saw — a whole HERD of em — waddle thru the door straight to the bar. I haven’t had the gumption to go in there yet. Or maybe I don’t fit the Size Code.
Gives a new Meanign to the Ref’s Meat Market rep.
— The REFECTORY was for years associated with some window replacement company that offered 12 free dinners there for using their service. Yes, way Weird. (one wondered if Guido was out busting car windows?) Not to worry, there is a huge well lit parking lot. And bus service
Click each day of the week to explore specials, and see the Menu Tab

Wine Lovers… chek this page:

Do people not work on Wednesday? My friend has Wednesdays off so wanted to go out and have some fun Tuesday night. She had heard this place was pretty hopping so I bit the bullet and went with her. I could not get over how many people were there. Of course I would guess that a lot of the crowd don’t have to get up early for any reason, but still?!
Walking in we had to wait in line to present our ID. They put it in this little contraption before allowing you entry. I thought it had something to do with making sure the ID was not fake but apparently they copy the information into a database in case there is an altercation later. Hmmmm… fun place! Plus I hate to pay a cover charge, even if it’s for a live band. But $ 5 to get into a spot with a DJ?
The place is actually pretty freakin’ huge! The furnishings and layout reminded me the old Cattle Company lounges I used to frequent back in the day. Dark, with lots of wood and leather. The dancefloor is pretty sizable and there are even a couple of blocks you can get up on and shake your bon bon. The most entertainment of the night was watching the early dancers on the floor before the crowd arrived.