Inside Rolf’s Restaurant

Each July, Maisano and a half dozen artists begin the two-month process of recreating Rolf’s canopy of garland, ribbon and ornaments—many are vintage finds and Bavarian imports. We stopped by to admire their handiwork and to chat with Rolf’s patrons and employees. Click through to meet them and find out what drew them to this unabashed holiday haven.

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**Chelsea Henriquez, Queens, NYC**  
“There’s no other more _Christmas_ place in the City. Rolf’s is just the epitome of Christmas. You come in and you feel the spirit right away. Courtney \[_pictured on next slide_\] and I are both content creators, so we wanted to capture that feeling for our audiences.”

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**Courtney Seamon, Manhattan, NYC**  
“I came here once last year just to take pictures, but it seemed a lot more hectic. This is pretty chill. I used to live in Brooklyn and then I moved to Murray Hill not far from here. Now all the iconic Christmas stuff like Grand Central, Rockefeller Center, Radio City—plus this place—is nearby, which is so fun.”

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**Matthew Daigh, Las Vegas, Nevada**  
“I’ve been here before. Susan \[_pictured on next slide_\] and I have friends here that live a few blocks away, and they took me a couple years ago. But Susan is Miss Christmas—four Christmas trees in her house. I knew I had to bring her here.”

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**Susan Michaud, Boston, Massachusetts**  
“I love Christmas. In my studio at home, I think it would be cool to have a little bit more ceiling decoration like they have here. We came to enjoy a nice drink—the eggnog is fabulous.”

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**Alexei Jelannikov, Brooklyn, NYC**  
“When I first started working here, it was amazing to see—such a small place with lots of beautiful decorations. I’d never seen anything like this before. Every day is like Christmas Day.”

**Alice Casey (left), Manhattan, NYC**  
“My friends are visiting. I live in the City so I invited them to come here because it’s festive and they’ve never been. We’re very lucky to get in because we didn’t have a reservation. “

**Brian and Mary Cummins, Spring Lake, New Jersey**  
“We feel like we’re in Bavaria.”

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**Amy and Theodore Kladis, Tampa, Florida**  
Amy: “We came to New York City for our anniversary. My hairstylist, who used to live here, said the one spot to come to was Rolf’s because it gets you in the Christmas spirit.”  
Theodore: “It’s a little overwhelming.”

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**Linda and Alison Clay, Long Island, New York**  
Linda: “We’ve known of this place for years but it’s our first time in here. We always come into the City this time of year—just mom and daughter. Our first impression of the restaurant was ‘Wow.’ I was curious if anything would be dusty, but there’s no dust at all.”

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**Minnie Mendez (left), Carolina, Puerto Rico, and Natalie Gonzalez, Manhattan, NYC**  
Natalie: “She’s like, We could do this at home! I was like, Yeah, ok, think again. It is beautiful though. If you are a grinch, you won’t be one after you come here. It’s a must-see place in New York City for the holidays.”

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_For more festive things to do in NYC, check out our [holiday guide](/holidays)__._

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Get an inside look at this decked-out holiday destination. 

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Take a look at this decked-out holiday destination. 

Inside Rolf’s Restaurant

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