NEW: 2025 POLICIES & PRICES
WE HAVE A UNIQUE BUSINESS MODEL, LOCATION & SPACE THAT does require some a-TYPICAL POLICIES AND OPERATIONS. FOR 2025 we have decidED to move to a ticketed seat or pre-paid RESERVATION model.
POLICIES
RESERVATIONS ARE PRE-PAID SEATS
WE ACCEPT RESERVATIONS 60 DAYS OUT FROM SERVICE DATE
REFUNDS ARE POSSIBLE IN SOME CASES - NOT aLL SALES ARE FINAL
ONE SEATING PER NIGHT
EVERYONE ENTERS THE ROOM TOGETHER @ 6:37 PM
PLAN TO ARRIVE BETWEEN 6PM & 6:15PM
HOW TO ARRIVE
PLEASE DO NOT DRIVE
SCHEDULE AN UBER FOR pICK UP @ 11pm FOR PICK UP IN ADVANCE
21+
NOTE REFUND POLICIES, GUIDELINES & GOLDEN RULES BELOW
FAQ MISSION WHAT IT IS & ISNT IS IT FOR YOU VALUE PROPOSITION PRICING POLICIES DISCOVERY
REFUNDS
As of Jan 2025 we’ve changed our pricing and how bookings are done. Therefore, we’ve changed some of our policies too. Details below. Its EXTREMELY CLEAR, FAIR and HONEST.
GUARANTEED
You book and then cancel within 5 minutes of booking
In these cases we will refund 100%, immediately
Unless: The Reservation was made within 48 hours of the service
You cancel with 45 days notice
In these cases we will refund 100%, immediately. Just text us at 843 580 7729.
* EFFECTIVE 1.30.25: Refunds will me made minus an 8% fee. This 8% is held to cover credit card processing and fees charged by RESY and Stripe. Stripe is the processor RESY uses to process payments. Credit card processing fees are 3.75%. Stripe & RESY charge 3.75% as well.
POSSIBLE & LIKELY
You book within 60 days but cancel with more than 30 days notice (from the reservation).
Refunds made when the seats you had to abandon are filled. We’ll help you. See SOLUTIONS below.
If we cannot fill the seats, we’ll issue you a $75 per seat credit towards reservations for a future service.
POSSIBLE & LESS LIKELY
You book within 60 days but cancel with less than 30 days notice (from the reservation).
Refunds made when the seats you had to abandon are filled. We’ll help you. See SOLUTIONS below.
If we cannot fill the seats, we’ll issue you a $75 per seat credit towards reservations for a future service.
* EFFECTIVE 1.30.25: Refunds will me made minus an 8% fee. This 8% is held to cover credit card processing and fees charged by RESY and Stripe. Stripe is the processor RESY uses to process payments. Credit card processing fees are 3.75%. Stripe & RESY charge 3.75% as w
NO CHANCE
No-Show
No exceptions for any reason.
Last Minute Bookings / Reservations made within 72 hours of service
In this case, all sales are final,
FAQ MISSION WHAT IT IS & ISNT IS IT FOR YOU VALUE PROPOSITION PRICING POLICIES DISCOVERY
SOLUTIONS
HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN /SHOULD DO TO INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF GETTING A FULL REFUND
Cancel the seats with as much advance notice as possible. This way, working together, we have more time and a better chance to fill them. If the seats are not available on RESY they cannot be filled by someone else. Cancel as soon as you know you cannot make it.
Call us and work with us to explore the options. Please first understand our model and why we must have our policies. Calling and yelling at us will insure that no refunds will be issued.
Transfer your seats to friend, clients or family. Happens all the time. Great gift.
Sell the seats to whomever you like. Maybe at a discount. Perhaps at a premium. Both have been done.
Post the open seats to your social media to offer them to whomever may be interested. This works often.
HERE’S WHAT WE WILL DO
Email / Text our network of High-End Hotel Concierges in Charleston who have guests looking for last minute reservations. We do this once weekly on Tues or Wed. It’s effective.
Post to our social media when we have open seats. We generally do this more than once weekly. This too has been effective.
Ping our Notify List on RESY. We have people looking for seats on RESY who sign up to be notified if seats open. They get a ping from RESY. Often those notifications are missed so we also ping those folks to let them know some seats have opened up on a date they expressed interest in. We do this daily via the RESY app. Its fairly effective.
What marketing we do is now geared towards visitors to CHS who need a last minute reservation. Working hard on this with time, energy and money. If we could have more last minute bookings, that would be great, but this does tend to be something that people plan farther out for.
FAQ MISSION WHAT IT IS & ISNT IS IT FOR YOU VALUE PROPOSITION PRICING POLICIES DISCOVERY
OTHER POLICIES
We do not welcome anyone under 21 for a host of reasons, first among them is the legal drinking age. Also, this is a room for adults who want to behave like adults (and sometimes like children) and we want to maintain that vibe because we love it.
Tipping in many elite fine-dining restaurants is included at 20% these days. We do not do that. But when you book seats at RAW LAB, RESY will ask you what % you would like to add for a tip, including No Tip. Anyone who chooses may have their reservation cancelled so we can open up those seats for those for whom this policy is acceptable. Your purchase will not be refunded until we fill all of the seats you reserved if you booked within 60 days of the service. If we do not fill your seats, you will not be refunded.
FAQ MISSION WHAT IT IS & ISNT IS IT FOR YOU VALUE PROPOSITION PRICING POLICIES DISCOVERY
NEW: 2025 GUIDELINES FOR RAW LAB
THESE ARE NOT RULES or mandates. THEY ARE GUIDELINES or guidance intended to be delivered in the spirit of gracious hospitality such that all of our guests CAN GET THE MOST OUT OF THIS EXPERIENCE.
SEAFOOD ALLERGIES
Those with allergies to shellfish should NOT dine at RAW LAB. This is a fin fish, crustacean & shellfish driven menu.
YOU’LL BENEFIT FROM LIMITED ALCOHOL BEFORE
There’s a lot of great wines to experience and you’ll want to pace yourself. Come sober and hydrated and you’ll enjoy it all more.
DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF
Eat as you normally would throughout the day.
FOOD SUBSTITUTIONS
Generally NOT possible due to space and time constraints but we can can generally accommodate for Pescatarians.
EXPECT DISCOVERY & FUN
We say The Delta between eating and fine dining is fun and discovery. RAW LAB is jam packed with both. Its more FUN dining than FINE dining, really but the menu is driven by ultra-premium quality, freshness, local sourcing (where possible) and a culinary ethic that is fun and engaging to explore: Marine Cuisine & DelicaSEAS means to use products that are that the highest order of quality, safe, healthy, sustainable & responsible. We believe this to be “SMART SEAFOOD”. As part of this, we stay in a lane where all dishes are served “Whole, Live, Raw and/or Bio-available”. We feed your microbiome this way as we feed your eyes with colorful presentations.
INTROVERTS BEWARE
Guests SHARE the room, attention for the Chef and engage with other guests.
WINES ARE MOSTLY WHITE, ROSE & ORANGE
A red usually accompanies the final course (Dolce). Reds (and all other wines) are available a la carte.
BE PRESENT & ENGAGED WITH THE CHEF AND WITH OTHERS IN THE ROOM
Our model and style sometimes requires us to ask you to do things other fine-dining options do not. Guest participation is important at times.
BE PREPARED TO PARTICIPATE
You may be asked to grab a plate from the chef, for example. This is NOT the standard fine-dining service style. Please be willing to roll with that.
COME WILLING TO BE TAKEN OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
You will be encouraged to do things at RAW LAB that you’ve not been asked to do elsewhere. You can pass if you like, however.
CERTAIN FINE-DINING SERVICE ELEMENTS ARE NOT POSSIBLE IN THIS MODEL
Do not expect Le Bernardin or Per Se service style. We love a beautiful “white linen” kind of service, but this is more casual than that.
FAQ MISSION WHAT IT IS & ISNT IS IT FOR YOU VALUE PROPOSITION PRICING POLICIES DISCOVERY
GOLDEN RULES
Correct us if we are wrong, but these are defined (like the 10 Commandments )as a code of conduct for ANYWHERE.
RESPECT OTHERS
Some people came to ask 100 questions and learn all about MARINE CUISINE & DelicaSEAS such that it might inform their ordering in other fine-dining establishments or how they buy seafood for consumption at home. Give them the space to do so. DO NOT HOG THE OXYGEN IN THE ROOM or all of the chefs attention. Please SHARE IT!
BE ENGAGED. BE PRESENT
If you’d like to stare at social media or respond to work emails while dining, please dine elsewhere.
YOU SNOOZE YOU LOSE
PART ONE: Anyone who dozes off in their seat during the service will be asked to step outside for some fresh air and the show will go on. If they can return and engage without dozing off again, they are welcome to stay, of course. If they cannot, they will be excluded from the remainder of the service. If this means a check must be presented and paid, so be it. We are NEVER going to allow ANYONE to doze off or sleep in RAW LAB, for any reason. Its a TOTAL BUZZ KILL for everyone else.
PART TWO: If you go to the bathroom or go to take a call and you miss the explanation of a dish, well, you missed it. Due to time constraints the chef cannot explain every element of every dish more than once or twice.
NO FLASH PHOTOS OR VIDEOS
Light is perfectly balanced for modern smart phone photo and video. It ruins other peoples photos and videos. By design, the lighting is PERFECT for photos and videos, we promise.
CELL PHONE USAGE
No cell phone calls may be made or taken during service. Guests must step outside to make or take calls. And please do not be on your phone more than 10% of the time. We request that all phone be put on “silent” at all times.
WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE ANYONE ALCOHOL, FOR ANY REASON
We will always want to be sure that each guest gets to taste each wine, but if it appears to us that we may be over serving you in the process of doing so we may ask you to abstain for a bit. Or we may just do that. Feel free to ask us questions as we are not trying to single anyone out or punish anyone, rather, we want you to maintain your appetite and stay with us til the end. Its simply not responsible to knowingly over-serve guests and we take that seriously.
USE IT OR LOSE IT
If something is passed to you (as some things are) use it, or pass it on.
LISTEN TWICE AS MUCH AS YOU SPEAK
You’ll learn more and enjoy it all more. God gave us 2 ears and 1 mouth for this very reason. You have the chef in your lap for 4 hours. There is a lot you can learn. Take advantage of that.
IF YOU ASK A QUESTION
Listen to the answer.