1) Bruni, feeling ever-so-sportif, leaps his way over to John LaFemina's third restaurant (after Peasant and Apizz), The Orchard, springs into action, jumps at the flatbreads, and generally puns his way through the "border jumping" menu.
The Orchard bops around the globe in a less flamboyant fashion, but it, too, covers great distances. And while the itinerary may not be coherent, the trip is a world of fun.Appetizers appear in a category on the menu just below the flatbreads, and that's where you'll find the beef wraps and empanadas, both somewhat disappointing, along with several respectable, pro forma salads and a yellowfin tuna tartare that might not jump out at you.
The final two-star verdict? "Enjoyable." [NYT]
2) The Hodg advises the one-star Dani to "keep a hand on the saltcellar and an eye on the clock," although she makes up for it by name-checking the house-made ricotta and the breaded pork cutlet and totally loving the (no salt required) desserts. [Observer]
3) Peter Meehan takes a $25 and Under trip to another Chikalicious-style restaurant, Room 4 Dessert, where he gets seduced by chef Will Goldfarb's easy chattiness and the "tastings," particularly "Apples in Various States," a dessert we can condone for its McSweeneys-style titling alone. The Thomas Keller-nodding "Not The Traditional Cheese Plate 'Per Se'" proves it's not all war and wargames in the culinary world. [NYT]
4) Patronite and Raisfeld get alliteratively punny (what's with the wordplay this week??) with their Helluvah Halvah take on "fine Israeli" Park Sloper Miriam. [NYMag]
5) Leo Carey tries raw chicken at Yakitori Totto. Dangerous! [New Yorker]
