Good News/Bad News: Bar Milano

Bar Milano, Jason and Joe Denton's Northern Italian restaurant on 3rd and 24th is just four days old. But that hasn't stopped bloggers, commenters, and forum posters from eating there and voicing their opinions about it. Given that it is so new, the mixed reviews filed so far are not surprising—everyone has kinks to work out in the beginning. However, there is some definite good news mixed in with the bad. Let's see what the story is so far:

1) Good News: The first bit of good news comes from a reviewer at eGullet: "Stopped in at Bar Milano (323 Third Ave. at 24th St.) the other night, and was mightily impressed with what we sampled...What was really nice, and not surprising, considering the professionalism of Joe and Jason Denton, along with partner/chefs Eric Kleinman and Steve Connaughton from 'inoteca and Lupa, was that this team really hit the ground running. Food was prepared well, didn't take forever (which can sometimes happen in a new place), and the service was good (in the bar/lounge). Prices were reasonable, though certainly not cheap." [eGullet]

2) Bad News: The bad news comes this time from the comments section: "My hopes were so high for Bar Milano and they have been sadly crushed. I've already eaten there twice since the opening and both times have been majorly disappointing. The food was over-salted, under-cooked and cold, innacurate menu descriptions, prolonged waits for the food and forgotten beverages." [Eater Comments]

3) Bad News: We've got some more bad news from a commenter who stopped by for some breakfast: "I live in the neighborhood and stopped in for coffee and something on Sunday morning. Sat at the bar. owner was sitting nearby...Asked for just a muffin not the entire bread basket. Had to check if okay. No muffin. Would I like a scone. okay. toasted. tiny scone, no jelly ('we don't have jelly'). Servers seemed inexperienced, confused. Eager to please, not confident. $3.00 cofee no refills. $3.00 scone no jelly. Not a welcoming place at all. Meanwhile the owner sat nearby paying no attention, busy with wife and others, having his own breakfast. Better service, I'm sure." [Eater Comments]

4) Good News: Savory Tidbits is one of the first sites to check out the scene, and they are on board from the get go: "Our favorite dish was the Patata Imbottito. As big fans of the truffled egg toast at 'ino we were curious to see how this fancier egg-centered dish would fare. In this case the runny yolk of the egg was an excellent companion to the crispy fried potato, creamy fontina and caviar...We're big fans of the other restaurants in the Bar Milano family and won't be surprised to see this slightly more ambitious (did I mention you could get the 7-course tasting menu for lunch also?) and refined option do just as well as the others." [Savory Tidbits]

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