Tomorrow, Frank Bruni reviews Scarpetta, Scott Conant's new MePa-vicinity Italian restaurant. Double T in Scarpetta, single N in Conant. Today, the Eater oddsmakers have set the action as follows:
Zero Stars: 12-1The Bruni infamously, and devastatingly, awarded Conant two stars at Alto, citing over-engineered food and presentation. He didn't take issue with the chef's core skills, however, so much as with his use of them—'emboldened', as the Frank said, by earlier success at L'Impero, where Conant got three stars from Eric Asimov. At Scarpetta, Conant returns to what he knows, bringing back many of his signature dishes, such as his mushroom polenta and best-in-show spaghetti pomodoro. Scarpetta is simple and elegant and the question is how simple and how elegant, per the Bruni? Our thinking has the Bruni a) soft on Italian; b) favoring the simplicity; c) awarding the Conant for moving away from Alto, back to simplicity; and d) giving the joint the trey. Two stars isn't unreasonable, and in this neighborhood, these digs, and those prices statistically most likely. Four stars is absurd. Bettors?
One Star: 5-1
Two Stars: 3-1
Three Stars: 4-1 ??
Four Stars: 10,000-1
· Scarpetta [NYT; after 8:00 PM]
?? denotes the Eater bet.