Horine, 10/28/08
While New Year's resolutions are still fresh on the brain, The Bruni reviews the health conscious yet gourmet Rouge Tomate, giving it one star. The space is stunning, some of the food, excellent, and the values, laudable; however, the Brunz notes one too many misses:
"Rouge Tomate carves out a Zone of its own, championing a gastrointestinal feng shui. And it’s impressive, to a point.
...The same fruity, nutty, seedy notes pop up too often: during one meal I felt tyrannized by pomegranate, antioxidized to a fare-thee-well. Too much of the food lacks punch. Too much of it simply lacks salt."Bruni also notes this isn't the best time for such a space: "There’s a super-deluxe grandness to its setting that suddenly seems dated in the extreme, a vestige of headier, more hedonistic times." [NYT]
The Cuozz reports that the new Kefi is just as good as the old one, and the prices are causing quite the tizzy on the UWS: "The pent-up demand for seats in any nook or cranny shocked the house...With finances under siege, $6.50-$8.95 appetizers and main courses less than $15 have locals acting as giddy as starved Germans rescued by the Berlin Airlift." [NYP]
Jay Cheshes is a fast fan of Tom Valenti's newest UWS spot, West Branch, giving it four of six stars and a fair amount of praise: "A steak tartare starter strikes just the right balance of fatty, silky and sharp, with mustard, raw egg and a chopped-scallion crunch. It might even top Balthazar’s version. And the fish-and-chips...may in fact be the best in New York." [TONY]
The RG hands over three stars to Michael Huynh's latest, Bar Bao on the UWS: "...let's talk about my new favorites - the dishes that will bring Upper West Siders back to a restaurant time and again. It all comes down to duck. Duck hash, duck fried rice, duck summer rolls and roasted duck...if I were Michael Bao, my next restaurant would be Bao Duck." [NYDN]
THE ELSEWHERE: Ryan Sutton finds The John Dory delicious but careless, Oliver Schwaner-Albright is a fan of Greenpoint's Five Leaves, Sietsema heads all the way to Jersey City for Hearty Krishna Cuisine, Alan Richman discovers the best tournedos Rossini of his life at The Oak Room, Sarah DiGregorio finds a new favorite bossam at Ga Si Ri in Flushing, Gael Greene likes Macao Trading Company despite a 45 min wait for her reservation, and Tables for Two deems Serge Becker's Cafe Select an excellent neighborhood respite.
THE BLOGS: Ed Levine gives a B- to Daddy-O, Eating in Translation tries the bureks at Tony & Tina's, Cleaned My Plate loves the affordable Mooncake Foods in Soho, Writing with my Mouth Full notes refined Japanese has never been better than at Matsugen, and Vittles Vamp has a religious experience at Porchetta.