EaterWire: Psilakis' Gus & Gabriel's Gastropub, Troubling Dressler, a Guest at Mercat, and More

UPPER WEST SIDE— Bruni gets on the blog to report on the progress at Donatella Arpaia and Michael Psilakis' new concept for the old Kefi space: "The restaurant they’re putting in there will be called Gus & Gabriel’s Gastropub..he intends the restaurant’s cooking to appeal to the kid in every adult...classic comfort food, which he intends to prepare with better ingredients and more care than are typically lavished on it. But he’s keeping prices low...that menu at Gus & Gabriel’s Gastropub, which will be heavy on soups and sandwiches, probably won’t have any item over $16..." [Diner's Journal]

WILLIAMSBURG— A trusted neighborhood source tells us the Michelin starred Dressler could be in trouble. Word is the rent is astronomical, and that business is slow. It's a place in need of a rally cry if we've ever heard one. [EaterWire]

NOHO— Mercat has a fancy schmancy guest chef at the helm: "Paula Casanovas, one of the youngest chefs to receive a Michelin star (at 25, as the owner the Costa Brava region’s Les Petxines), has designed a seven-course, $50 tasting menu along with her partner in Lloret de Mar’s Freu, Felip Planas. Planas worked at el Bulli for two years." [GS]

CALORIE COUNTING— Apparently, the calorie counts work: "Four out of five New Yorkers are rethinking what they order in chain restaurants because of the calorie counts...The findings will likely stifle the industry’s assertions that calorie counts are already widely available in a variety of other forms and should be no mystery to those who care about such things." [Restaurant Reality Check]

CHEF SHUFFLES— The Dash Feedbag reports that Tony Esnault, until recently the chef at Adour, has been fired by his most recent employer, Martha Stewart. [TFB]
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