Good News/Bad News: Anella

It's been just under two weeks since the new market-driven restaurant Anella made its debut in the old Queen's Hideaway space on Franklin Ave., and already hungry diners have traveled to the wilds of Greenpoint to weigh in on the food, the vibe, and the greenhouse out back. Overall, all signs point to solid food, with special mentions going to their desserts. A problem area: the waitstaff, who seem pretty wobbly in these early reviews. To the good, the bad, the ugly:

The Overtly Positive News: A Yelper can't stay away and suggests putting some faith in the waitstaff: "I have gone three nights in a row since their opening. Wow! Each night I walked away completely satisfied and incredibly pleased with my dining experience. I think the key word here is patience. Give Anella some time to grow and evolve, Greenpoint will have a gem of a restaurant." [Yelp]

The Bad News: Meanwhile, another Yelper breaks it down into a list of pros and cons. While he's happy there's a new BYOB restaurant in Greenpoint, he points to more than a few problems, including poor ventilation that "immediately gave us red dry sore eyes." As for the waitstaff, their waitress was "super chatty," but only with "her friends as the bar." [Yelp]

The Mostly Good News: Free Williamsburg reports that despite the lack of any signage outside, "all preciousness stops at the door." As for the food, "the rustic-meets-urbane Italian menu from former Chanterelle chef Michael Sullivan" provided some winners: "a shell steak peppered with marrow, parsley, and lemon peel sits on a generous bed of the creamiest mashed potatoes you’ve ever had...and some losers: "The mild oven-roasted halibut was overshadowed by a saccharine, watery “salsa." As for the verdict: "With the most refined menu and romantic atmosphere this side of McCarren, plenty will happily splurge, even if they need to pinch a few pennies beforehand." [FW]

The Pretty OK News: Cooking, Drinking and Swearing with Megan checked in and cited reasonable prices, tasty seafood, and "AMAZING" desserts as reason to believe that it's "going to be a good neighborhood spot." One hesitation when it comes to sides: "Either the sides are family sized and served in a separate dish (which is usually the case at restaurants with a similar price point to Anella) OR really fancy restaurants will do ala carte the way it's done at Anella, where your side comes right on your plate and everyone needs to order one or two to complete the meal. If this is what Anella is going for, fine, then they should charge $40 for entrees, dress up their waiters, and essentially cue the diner in that it is that kind of place." [CDSWM]

The Brief, Good News: @tombudd has an opening night weigh in: "Congratulations Andrew & Blair on an Amazing opening night of Anella. The food, ambiance and service was spectacular!" [Twitter]
—Matt Duckor