The Early Word on Nate Smith's Gastropub Allswell

At the beginning of the month, Spotted Pig alum Nate Smith opened his Bedford Avenue gastropub Allswell. It's small, it's casual, and it serves a shortish menu of bar snacks, small dishes, and hearty mains that pair perfectly with a pint of beer. Adventurous eaters take note: highlights includes fried tripe, fried anchovies, and lamb tongue salad. See what the early diners are saying now that the restaurant's in its third week.

The Good News: From the Skinny Pig: "Rich, buttery foie spread on toast and drizzled with honey and black pepper is what I imagine happiness tastes like. It's decadent, it's delicious, it's fat. Just take a bite and don't look back. There are no regrets here. Allswell that ends well..." [The Skinny Pig]

The Great News: One Yelper gives high praises for the brisket and acceptance of credit cards: "Fantastic! Amazing spiced brisket. Side of lentils with escarole was unusual and really tasty. Nice chill atmosphere. Very good addition to the hood. Reccommend!?Cherry on top is - brand new place that takes credit cards. You've won me over." [Yelp]

The Mostly Good News: Another Yelper thinks there will be improvement in time: "All is well, really. Super kind people, great service, and a really cozy bar. Definitely worth checking this place out and settling in for a couple drinks. Great beer selection too. Good vibes all around. Only drawbacks that I imagine will improve with time: cocktail menu was very thin (just 2 cocktails... kind of weird) and I felt like the food menu was trying a little too hard on the super rich food front. There's not a lot of depth on the menu besides things like liver, anchovies, sardines, tripe, etc. I'm cool with that, but not every course has to take you to that level. ?All that said, the place just opened and I'll have to return as they make some changes. I'm sure this will become a great local bar spot." [Yelp]

The Okay News: A Foursquare tip is mostly positive: "Orrechiette with oxtail ragu is delicious, but portion size leaves you feeling a bit unsatisfied." [Foursquare]

The Good News: @findyourcraving shares this photo and writes, "Enjoying everything at Allswell, including spiced carrots w tarragon & bucatini w cranberry beans, capers & rapini." And @misssarakramer tweets, "munch away the rainy day blues...orecchiette at allswell! (not to mention evvverything else.) n10 and Bedford."[Twitter]

The Fantastic News: A friend of Eater writes to the tipline, "Wow, I am surprised to be saying this but Allswell is off the hook good. The food was really incredible last time I went and you should check it out before it blows up." [Eater Tipline]

The Great (But a Tiny Bit Sad) News: Another reader emails to the tipline: "The beauty of Allswell is that they don’t try to do too much at once, just a handful of entrees and a handful of apps. The success ratio is very high, though, and we only had one dish we didn’t like. What that means for the diner is that you have less chance getting an experimental dud that reads well on the menu, but ends of being weirdly flavored or poorly executed. The menu is filled with clever stuff, and if you thought you’d never be induced to eat pork belly again, here it’s been rendered (quite literally) as if you’d never eaten it before. Also, the wine list is so cheap, you’ll think about ordering another bottle.

Still, sad to be sitting in the old Raymund's space with no Raymund." [Eater Tipline]