The Early Word on Fatty 'Cue West Village

Zak Pelaccio's second location of Fatty 'Cue officially debuted two weeks ago at 50 Carmine Street in the West Village. The old Cabrito space has been redone with darker tones, plenty of booth and banquette seating, and a table for large parties in the back, near the kitchen. There's an extended menu and (fun!) Thai style bottle service. Let's see how the Fatty fans and West Villagers have received the place.

The Not a Shithole News: Eater commenter Seyo hasn't tried the food but likes the vibe: "I stopped by to check it out last week, just to take a peek, didn't have time to eat anything. The menu as transcribed above sounds amazing, but what I was impressed with was the grown up feel of the restaurant. This isn't a Brooklyn shit hole for smelly deleterious rich kids with greasy hair and too much time on their hands. It feels decidedly upscale and grown up, much more so than all the other Fatty restaurants, not just the Fatty Cue in BK. This is a GOOD thing. I've loved about 90% of the food I've had at the various Fatties and often wondered at what they could do if they were just a wee bit more mature about their business, so I'm very much looking forward to eating here." [Eater Comments]

The Phenomenal News: Another Eater commenter follows up: "ate here last week and the food was phenomenal. also, who cares if a bunch of hipsters eat somewhere if the food is good?" [Eater Commenter]

The Grown Up News: NY Journal likes this Fatty better than all the rest: "On my first visit, I ordered two dishes. This was the first time in my experience that a Fatty kitchen actually seemed to understand the concept of pacing a meal. Until now, Pelaccio’s restaurants were known for sending out food at the kitchen’s convenience, not the diner’s. Have they learned a lesson, or did I just get lucky?...I loved the Heirloom Tomato Salad ($13; above left) with pepper, fresh coriander, charcoal, and olive oil, resting in a pool of kimchi water. This is a typical late summer dish, but the spices and seasoning seemed just right. Heritage Pork Ribs ($12; above right) were juicy and enormous....I don’t want to over-sell Fatty ’Cue, but in the early days it is the most enjoyable Fatty restaurant I’ve been to, with both food and service a cut above its brethren." [NY Journal]

The Great News: An eGulleter is impressed: "A simple stater of Chilies and Cheese brought a nice portion of house made buffalo milk cheese, the consistency of ricotta, alongside some sliced, slightly pickled chilies and a pair of soft, Parker- house style roles, which was good to soak up some of the booze. Speaking of booze, a few of the specialty cocktails were great...The kitchen and service were both in fine form last night, and I am looking forward to a return visit because the rest of the menu looks good too." [eGullet]

The Bad News: Most of the Yelp reviews are positive, but here's on dissenting opinion: "I really wanted to like this place... But every restaurant from these guys has the same problem - over-thought and over-priced dishes that sound like they could be interesting but are just poorly executed. Same issue with Cabrito, their previous place which was in this location. I like Fatty Crab but would never go back because it's just way too overpriced." [Yelp]

More Good News: Voice critic Robert Sietsema has an early rave for the fried bunny: "On a bill of fare that takes plenty of chances, the buttermilk-fried rabbit is actually a rather conservative choice. But for a few kinks of anatomy, you'd swear it was chicken, only fluffier and less greasy. It has been "fried to perfection" as bad food writers say, and furnished with an amazing vinegar to be shaken and shaken again over the finger-lickin' good chicken rabbit." [FitR]

The Needs Time News: From the only Menupages review: "...tinkering is definitely needed. The food is pretty good, though not yet as excellent as the Manhattan "Crabs." The pork ribs were excellent: sweet, hot and funky. And our dessert -- a blue cheese with crispy brioche and jackfruit parfait -- was astounding. But our clams and bacon were amazingly tame , as was the late summer tomato dish, which approached boring. The place is certainly more attractive than other Pelaccio locations: dark and intimate. But the noise: the head-splitting, ear-bleeding noise! (We arrived early to relative peace at 6:00, but by the time we left at 7:30, it was unbearable.) Have these people never heard of acoustical tiles? The wait staff is lovely: attentive, informative and smiling. But at these prices, they should be." [Menupages]