Reviews for The Elm, Alder, Quality Italian, and More

As noted yesterday, Pete Wells gives two stars to Paul Liebrandt's The Elm in Williamsburg: "A dish called Flavors of Bouillabaisse, in quotation marks, sounds ominous, as if the Provençal classic has been turned into edible powders. It is lovely. Mr. Liebrandt has kept it in seafood-stew form but rearranged the emphasis. He leans strongly on the sweet perfume of fennel and orange peel in the luxurious, halfway-sweet emulsion that swirls around razor clams, oysters, bits of lobster and a brick of meaty tilefish." [NYT]

Ryan Sutton awards two and a half stars to Wylie Dufresne's Alder: "Dufresne transforms French onion soup into a wonderful PoMo-poutine of beef gravy, stinky gruyere and crispy onion rings ($16). He reinvents hideous port-wine cheese as an elegant spread of purple cheddar dotted with pistachio brittle ($11). Even better is the pastrami sandwich, deconstructed into a caraway-flavored fettuccine that tastes precisely like fresh rye bread from Orwasher's. Pickled tomatoes and spiced deli meat are tossed with the noodles, while a leaner cut of pastrami is shaved on top like parmesan." [Bloomberg]

Steve Cuozzo likes chef Vito Gnazzo's Italian fare at the recently-relocated Il Gattopardo: "Silken vitello tonnato takes on rare character via a surfeit of anchovy. Mozzarella in carozza delivers a blissful blur of buffalo mozzarella and anchovies pan-sauteed on crunchy country bread. Neapolitan meatloaf remains luxuriously soft and herbal. But Gnazzo's real strength has always been pasta. 'Is this Michael White?' a guest said of spaghetti bottarga made with dry gray mullet roe. [NYP]

Daniel S. Meyer gives two stars out of five to Paul Liebrandt's The Elm: "The clinically titled 'Flavors of Bouillabaisse' surprises as a deeply soothing shellfish stew, anchored by brackish seaweed butter and crowned with a meaty hunk of halibut-like amadai, whose feathery scales boast a 'how did he do that?' crunch. There's more wizardry at work as Liebrandt seduces bewitching scads of earthiness from charred eggplant, coaxing it into a jet-black puree that mollifies the salty, fatty jolt of seared lamb's neck." [TONY]

[Quality Italian by Daniel Krieger]
Stan Sagner gives two stars out of five to Quality Italian: "The mastodon-sized seared Berkshire Pork Chop ($28) arrives with its gorgeous crust nearly candied, the meat still blushing a juicy pink. Alone it is an ample meal, but it arrives accompanied by an intensely complex sweet-sour cherry saba sauce singing notes of sage and mustard. Balsamic Lacquered Filet ($44), however, begs for restraint. The aptly named sauce congeals to a glossy, superfluous shell that dishonors this magnificent hunk of meat." [NYDN]

Adam Platt awards two stars to the East Pole: "Healthy eaters will be happy to see an edifying steamed-vegetable Macro Plate entrée option on the menu at the East Pole, although some may blanch at the $22 Upper East Side sticker price. If you're hungry, however, my mother suggests you pay an extra few bucks for the elegant, garden version of chicken Kiev, stuffed with a mixture of garlic butter and broccoli, or the grilled strip loin..." [GS/NYM]

[The Court Street Grocers Sandwich Shop by Krieger]
THE ELSEWHERE: Hannah Goldfield of Tables for Two likes the sandwiches at Glady's and Court Street Grocers Hero Shop, Gael Greene samples the tasting menu at recent Michelin star recipient Le Restaurant in Tribeca, Hannah Palmer Egan checks out Fritzl's Lunch Box in Bushwick, and Ligaya Mishan has a great time at Filipino newcomer Papa's Kitchen in Woodside.

[Photo by Daniel Krieger]

THE BLOGS: Serious Eats editor Max Falkowitz wishes there was more heat in the food at Khe-Yo, the Pink Pig has a satisfying meal at Estela, NYC Foodie tries the arepas at El Cocotero, Chris Stang of Immaculate Infatuation gives an 8.4 rating to Piora, Eat Big Apple digs the sandwiches at Mile End on Bond Street, Chekmark Eats reports on a recent meal at Kanoyama in the East Village, Joe DiStefano discovers a solid kosher hamburger at Burger Plus, and New York Journal finds a lot to like at Pagani in the West Village.
· All Coverage of Reviews [~ENY~]
[Top photo: The Elm by Krieger]