Wells Gives Just One Star to Carmellini's Lafayette

Pete Wells is not a huge fan of the year's biggest restaurant, Lafayette. Although he sampled many great dishes on his visits, the service was shaky at times, the scene at the door was something of a hassle, and some dishes missed the mark. On the food:

A bouillabaisse that could have been the best in town was undercut by its serving dish, photogenic but impractical. The lobster tail, langoustine, mussels and monkfish were all handsomely cooked, and the shellfish broth was wonderfully aromatic with saffron and pastis. But spreading it all out in a shallow copper braising pan meant that both seafood and sauce were tepid within minutes.

Wells continues:

It's now off the menu. I hope it's simply gone to Williams-Sonoma to buy itself a deep porcelain bowl, because a spectacular bouillabaisse could help Lafayette get out of the friend zone. The by-the-book pork pâté won't do it. Neither will the rotisserie chicken. Tender and flavorful as it is, it still puts you in mind of Fairway, not Chez l'Ami Louis.

The critic gives the restaurant one star, which is at least one star less than Carmellini & Co. were hoping for. The capper: "Of all the adjectives that might describe a French restaurant built by Andrew Carmellini, Lafayette brings to mind the last one I would have expected: optional."

This is the lowest rating that Lafayette has received from a pro critic — Platt gave it two, Sutton gave it two and a half stars, and Cuozzo gave it three.
· Lafayette [NYT]
· All Coverage of Lafayette [~ENY~]

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Lafayette

380 Lafayette Street, Manhattan, NY 10003 (212) 533-3000 Visit Website