• Plate of the Day approves of Hong Kong Station Noodle Shop, 128 Hester Street, 212-966-9382 … [NewYork]
• Tables for Two writes that the burgers at Burger Joint “are not huge. But they are right” … 118 West 57th Street, 212-708-7414 … [A Hamburger Today | MenuPages | Citysearch]
• A Full Belly compares Shake Shack and Burger Joint … and concludes: “The Shake Shack has clearly got a lot going for it, I tend to eat there thrice as often, and is clearly the better restaurant overall, but when asked where the best burger in Manhattan* is, my reply will always be: Burger Joint. It’s not a close call at all.” … and adds in a footnote: “Want the best burger in all of New York City? Well, you’ll have to go to Peter Luger in Brooklyn for that. Well worth the trip!” … Shake Shack, Madison Square Park, Madison Avenue and East 23rd Street, 212-889-6600 [A Hamburger Today | MenuPages | Citysearch] … Peter Luger, 178 Broadway, Brooklyn, 718-387-7400 [Citysearch]
• NY Food Museum reminds us that Sunday, October 2, 2005, 11 am – 4:30 pm, is International Pickle Day 2005 … Orchard Street between Houston and Stanton Streets, “in the old pickle district of Manhattan’s Lower East Side.” …
• Robert Sietsema says that Lodge “follows the current Williamsburg predilection for cheap food and expensive drinks, and many diners begin with one of the strong cocktails—including a killer mojito ($8) served in a jar. Well, it almost killed me. It left me reeling, even before the first appetizer arrived.” … and the food isn’t important anyway as “Lodge wants you to get plowed” … 318 Grand Street, Brooklyn, 718-486-9400 [Citysearch]
• Joshua Bernstein says the new Congee Bowery Restaurant and Bar … is “an imitation of a masterpiece, a Mona Lisa knockoff with a lip-curling frown. If Congee were a novel concept, I’d sing its accolades. Yet as it stands, it can’t hold a bowl of porridge to its older sibling.” … 207 Bowery, between Rivington and Spring Streets, 212-766-2828 … Congee Village, 100 Allen Street, 212-941-1818 [MenuPages | Citysearch]
• Jackson Hole reviews the Bellevue Hospital Cafeteria … and says the grilled cheese “bursts with lush, velvety undertones topped with crisp grace notes and comes with steak fries—soggy but tasty.” … “The coffee sings to me of the coasts of Tanzania, and I detect a fruity burst that makes me wonder if the beans haven’t been roasted when they were still a day or two from ripening.” … 462 First Avenue at 27th Street, 212-562-4141 [Citysearch]
• Braden Keil warns that “New York is bracing itself for a major seafood shortage, after Hurricane Katrina wiped out much of the Gulf of Mexico’s fishing industry. Louisiana, which accounts for nearly 30 percent of all seafood production in the United States – and 40 percent of the country’s shrimp – has lost nearly all of its oyster beds.” …
• Kiri Tannenbaum writes that “restaurants are turning water into wine. Well, not quite – but they are crafting their lists of bottled waters as carefully as they stock their wine cellars. Gone are the days of Evian and Pellegrino – a new crop of bottles have landed on menus from the hills of Scotland to the wilds of the Amazon.” …
• It was Adam Platt‘s turn to review Perry Street … but he had trouble getting a reservation … “Too Cool” … “The food at this canteen is often excellent, although given Mr. Vongerichten’s talents, it sometimes feels almost too spare, like he’s tossed off the recipes between trips to his far-flung holdings in Las Vegas or Shanghai.” … and asks: “Is it worth groveling to secure a table? If you long for a glimpse of Nicole Kidman, possibly. If not, there are certainly other places around town where you can find a good lamb chop and a nice cup of Orchid Oolong tea.” … sounds like a restaurant that doesn’t need our business … previous reviews by Frank Bruni (TWIR, September 9, 2005), Steve Cuozzo (TWIR, September 2, 2005) … and Gael Greene and Andrea Strong (TWIR, August 19, 2005) … 176 Perry Street just off West Side Hwy, 212-352-1900 … [Citysearch]
• David Rosen starts his review of Perry Street: “The most daring feature of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s latest restaurant is its address.” … “Unfortunately, a recent meal there began on few sour notes. One of the water glasses at the table was visibly stained, but the staff ignored that completely and poured water in it. Average rolls are placed on the bread plate with butter, but no butter knife is provided, forcing diners to use the dinner knife.” … however … “Every appetizer is a masterpiece of point and counterpoint for flavor and texture.” … “Main courses are hearty, elegant and surprisingly generous.” … but … “Vongerichten does not have to commute much when he works at Perry Street, but he might have to go an extra mile to make his restaurant truly perfect.” …
• slice … not a review, but a piece about red vs yellow onions on pizza … “Cheese and Onions” …
• Moira Hodgson had a “seesaw” meal at Fillip’s … “At Fillip’s, Peace and Quiet, And French From a Textbook” … the white asparagus soup “was truly awful” … but the vichyssoise “was wonderful” … rack of lamb “was also very good” … 202 7th Avenue, at West 22nd Street, 212-242-4787 [MenuPages | Citysearch]
• Amateur Gourmet ate at A.O.C. … “shared an awesome–and I mean awesome–appetizer: ‘Croustillant de Chevre: Phyllo Pastry Filled with Goat Cheese & Spinach over a Spinach Salad.’” … liked the lamb shank … “standard French food (minus the risotto) prepared extremely well” … 314 Bleecker Street, at Grove Street, 212-675-9463 [MenuPages | Citysearch]
• Dana Bowen says Bliss has “the best house-cured salmon ($9) in the entire borough” … and the “appetizers were all impressive” … 4520 Skillman Avenue, at 45th Street, Queens, 718-729-0778
• Frank Bruni gave 2 stars to Upstairs, which doesn’t take reservations … “Upstairs, Downtown, Idiosyncratically” … “Although the food at Upstairs never tasted convoluted, it was often built in a complex, layered fashion, resulting in bewitchingly subtle shades of flavor” … liked the salads, halibut, sirloin, and lamb … 130 West Broadway, 212-608-5829
• Gael Greene agrees that “the food is delicious” at Upstairs … and “Savvy-looking Japanese dominate the sushi bar” …
• NYC.COM says about Upstairs: “However, when Chef Bouley is not around there can be frustratingly long waits for food, as the sous chef can be overwhelmed by so many orders at once. We have received multiple reports (and also twice personally experienced) annoyingly long waits just to receive the check, for which there is no plausible excuse whatsoever.” …
• Manhattan User’s Guide published its list of “the most notable restaurant openings scheduled, roughly speaking, for fall (or, you know, winter)” in “The Big Guns” …including … Buddakan NY … Morimoto … Cookshop … Country … Del Posto … Jovia … Orto … Sascha … Telepan … Thor …
• Andrea Strong published her “Annual Strong Buzz Fall Feasting Guide” that looks at new restaurants … but her favorite restaurant is still Five Points … she loves … the people who run it … the food .. the room …the wood-burning oven … 31 Great Jones Street, between Lafayette Street and Bowery, 212-253-5700 [MenuPages | Citysearch] … and now they are opening Cookshop … 159 Tenth Avenue at 20th Street, 212-924-4440 … she also has previews of … Fatty Crab … Thor … Soho Cantina East … Jefferson Grill … Jovia … European Union … Restaurant Sascha … Speak … Pair of 8s … 24 Prince … The Hideaway … Mo Pitkin’s House of Satisfaction … Dash Dogs … Dani … Del Posto … Ammos … Telepan … Carmellini … Stephen Starr’s Dynamic Duo … Palå … Parea … and if that isn’t enough, she has LOTS more on Katrina benefits and events … amazing …
• Joe Dziemianowicz also had the Daily News’ “Fall Preview” …

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