• Forbes rates both Centrico and Yumcha a green GO … Centrico … “The Mexican fare at this bright and cheerful establishment is first-rate.” … 211 West Broadway, at Franklin Street, 212-431-0700 [MenuPages | Citysearch] … at Yumcha, “all of its exotically named dishes are delicious. Particularly so are the fluke carpaccio, the steamed pork and the Szechwan-dusted beef tenderloin.” … 29 Bedford Street, at Downing Street, 212-524-6800 [MenuPages | Citysearch] …
• NYC Stories looks at the makeover of The Diner … “The space now looks like an upscale version of a diner. How appropriate for an area that now looks like an upscale version of a meatpacking district.” … as for the food? “everything seemed very sweet” … 44 9th Avenue, at 14th Street, 212-627-2230 …
• VittlesVamp has “always adored the Grand Central Oyster Bar” … but did not have a good experience at the front bar … Grand Central Terminal, 89 East 42nd Street, 212-490-6650 [MenuPages | Citysearch]
• Plate Of The Day recommends you “walk past the sandwich counter, the steaming mystery buffet trays and hang a left to the Middle Eastern Place booth” at Variety Cafe on 48th Street … he “got the Lamb Schwarma. This is a real schwarma, not the imitation ones made with day old pita bread.” … 20 West 48th Street, 212-944-6784 …
• bourrezvisage likes West Bank Cafe … from the “perfectly cooked roast chicken” … and “a must-have are the braised veal cheek shooters” … it “nailed every single dish perfectly” … 407 West 42nd Street, near 9th Avenue, 212-695-6909 …
• an eater reader “was under-whelmed” by Cercle Rouge … “The food is really average-as in average at best. The service is really average to below average.” … 241 West Broadway, 212-226-6252
• Moira Hodgson visited Roberto Passon … “serves straightforward Venetian cuisine … The dishes are oversized … dotted with sauces and herb oils … the food is recognizable … [and] it’s inexpensive.” … she likes the pastas … “A first-rate spaghetti carbonara costs just $9” … 741 9th Avenue, at 50th Street, 212-582-5599 … [MenuPages | Citysearch]
• cityrag likes Happy Happy Happy … a bakery that sells “wonderful treats that are wheat and gluten free (and vegan.) everything is delicious and has a great homemade taste.” … 157 Allen Street, 212-254-4088 [iPalimpsest | CeliacChicks | lovescool]
• the amateur gourmet had tapas at Tía Pol … the blistered green peppers “were really addictive” … but overall, Tía Pol was “enjoyable but not transcendent. And I think that describes our overall experience: everything was fine and pleasant, but we weren’t blown away” … 205 Tenth Avenue, between 22nd and 23rd Streets, 212-675-8805 [Amanda Hesser | the hot plate | Andrea Strong | NYT | Citysearch]
• NYC nosh has a post on a dim-sum restaurant “Secret Dim Sum Hideout: 88 Palace” … we agree with this: “The ladies pushing the steam-trollies at the top of the stairwell were a welcome sight– far too many Chinese restaurants have moved away from the traditional dim sum cart to the a la carte. It’s so much less fun to order dim sum off of a menu than to point and gesture to get what you want” … 88 Palace … concluding “All in all, this was one of our better dim sum experiences in New York.” … 88 East Broadway, under the Manhattan Bridge in the East Broadway Mall, 212-941-8886 [Citysearch]
• jules at The Bruni Digest looked at Frank Bruni’s review for a new TV show, “Kitchen Confidential” … “As I started to skim this article in the Television section of the Times today about the new ‘Kitchen Confidential’ TV show, I was struck by the stylistic flamboyance of the piece. This was no ‘Straight-Shooter’ Stanley, no ‘Hot Shot’ Heffernan. When my titillated gaze jumped up to check the byline, it recalled the moment I found out that Santa was really Mommy: I had already, in my heart, intuited the truth” …
• snack also looked at Kitchen Confidential …
• Cynthia Kilian didn’t review the food at Ninja … “a Japanese import new to TriBeCa, with waiters who dress and act like Ninjas. Or at least they’re trying to.” … 25 Hudson Street, at Duane, 212-274-8500
• eater said Ninja is “Japan’s answer to Jekyll and Hyde” … “our $125/person tab would have been much better spent at Megu.” …
• David Rosen says Secretes should be better known and much busier … “producing some of the most imaginative and beautifully constructed small plates in New York. It is advisable for a party of four to order the whole menu of small plates, since this satisfying experience will total only $130.” … 513 East 6th Street, between Avenues A and B, 212-228-2775
• Robert Sietsema looked at LOTS of restaurants that use lard in “Grease Is Good! – Are lard, eggs, and fish tacos the new health foods?” … “Until recently, we were warned to avoid lard as the world’s most cantankerous fat. Now, it turns out that lard has half the saturated fat of butter, so when it comes to chasing the chimera of healthfulness, pick lard.” …
• Tables for Two went to Brandy Library … “Floor-to-ceiling shelves all around the room display nearly a thousand bottles—not just brandy (though there are more than four hundred of those) but also Scotch, bourbon, rum, Calvados, vodka, and others.” … “no one comes here to eat, but Brandy Library has a nice line of upscale finger food.” … 25 North Moore Street, 212-226-5545 [Citysearch]
• Robin Raisfeld has a list of 10 restaurants on Tenth Avenue between 15th and 24th Streets … “Top Tenth: With available space and a celebrity chef or two, a restaurant row is born.” …
• Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld loved Queen’s Hideaway … “that’s so full of personality—so idiosyncratic, so nonconformist, and so downright kooky—that you can’t help but fall in love with it.” … but “Don’t go when you’re in a rush, or with people who can’t relax, or who demand air-conditioning, or ice in their water, or stemware for wine. Or wine.” … 222 Franklin Street, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, 718-383-2355
• Julia Moskin has a very interesting and fun article … “Craving Hyphenated Chinese” … Chinese-Venezuelan … Chinese-Norwegian … Chinese-Mexican … Chinese-Malagasy … Chinese-West Indian … Chinese-Indian … Chinese-Cuban … Chinese-Peruvian … Chinese-Jamaican … kosher Chinese … “‘There are only a few things that are always the same in Chinese food,’ said Guillermo Hung, a photographer who was reared in Caracas and lives in New Jersey. ‘I was born in a Chinese restaurant, and I end up cooking Chinese style no matter where I am or what the ingredients are. There is always stir-frying. And the most important thing is the rice. For true Chinese food, everything else is a side dish.'” … as a friend said after eating a good Chinese meal, “Thank God I’m Chinese!” … and more of us can say that thanks to this wonderful global cuisine … and there is an accompanying list: “Locations: Melting Woks” …
• Frank Bruni gave two stars to Oriental Garden … and one star to Mainland … he liked the Peking Duck at Mainland … “On one visit the pancakes were soggy, but the duck impressive. Another time every facet of the dish was spot-on.” … Mainland (reviewed by Adam Platt (TWIR, September 9, 2005), David Rosen (TWIR, August 26, 2005) and Gael Greene (TWIR, August 12, 2005)) … 1081 Third Ave. between East 63rd and 64th, 212-888-6333 [MenuPages | Citysearch] … “Oriental Garden is about extremely fresh food – fish in particular – and a kind of no-nonsense preparation that defers to, and underscores, that freshness.” … ” In promising to sate you, Oriental Garden hits its mark.” … Oriental Garden, 14 Elizabeth Street, between Canal and Bayard Streets, 212-619-0085 [MenuPages | Citysearch] … and said The Pegu Club‘s “cocktail list was like a liquid welcome mat, an exhortation to unwind. Gorgeous because the lighting makes sure of it.The long, long rectangle of a room has a glow, and so does everyone in it. Especially after one or two drinks.” … liked the smoked trout deviled eggs … but the rest of the food did not impress … 77 West Houston Street, at West Broadway, 212-473-7348 [New York | VittlesVamp]
• Mona’s Apple said about the Frank Bruni review just above … “I understand the practical bit versus the theatrical bit, but is the rest really necessary? Please dear food critic, tell me about the atmosphere, tell me about the food, and tell me about the service, the good the bad the ugly, in plain English, and without a plethora of SAT words. I realize the Times caters to its audience of those who live in intellectual-ville (I’m still in hooville), but is it necessary to describe a restaurant while making the reader feel lingually-challenged at the same time? I read these reviews and constantly feel like I’m being talked down to.” … Mona, jules at The Bruni Digest can clear everything up …
• Andrea Strong had a mixed experience at Tides …. “octopus skewers ($9), set on a fresh corn and radish salad, were absolutely inedible” … the Tilapia was “cooked perfectly” and they “turned into alley cats with respect to that fish—picking it clean with our fingers, leaving behind only a skeleton and a tail” … “the kitchen needs to work out their kinks, but the place has a genuine warmth to it and gives good vibe” … Pascale Le Draoulec and Gael Greene reviewed Tides last month (TWIR, August 26, 2005) … 102 Norfolk Street, near Delancey, 212-254-8855 [Citysearch]

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