Results tagged: Naya Mezze and Grill

// This Week on Savory Cities //

Not since Momofuku Ko (with Gael Green's "I am forced to taste it again and again to be sure I hate it as much as I do" to Frank Bruni's, "You'll love it, provided you ever get access to it.") have two major critics diverged so dramatically on a new restaurant put forth by such a heavy hitter. Read Bruni and Platt's clashing reviews, watch our new video and then head down to TriBeCa to try out Matsugen's traditional Japanese cuisine and make your own judgment.

// Recently Opened // 

• Corton - Restaurateur Drew Nieporent (Nobu, Tribeca Grill, Mai House) and chef Paul Liebrandt (formerly of Gilt) have opened this modern French restaurant in the old Montrachet space in TriBeCa. A 3-course prix fixe ($76) or tasting menu ($110) showcase Liebrandt's "clean, precise and intense" flavors.
• Secession - In Danube's place comes David Bouley's new Mediterranean-focused restaurant. The menu is the result of his passionate collaboration with Cesare Casella. 
• Archipelago - French-Japanese nouvelle cuisine by a former Morimoto sous chef.
• Naya Mezze and Grill -A stylish new Middle Eastern debuts on 2nd Ave and 56th.

// This Week's Restaurant Reviews //

• NY Times: Frank Bruni gives one star to Socarrat Paella Bar. "Paella is such a worthy undertaking that any place doing it as well as Socarrat deserves note for that reason alone. The paellas are sized for two people or more, and their prices - $21 to $23 a person, depending on the kind - strike me as reasonable."
• Bloomberg: Ryan Sutton visits Allegretti. Despite its high prices, he says, "Firm ravioli are stuffed with braised oxtail. Then just when things get too rich, orange zest zings the palate with a burst of citrus. Airy gnocchi sop up heady lamb ragu. Pecorino adds a hint of sour."
• NY Magazine: The Underground Gourmet visits Porchetta and bestows 3 stars on the casual and moderately priced sandwich shop.
• TONY: Randall Lane visits Brooklyn's Peaches giving the restaurant 3 of 6 stars. "Peaches offers progressive food in a spot where the mere existence of such a restaurant is noteworthy--guts like those play well in the South, and in Brooklyn, too."

// In Other News //

• Michelin announced their 2009 ratings. Of note: Masa gets 3 stars; Adour, Gilt and Momofuku Ko get 2; and Allen & Delancey, Alto, eighty one, Fiamma, Insieme, Kyo Ya and Public each join the 1 star club.
• One day later Zagat released their 2009 NYC guide. The category winners: Top Newcomer =  Momofuku Ko; Top Food & Service = Per Se; Top Decor = Asiate; Most Popular = Union Square Cafe; Top hamburger = DuMont; Top Pizza: Lucali; Top BBQ: Fette Sau.
• Ferran Adria, in town this week promoting a new book, answers reader questions on Diner's Journal.
• Her Insatiableness weighs in, blogger-style, on the city's most important restaurants of the past 40 years. The critics react.

// Events Around Town //

• Food Network hosts the first Wine and Food Festival this weekend in the Meatpacking District. Tickets are extremely limited but there are still a few events that aren't sold out and look interesting, like the Alice Waters/Rachel Ray talk.
• Get ready for Thanksgiving by taking a pie class at The Brooklyn Kitchen on October 16th ($50).