Wednesday Food News: Early Edition

Bruni two-stars David Chang's Momofuku Ssam Bar, calls Chang "one of this city's brightest culinary talents." He likes the food, the waitstaff, and the design of the restaurant. "By bringing sophisticated, inventive cooking and a few high-end grace notes to a setting that discourages even the slightest sense of ceremony, Ssam Bar answers the desires of a generation of savvy, adventurous diners with little appetite for starchy rituals and stratospheric prices," says Bruni.

Eater (scroll down) is right on the money again this week, having predicted two stars for Ssam Bar. They've also got a fascinating pre-review piece by David Chang, in which he predicts what the restaurant will receive (one star), his reaction to all possibilities, and adds some entertaining asides ("Getting reviewed sucks. It's incredibly stressful.") As for the two stars, he foresees "amazing acts of drunken buffoonery" by the staff, and suggests you stay away from the restaurant on Wednesday, as they'll all be hungover. We'll keep that in mind.

Gothamist visited Momofuku Ssam Bar in its early incarnation, before the late-night menu became available at more reasonable hours.

Also in the Times, Peter Meehan goes to Earthen Oven on the Upper West Side for tandoori. It was opened by two former chefs at Tamarind, in the former Columbus Grill space. It needs redecorating and a better wine list, says Meehan, but he likes the lamb, the tandoori flatbreads, the lentil dal and the sea bass. He calls it "the best option for Indian food uptown."

Cuozzo visits Nish, the re-imagined, more casual successor to March, and approves the changes: he calls the new menu "delicious and exotic enough to be banned by City Hall's food police." The service hasn't quite loosened up enough, though.

Paul Lukas goes to NoNO Kitchen and Smoke Joint in Brooklyn for the NY Sun. Both offer Southern cooking "with impressive results," he says. NoNO Kitchen goes the Cajun route, with terrific gumbos, jambalaya, shrimp creole and a crawfish boil ("a rare treat in these parts," says Lukas). Smoke Joint offers (what else?) barbeque with good ribs and pulled pork, though "the beef offerings generally aren't as strong as the pork, and side dishes are generally ho-hum."