This week in the Times, Bruni goes to Suba, awards the restaurant two stars. “While it has definite shortcomings and at least a third of the dishes don’t measure up to the others, the best of the food here is distinctive and exciting. In a few instances it’s even dazzling,” he says.

And in $25 and Under, Peter Meehan visits to the new Shopsins, located in the Essex Market. Says the new place still reflects “Mr. Shopsin’s singular brand of kitchen madeness.” He loves the sliders and the pancakes, and the sparring (and swearing) that goes on between Shopsin and his children.

In the Post, Cuozzo declares the Upper West Side Manhattan’s hottest restaurant neighborhood, in part based on two big openings there this fall. Daniel Boulud will open Bar Boulud in November, near Lincoln Center, and Ed Brown (formerly of Sea Grill) will open 81 across from the Museum of Natural History. There’s also Ouest, Aix Brasserie, Picholine, Nice Matin, Telepan, and Kefi.

Alan Richman goes to Hill Country barbeque for Bloomberg News. “Never in my life have I encountered such preternaturally moist meat,” he says. Finds the game hen to be the best dish in house, but when it comes to sides and desserts, “I’d suggest running for the hills.”

In the NY Sun, Paul Adams visits Po’s Brooklyn outpost. It “keeps the signature cramped feeling and deafening volume of the original,” he says. The tasting menu was a mixed bag, and the pasta inconsistently cooked. He loves the codfish, lamb and hash, though.