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Co., the Chelsea pizza restaurant from Sullivan Street Bakery genius Jim Lahey that's been feverishly hyped and crowded since it opened in January, gets a mixed review from Frank Bruni at the Times this week. He notes that Co. "was born of a worship of dough. That’s why the pizzas at the center of its menu are as good as they are... Although the best of them are outstanding and all pack the pleasures of a serious crust with serious blisters — Mr. Lahey uses an oven that generates heat in excess of 900 degrees — he hasn’t yet nailed the toppings. It’s as if he’s too focused on, and maybe too confident about, what lies beneath. A pizzaiolo-come-lately, he needs to sweat the cheese and the rest of it a little more." (The New Yorker chimes in on Co. this week, too.)
Also in the Times, Ligaya Mishan reviews Momofuku Milk Bar, the dessert annex to Momofuku Ssam Bar in the East Village: "As with all things Momofuku-related, Milk Bar has been greeted with an apostolic fervor... The crack pie ($5 a slice) is essentially a pecan pie minus the pecans, which would’ve helped cut the sweetness. After one bite, my pulse was galloping. I overheard a customer complaining to the counterwoman about the small size of his slice. He should have thanked her for saving his life." The Village Voice's Robert Sietsema lauds Bamboo Pavilion in Bensonhurst this week, deeming it "the best Sichuan food in town... providing a convincing argument that Sichuan is, on its own, one of the world's greatest cuisines."
Adam Platt at NY Mag has his turn with modern-Spanish restaurant La Fonda del Sol (photos), located on the ground floor of the old Pan Am building: " 'I feel like I’m in a nice airport restaurant in Barcelona,' my friend said as we waited in the café for the inevitable wave of tapas to arrive...The Spanish snobs at my table gave thumbs up to the loin of lamb (crusted in pumpkin seeds and served with a Tellicherry pepper), and to the salmon, which is rolled in chile pepper and set on a pile of softly cooked carrots and salsify."
Time Out's Randall Lane distributes three out of six stars to Macao Trading Co. (photos), the gorgeous Tribeca restaurant with the Colonial-era homage, offering Chinese and Portuguese versions of each entree: "When I ordered both versions of the prawns, they were flavorful but not ground-breaking: the European version grilled and served in a cream sauce of white wine, tomatoes and garlic butter; the Asian rendition sautéed sweet-and-sour, with chili peppers. Thus was the trend in Waltuck’s one-menu, two-cuisine theory. Rather than having a single interesting Macanese restaurant, you get a Chinese eatery and a Portuguese one side by side. Mediocre ones, at that." Also in TONY, faux-speakeasy Raines Law Room earns its $13 cocktails.
Meanwhile, Brian O'Connor at NY Press takes an opening-day peek at NYY Steak in the new Yankee Stadium. Executive chef Jason Tilmann insists his steak is "every bit the equal of Peter Luger’s, because he buys it from the same wholesaler, although he told me not to quote him on that." And Danyelle Freeman at the Daily News loves the giant new Japanese grill Inakaya, which she says is as good as the one in Tokyo. It certainly sounds fun: "Every night is New Year's at Inakaya. And that means every diner gets to slam a giant mallet into a giant pestle, turning steamed rice into sticky sweet rice cakes. There's a lot of shouting and clapping at Inakaya. Order a beer or a sake or even a glass of water, and the entire staff shouts your order."
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It's hard to get excited about yet another pizzeria, even if it's from the Sullivan Street Bakery guy. I know it's the year of pizza and comfort food, but a little creativity in the NYC restaurant scene would be nice.