The Village Voice's Robert Sietsema discovers South Indian restaurant Southern Spice in Flushing, and files a rave review that begins, "Sometimes a restaurant makes such an impression that it changes your way of thinking about an entire cuisine...Dish after dish was astonishing in the power and immediacy of its flavors." His colleague Sarah DiGregorio checks out two East Village cured-meat "specialists," Cure and Ballaro. The former "looks like a boudoir—a boudoir stocked with meat and cheese...Stick with the meat for best results. Even the most successful salad is made mostly of meat—a mess of a half-dozen kinds of chopped charcuterie, rendered even less healthy by the addition of sliced fresh mozzarella, all on top of a portion of mixed greens. The quiches, unfortunately, are heated to sogginess in a microwave." And over at Ballaro, "the proprietors are more serious about their food." more ›

Inakaya: As if print journalism's implosion wasn't stressful enough for Times employees, they can now get yelled at during their lunch hour, at this new "theatrical" Japanese Robatayaki restaurant in the ground floor of their headquarters. According to the press materials, employees at this grill house—which is insanely popular in Tokyo—are instructed to greet guests with "a chorus of welcoming yells... Before even seated, there are more shouts and responses unleashed by the flock of floor and kitchen staff... This continues from when the first drink is ordered, and throughout the evening." There's paddling, too; the yakikata ("grill-persons") arrange your food on plates and then thrust it across a wide counter to diners, using sturdy wooden paddles a couple of meters long. 231 West 40th Street, (212) 354-2195 more ›