On Wednesday three former waiters filed suit against Keith McNally, owner of upscale eateries Pastis and Balthazar. The AP reports that the "restaurants had failed to pay minimum wage and overtime while letting non-tipped employees share in their tips." Both restaurants are established, having opened in the late '90s, so the trio sought a class action which would allow them to include any workers who were employed by McNally over the past six years. It's......

This week Bruni goes to P*ong, the dessert/savory restaurant brought to us by pastry chef Pichet Ong (formerly of Perry Street and Spice Market), awards the restaurant one star. Finds the restaurant "tantalizing, often irritating," and says it challenges one's ideas of what should be sweet and what should be savory. But the desserts are the restaurant's strenth, says Bruni, and also it's too crowded and the service is not good enough to make staying......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting on Davidson Ave. in the Bronx, an armed robbery on Prospect Park West in Brooklyn, and a shooting at 40th Ave. and 10th St. in Queens. Bye-bye, birdie: Ziggy, the 6-week old red-tail hawk who fell and was saved in Midtown last week, was released into Central Park today. “When voters get confused, they vote no.” That almost seems like a sensible tack to take if you......

This week Bruni visits Keith McNally's Morandi, which has been getting creamed by critics of late. He awards the restaurant one star, says "the food has been getting a worse rap than it deserves," but also that it's erratic. He doesn't love the desserts, but doesn't hate them; same goes for the wine list. Overall, McNally has "miscalculated with this restaurant," says Bruni, "which doesn't have enough atmospheric magic to distract you from the insane......

Bruni one-stars E.U., finds the restaurant with the tortured history "eclectic not only in terms of its national influences but also in the quality of different dishes." He loves some of the food, as well as the design and the wine list, but dislikes the desserts. Says "you're taking a chance every time you walk in." Also in the Times, in $25 and Under, Peter Meehan goes to Nomad for Algerian. He's crazy about the......

Bruni goes to Varietal, calls it "an epicurean Advanced Placement exam" and awards the restaurant one star. He says, "Varietal can become so entraced with the unusual ingredients it's deploying, the unconventional ideas it's hatching and the uncommon pose it's striking that it seems not to ponder the off-kilter or underwhelming results." He does love the wine selection, and, when combined with the best dishes, says eating there can be an exciting experience. Just order......

Just ask Jean Georges, Mario Batali or Tom Colicchio and they’ll tell you there is no need to re-invent the cheese-wheel, so to speak. They’ve built multi-million dollar culinary empires on a single concept, with a few tweaks here or there for freshness. But we’re sure they would warn, as they’ve learned in varying degrees, that the key is not to spread yourself too thin. They’d say to maintain high standards and consistency because your......

The Port Authority has officially agreed to fund $1 billion of the Freedom Tower's construction Dr. Denton Sayer Cox, whose patients have included Andy Warhol and John Steinbeck, told police he was beaten and burned with a chemical at York and East 73rd Street but police believe he was the "victim of a gay pickup gone wrong" in his Upper East Side apartment. Either way, he's fighting for his life. A corrections officer gets......

In case you've been cut off from the outside world, we wanted to let you know that Keith McNally's Morandi (named after the painter, Giorgio Morandi) is officially opening tonight in the West Village. The man behind Balthazar, Pastis, and Schiller's Liquor Bar has teamed up with Chef Jody Williams, most recently at Gusto, for an Italian extravaganza. The menu from chef Jody Williams features Burrata with roasted peppers and arugula, Bagna Cauda, a......

Bruni one-stars Cafe Cluny: it's "a beguiling neighborhood place," he says, and not much else. Cluny is partly-owned by Lynn Wagenkneckt, ex-wife of Keith McNally (the man who bought us Odeon, Cafe Luxembourg, Balthazar & Pastis), and Bruni sees something of their successful formulas here. Doesn’t make up for the "unimaginative" menu or "erratic" service, though. Over at Eater, confusion reigns. They put the odds on one-star (nice going), yet they themselves bet on two......

- As part of your National Hamburger Month celebration, make sure you eat these 20. The boys at A Hamburger Today revisit Alan Richman's GQ article from last summer. At least three are in New York -- you may have to travel a bit more for the others. - If you don't want burgers (or don't feel like venturing off of the island of Manhattan), try Ed Levine's favorite hot dogs instead. - Keith McNally's......

The only subterranean venue of Keith McNally's creations, Pravda's Russian streetlamp inspired lights offer an inviting glow for 9-5'ers hunting down Beluga caviar and one or two or seventy types of vodka. On the main level, club chairs, whitewashed chairs, and low, bathhouse ceilings envelope the dining floor while upstairs, barstools are perched against the bar, just steps away from the bathroom where the stainless steel stalls and chicken wire are just inspiring enough......

The Balthazar Cookbook, by Keith McNally, Riad Nasr, and Lee Hanson (Clarkson Potter, 2003) Are You Hungry Tonight? : Elvis' Favorite Recipes, by Brenda Butler (Gramercy, 1992) Fit for a King: The Elvis Presley Cookbook, by Elizabeth Mckeon (Rutledge Hill Press, 2001) Tomorrow, January 8th, is Elvis' birthday. While Gothamist has to confess we're not the biggest Elvis fans (he died before we could walk), from looking at the Elvis-related cookbooks out there, we certainly......

This summer has been one docu after another in the art house theaters. If you've seen enough talking heads, soft money and political intrigue to last you until the next election cycle, might we recommend a documentary on a topic near and dear to the Gothamist heart: New York restaurants. The documentary Eat This New York (2003), detailing the opening of a Brooklyn eatery by Billy Phelps and John McCormick over the course of year,......

The New York restaurant scene is flush with nominations from the James Beard Foundation, the top award in the food world. Mario Batali (Babbo, pictured left), Tom Colicchio (Gramercy Tavern), and Alfred Portale (Gotham Bar & Grill) were all nominated for Outstanding Chef (a national award); Nobu Matsuhisa (Matsuhisa, LA) and Judy Rodgers (Zuni Cafe, San Francisco) are the other two. Chanterelle, Felidia, and La Caravelle were nominated for Outstanding Restaurant (national). New York made......

Until the documentary about Village institution, Shopsin's, I Like Killing Flies (low culture has a nice look at the film) comes out, New York foodies' film appetites will have to be whetted by Eat This New York, a doc about the struggle of opening a restaurant when you're not Rocco DiSpirito. Cameos from various NY food personalities are in the film: Keith McNally, Jean-Georges, Sirio Maccioni, Daniel Boulud, Ruth Reichl and as Manhattan User's Guide......