Manhattan: Midtown East/Kips Bay Archives
Adventures in Shilling #028: De Robertis, Islero, Bowery Wine Co.
It's time for another edition of Adventures in Shilling, in which we fight shilling the best way we can, by shaming tasteless, unscrupulous shills into submission. Well, that's the plan, at least. Fight shills yourself by dropping offensive links to tips@eater.com.
This week, shilling has been kept down to a reasonable minimum and the Shilling Department hasn't had to deal with too many troublemakers. However, a few managed to sneak by, both in our comments and at the site of the serial offender, Citysearch. Here are some prime suspects from the last week:
We're not sure about the following comment touting DeRobertis over Veniero's following the great DOH shitshow last week. It seems innocuous at first, but something about it (including the misspelling of the name) is a tad sinister: "I grew up with DiRobertis and it still has the best pastry, hands down. Veniero can't compare. Their cannoli is always fresh and is true sicilian. I have never understood everyone loving Veniero EVER. I'm glad it's closed, maybe now it will straighten up. Go across the street guys and have DiRobertis teach you a thing or two!"We get into the 98% territory, next.>>
Shill Probability: 45%There's been some new suspicious activity on the good ol' Islero post from months back, or as we like to call it here in the Shilling Department, the post that keeps on giving: "ISLERO ROCKS!! The new chef Luis Gonzalez has the place under his spell. The new items on the Menu like the (whole fish) blow Chef Floyed out of the water. no pun intended lol midtown needed this place. Keep up the good work guys n gals ola'" There are three more as good if not better than this one.
Shill Probability: 82%
Thursday Opening Report, Midtown Edition: Crisp Certified Open, Salon de Ning Tomorrow
This is the Thursday Opening Report, a regular feature that provides the precise status of venues. As per standard operating procedure around here, your contributions are so very welcome.
1) Midtown: The NYSun reported on the opening of Crisp in yesterday’s Kitchen Dish. Today, Midtown Lunch confirms it open and shares the following details on the new sandwich/salad spot: “Their pita breads are baked from scratch every few hours on premises...some of the ingredients they use in the sandwiches I could be down with… like mango curry, eggplant, goat cheese, and pomegranate dressing.” Status: Certified Open. 684 Third Avenue, 212-661-0000. [NYS; Midtown Lunch]
2) Midtown: Flo Fab does some minor reporting on the opening of Salon de Ning, formerly Pen-Top Bar and Terrace on the roof of the Peninsula Hotel. TONY also shares some info: “Two terraces—one providing a Fifth Avenue vista, the other a view of the Hudson to the west—are outfitted with daybeds fashioned from ornately carved timber. Eastern-tinged cocktails...keep with the theme." Status: Not open. Opening tomorrow at 4pm. Peninsula New York Hotel, 700 Fifth Avenue, 212-956-2888. [NYT; TONY]
Hell's Kitchen and more Midtown this way>>EaterWire: Patroon's Rooftop Lunch, Caliente Cab Co. Settles
MIDTOWN— Midtown's Patroon is serving lunch on their roof for the summer: "In late summer last year, Patroon started offering lunch service on their roof for the first time; it proved so popular that this year they’re doing it all season long, and with several improvements: new tables and more comfortable chairs, and heating lamps for days when there’s a chill in the air. They’ve also introduced a special rooftop menu of lighter fare." [EaterWire]
WEST VILLAGE— Remember when a worker at Caliente Cab Co. chased a lesbian out of the ladies room because she thought she was a man? Cutlets brings the not so shocking news that the company settled: "...though Caliente denies any wrongdoing, they’ve agreed to pay $35,000 in a settlement, along with adding gender identity to its nondiscrimination policy and updating the employee handbook with a restroom section." [Cutlets]
EaterWire: Bradford Thompson in at Lever House
MIDTOWN EAST— According to official sources at Lever House, Bradford Thompson—Daniel alum, 2004 Food and Wine Top 10, 2006 Beard Best Chef, and most recently the person who replaced Alex Stratta when he left Mary Elaine’s—will be the new Lever House Executive Chef. He will start June 2nd, and he will be at the Aspen Food and Wine Festival representing the restaurant. Thompson is replacing Scott Bryan who was replacing Dan Silverman, who left the first week in April.
· EaterWire: Scott Bryan out at Lever House [~E~]
· EaterWire: Dan Silverman Out at Lever House [~E~]
EaterWire: Guastavino's Reopening, James Murphy Joins Andrew WK Project, New Menus at Rosanjin & Spitzer's Corner, and a New Chef at Queen's Hideaway
MIDTOWN EAST— Guastavino's, a landmark event space under the 59th Street bridge, is opening on May 12 after "substantial renovations." A new executive chef John Stevenson is on board to serve classic American fare. [EaterWire]
SOHO— Cutty brings the news from Andrew WK's new project on 100 Lafayette: "LCD Soundsystem front man, James Murphy, reveals on his label's message board that he’ll be doing a little something there called Special Disco Version." [Cutlets]
LOWER EAST SIDE— Zagat gets dibs on the new menu at Spitzer's Corner: "Lower East Side gastropub Spitzer's Corner has completed a whole new menu, which had been a work-in-progress over the past two months. Consulting chef Wayne Nish (of the late Nish and March) and chef de cuisine Sung Park have dropped everything from the original menu – except the homemade pickles ($4) and the short rib burger ($10)." [Zagat]
New Chefs, another new menu, ahead.>>Eater Inside: Savarona
Krieger, 5/1/08
This right here is Savarona, a new Midtown Turkish restaurant that opened after a two month long delay last week. The chef here is Tevfik Alparslan, who has worked at La Tour d’Argent and Gordon Ramsay. His food is decidedly upscale, but probably something residents of Sutton Place haven't seen before in the area. The pared down design comes from David Howell, someone known more for his retail concepts than restaurant spaces.
As for the early word, there really isn't any besides one Citysearch user review citing the food and service as uneven. We'll have to wait for those Midtown East residents to try it out and get on the Chowhound. Further reading here and here.
Turkish, Upscale
420 E. 59th Street, Midtown East; 212-371-6300
Open Mon - Fri 5p.m. - midnight; Sat - Sun noon - midnight
The Plywood Report: Curry Ya, Black Iron Burger Shop, Lookout Hill, & More!
1) East Village: Over the weekend we got this note in from a tipster on the progress of the burger shop going into the old Bouche Bar space: "Looks like a new burger spot called Black Iron Burger Shop will be opening up in June on 5th Street between A & B. The place looks like it is going to be very classic looking." [PLYWOOD]
2) East Village: A special East Village correspondent checks in on the much delayed Curry Ya: "...walked past this spot today on 10th bet. 1st and 2nd. nobody to talk to, but looks like it is pretty close to opening. there was a post about it on nymag last year saying it was scheduled for february." [PLYWOOD]
3) Park Slope: From a Slope resident on the soon to open Lookout Hill: "This restaurant is opening in the cursed space that last housed Biscuit BBQ at 230 Fifth Avenue at President Street in Park Slope. Looks like it's almost ready to go." Gowanus Lounge has some further intel on it. [PLYWOOD]
The latest on Kurve and Midtown East, ahead.>>EaterWire: Pink Elephant's new Place, DOH News, Gourmet on Terroir
MIDTOWN— Midtown Lunch brings news of the DOH'ing of neighborhood favorite Hing Won. The funny part: to conceal they were closed by the health dept., the restaurant lowered the gate just far enough to obscure the bright yellow ominous sticker. [Midtown Lunch]
SOUTHAMPTON— Steve Lewis gets the official confirm that the team from Pink Elephant is opening a nightclub in Southampton: "A short distance from Pink Elephant, the former Tavern venue will provide a big room DJ driven Dance club experience to the Hamptons. At 10,000 sq feet, the space is the largest nightclub in Southampton. The Pink Elephant team acquired the venue to provide quality nightlife to the thousands of patrons who were unable to be accommodated at Pink Elephant due to size constraints." [Good Night Mr. Lewis]
Degenerate sommeliers, next.>>CrimeWatch: Stabbed Grayz GM Has Ties to Philly Mob
MIDTOWN EAST— Yesterday we learned that Grayz Gatekeeper George Atterbury was stabbed around 7 a.m. morning in Midtown, but we didn't get much further intel. Now we find out through reports in the Sun and the Post that the attack was by no means random. He was jumped by three men who rolled up to him in an SUV, stabbed him in the abdomen and slashed his face with box cutters, and then drove off. According to the Post the attack may have been related to his mob ties and an incident five years ago in which Atterbury was shot:
"Police sources said they weren't sure of where the attack occurred and how it happened because Atterbury was being very uncooperative. They said he had ties to mobsters in Philly and his father, George Sr., was a mob associate...Early on the morning of April 4, 2003, Atterbury was shot in the abdomen after he closed the Striped Bass, a restaurant where he was assistant manager."NB to future restaurant types doing Q&As on the blogs: don't give the interviews if you're hiding out from the mob. Again, we wish Atterbury a full recovery.
· 'Mob' Stabbing [NYP]
· CrimeWatch: Grayz GM Stabbed [~E~]
—photo
CrimeWatch: Grayz GM Stabbed
TONY is reporting that George Atterbury, the striking general manager at Grayz who was featured in yesterday's Gatekeepers column, was stabbed this morning in Midtown: "TONY has confirmed via an NYPD press representative that George Atterbury, general manager at Grayz, was slashed at 7:54am outside 22 East 40th Street by an unidentified attacker who fled in a dark colored vehicle. Atterbury suffered multiple lacerations and a stab wound to the stomach. He was admitted to Bellevue Hospital where his injuries were deemed to be minor abrasions. The suspect, who the NYPD believe to have been a random attacker, has yet to be apprehended." We all wish Atterbury a full recovery.
· Grayz GM stabbed in Midtown [TONY]
—photo
The Shutter: Jour et Nuit, Yummy Shawarmy, Rong Bao, and More!
There have been so many small shutterings this week that we are rolling out the Shutter Report a little early. Know of a place that has served its last meal? Let us know.
1) Midtown: Both Guest of a Guest and TONY report on the closing of Jour et Nuit, which was just transformed from Frederick's under 6 months ago: "...business was thriving and was not the reason for the closing, but rather a constricting and costly lease dispute with their landlord that has dragged on in the courts since JEN’s inception." [Guest of a Guest, TONY]
2) West Village: This one is notable for the lightening quick open-shutter turnaround. Here's the word on Yummy Shawarmy from the tipline: "This Yummy Sharmy place appears to be shuttered after making a colorful splash on lower 7th ave. a month ago. sign in window we will see. only shawarma place I knew with an army helicopter on the delivery menu." [Shutter Inbox]
Midtown and Clinton Hill, next.>>Week in Reviews: Commerce Gets a One
Krieger, 2/19/08
Bruni heads to the West Village's newest shiny object, Commerce this week and gives it one star. Unlike Platt—who thought the good food mitigated the 'exhausting' atmosphere—the Brunz calls the out place (and the food) as fussy, overwrought:
"...he creates a rankling dissonance, his dishes beseeching a closeness of attention that the frenzied atmosphere doesn’t easily permit...Oh but wait. There is one good thing: "...if all else fails there’s the bread basket...a throwback to the days when carb wasn’t a four-letter word....I always vowed not to polish it all off, and I always ended up staring at crumbs." [NYT]And he errs. While there’s some wonderful food that reflects the talent he showed and the experience he received at Montrachet and then March, there’s also some food that’s not cooked or seasoned as it should be, and there’s food that’s too fussy, not just for the ambience but also for its own good...
...It’s more pretty than comfortable, and its menu is more interesting than trustworthy, though no evening is likely to be a bust."
Benoit, Adour, the Elsewhere, next.>>
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