All stories about "Bacaro"

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Week in Reviews: Bruni Lays a Deuce on Mia Dona

This week Bruni hits Michael Psilakis and Donatella Arpaia's new Midtown East joint Mia Dona and grants it two stars. The food is on the mark, the setup, awkward, but you just know that no matter what, offering high end food at mid range prices (with low end beer pitchers no less) is what really hits Frank's sweet spot:

"And if you step back to survey all of what you’re eating and all of what it’s costing — which, in the context of the restaurant’s East Side neighborhood, isn’t very much — you’ll find something else: a portrait of a rising young chef with more practicality than vanity, even though the acclaim that’s rushed his way over the last few years has given him ample reason to preen.

...While much of the food does justice to Mr. Psilakis’s talents, there’s nothing high-flown about it or the prices...In terms of pleasure per dollar, Mia Dona is as successful as any place he and Ms. Arpaia have worked on with or without each other."

There's nothing Brunz loves more than a celebrated yet accessible chef: "Mr. Psilakis even wants to start offering take-out and delivery. A lauded up-and-comer doing pappardelle to go? Good for him, and good for us." [NYT]

Merkato 55, Commerce, and the Elsewhere, one click away.>>

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The Gatekeepers: Kama Geary, Bacaro

Krieger, 3/23/08

Bacaro, The nearly five month-old Venetian small plates joint located where the Lower East Side meets Chinatown had hour-long waits when it opened and has hour-long waits to this day. It could be because of the wine selection, the Venetian bar snacks, the salumi room. But our hunch here is the popularity stems from the design. The bi-level space consists of a ground level dining room and a moody and cavernous (and crowded) subterranean space with exposed brick, salvaged wood, and all manner of beautiful people. Kama Geary is the hostess and manager that has to break it to you that you won't be eating for a couple hours. And she's the one you'll want to be nice to if you want that wait to move a little faster.

Kama Geary, Manager: We have 100 seats. My favorite seats are a table I call the snow table, and others have called it the mafia table as you can sit here and see everything that goes on in the downstairs bar area. Also the street light shines down over the table and if it snows it looks perfect like a movie set. When I'm with a group I love the table with the antique kelly green chandelier hangs. I also enjoy the bar upstairs, the room makes you feel glamorous even if your not feeling it. 8 PM on a Saturday night. What's the wait for a table? Usually two hours downstairs, one hour upstairs. Is there anything I can say to make my wait shorter? Unfortunately not, we love to be fair, but politeness helps.

Bacaro
Bi-Level, Small Plate, Moody/Romantic
136 Division St., Chinatown/LES; 212-941-5060
Open Tue-Sun 6pm-midnight

More with Kama, ahead.>>

Friday, November 2, 2007

EaterWire Midday Edition: Polishing ápizz & The Orchard

LOWER EAST SIDE—The crowds have stayed steady at ápizz and The Orchard for several years now, but no one's resting on laurels. A recent Eater drop-by at The Orchard revealed a new, less prison-like facade (above) and a new look to the bar area. But that's not all. Let's let management explain: "Hi Eater, it's X (Xerxes), John's partner from The Orchard. Just wanted to give you an update on the restaurants. We have made renovations to both Apizz and the Orchard. At Apizz we expanded the bar area. We now have a wine bar where we have full dinner service. We thought it would be a nice way to welcome the walk-ins. Maybe you could put the word out. At The Orchard we renovated the bar area as well. We now have this really cool lounge. Where customers can come in and have cocktails and appetizers. We're also on the prowl for our next project." Kalina has been dispatched to both venues, so please stand by for full renovation reveals. [EaterWire]

Oh, for those scoring along at home, here's a quick genealogy of the Peasant/ Orchard/ apizz/ Bacaro ownership clusterfuck, with handy map! >>

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