The Other Critics

Bar Milano Scratches Out Two Stars; Cuozzo Loathes the Royalton Lounge

Bad pasta, deafening noise … it’s a two-star review for Bar Milano from Frank Bruni, the latest critic to forgive the place for what would ordinarily be fatal flaws in an Italian restaurant. Oh, and the desserts were weak too. But between the room, the entrées, and the drink program, the place somehow scratched out a second star. [NYT]

Lauren Collins is the latest (but probably not the last) critic to put the hurt on Ago, and hits all the points which we’ve become accustomed to hearing about – the bad food, the snotty service, the preposterous vibe. Can Ago really be that much worse than Bar Milano? Apparently so. [NYer]

Meanwhile, over at the Post, Steve Cuozzo hits Brasserie 44 at the Royalton hard, not for the food (which he really liked) but for the “losers lounge” that is the hotel lobby. Cuozzo seems to take the design deficiencies in the place almost personally: You would think that they had built over his childhood home. [NYP]

Alan Richman hits Talay, the new Thai-Latin nightclub restaurant in Harlem, and seems to have liked just about everything about it — even if the menu was a lot more Latin than Thai. [GQ]

Robert Sietsema, tipped off to Cedars Meat House in Astoria, calls us out by name to pay heed to their gas-grilled kebabs, and we have to admit, he makes them sound pretty good. [VV]

Elizabeth, suggests Paul Adams, is the anti–Tasting Room: an oasis of “easy comfort food” of no great distinction but which makes no great demands upon its feeders. He does call out the cheeseburger for special praise, though. [NYS]

As part of the Daily News’ big Hamptons feature, Danyelle Freeman produces a nosegay of love letters to various new restaurants out there, including Surf Shack and Kobe Beach Club. [NYDN]

Bar Milano Scratches Out Two Stars; Cuozzo Loathes the Royalton Lounge