Other Critics

Bruni Blasts Delicatessen; Apiary Looks Good, Tastes Meh

Delicatessen
Delicatessen Photo: Noah Sheldon

Frank Bruni gives Delicatessen zero stars, and his disdain for high-end drunk dining is evident in his sarcastic praise for the cheeseburger spring roll: “Let’s pause to praise an invention of the new restaurant Delicatessen, whose audience isn’t so much grizzled epicures sniffing out luxurious treasures as it is frazzled night crawlers looking for foodstuffs that double as alcohol sponges.” [NYT]

The design-heavy Apiary “stands out the way an accountant might while pounding beer at 7B,” writes Randall Lane. Chef Neil Manacle’s food looks better than it tastes, and is “wildly inconsistent.” [TONY]

Danyelle Freeman ate at Apiary this week, too, and was similarly disappointed: “[O]ut comes a dish that reads well on the menu and tastes good in theory — but not necessarily on the plate.” [NYDN]

Though there are other things to order at Five Napkin Burger, stick with the ground beef, suggests Steve Cuozzo. “Adding to the pleasure is that, unlike most burger eateries with cult followings, Five Napkin is a grown-up joint,” he writes. [NYP]

It was more fun for Ryan Sutton to write about Todd English’s Libertine than it was to eat there: “Yes, his jaw line is chiseled enough to shuck oysters, but it takes more than a name like English to make great British-American pub fare.” [Bloomberg]

Paul Adams deems JoeDoe “an unlovely name for a restaurant, but it feels like a true expression of its chef, Joe Dobias.” The portions are big and, though the starters superior to the entrées, Dobias “has some delicious ideas.” [NYS]

Lauren Collins enjoyed her visits to I Sodi: “[Rita] Sodi, the platinum-spike-haired proprietress, is often at the bar, treating it like her kitchen table, and her casual air … is contagious.” Plus, chef Michael Genardini is late of L’Impero and Alto. [NYer]

Bruni Blasts Delicatessen; Apiary Looks Good, Tastes Meh