The Other Critics

Bruni Thumps Table 8; Order the Burger at Prime Meats

“The people behind Table 8 have given too little thought to logistics and comfort. They were inattentive when they put the place together, and they’re inattentive still,” writes a cranky Frank Bruni in a no-star review. Govind Armstrong is a “supremely telegenic chef whose celebrity seems to outpace his accomplishments.” [NYT]

Chef Herb Wilson of the Tribeca Grand (also Star Jones’s boyfriend) reacts to Bruni’s review: “OMG!!! NYTimes stars are getting harder and harder to come by!” [Chef Herb Wilson/Twitter]

The menu at Prime Meats “revolves around Northern European dishes, like spaetzle, braised cabbage and bratwurst,” but Danyelle Freeman recommends the burger and salads. [NYDN]
Related: Empire Building [NYM]

At Locanda Verde, the food is so “flat-out seductive — and reasonably priced — you understand quickly why so many diners are clamoring, like asylum-seekers escaping a war zone, up near the front door (the restaurant is undoubtedly this summer’s big hit),” says Jay Cheshes. [TONY]

At SHO Shaun Hergatt, the chef “is standing tall here whether you ever heard of him or not, fighting the odds. This is not just a three course prix fixe for $69 or two courses at $57 — it’s an extravagant gifted chef’s tasting,” Gael Greene writes. [Insatiable Critic]

Ron Perelman’s Blue Parrot “evokes the universally miserable experience of eating crummy food in an economy class seat” says Ryan Sutton. And his experience at the Surf Lodge was equally loathsome: “my single visit last weekend resulted in two of the worst dishes I’ve tried this year.” [Bloomberg]
Related: What to Eat at the Blue Parrot in East Hampton
39 Minutes With Ron Perelman

If you must dine out in the Hamptons, Steve Cuozzo likes the roadside shack Lobster Roll and the month-old Rugosa, “a professionally run operation with refined food for grown-ups, a breed rarer than the snow leopard east of the Shinnecock Canal.” [NYP]

The Smith might be “our most perfect gastropub yet,” says Robert Sietsema. [VV]

Since Seasonal’s menu “on a hot summer’s evening reads like all the foods you don’t want to eat (spãtzle, veal, pork belly, accompanied by things like creamed spinach and potato pancakes), it’s surprising to see the room fill up,” says Andrea Thompson. [NYer]

Bruni Thumps Table 8; Order the Burger at Prime Meats