Park Avenue Autumn’s gimmicky concept might have turned Frank Bruni catty but for the fact that Craig Konketsu’s cooking is so flawlessly brilliant. The place got two stars, and the review reads like three. [NYT]
Paul Adams must be a happy man today just for the headline he came up with for his positive review of the cheese-centric newcomer Casellula: “The Cheese Stands Alone.” It sounds like it does, too, with what might be the best macaroni and cheese going. [NYS]
Peter Meehan puts the Five Guys, and their deliberately dried-out, overrated burger, in their place; Julia Moskin gives Market Table its first praise, a measured and thoughtful mini-review. [NYT]
BarFry gets a detailed and generally positive four (of six) star review from Randall Lane, but it’s hard to tell at the end whether he really liked the place. Which has been typical of the restaurant’s response, since some critics who respect chef Josh DeChellis just aren’t that crazy about an all-fried-food menu. [TONY]
Danyelle Freeman finds a few good things at Los Dados but faults the meatpacking Mexican for its wild inconsistency. [NYDN]
Sandro’s, with its larger than life chef, is probably critic-proof, but Moira Hodgson’s one-star review can’t do him much good. Though the things she liked she seems to have really liked. [NYO]
Ryan Sutton seems more impressed with Fiamma’s technical wizardry than pleased by the food; the opposite can be said of his first take on Primehouse, which makes the new steakhouse seem pretty good. [Bloomberg]
If a Washington Heights restaurant featuring “the entire peasant diet of El Salvador” can’t put Robert Sietsema in a good mood, what can? [VV]
