Morandi Takes Another Hit; a Haute Barnyard SpreeThe Four Seasons gets perhaps the most negative two-star review in the history of the Times; Bruni seems to think the stars were grandfathered in. A telling example of how reputation floats reviews. [NYT]
Meehan, meanwhile, visits a chowhound’s paradise, a Hindu temple in Flushing. [NYT]
Morandi takes another blow, this time from Time Out’s Randall Lane, who like our own Adam Platt, finds it overdesigned and unimpressive, albeit with a few decent dishes. [TONY]
Related: Not So Bene [NYM]
Mediavore
Foodie Bloomie; the Starbucks Master PlanBloomberg holds sway over our eating habits like no mayor before him. [NYT]
Wayne Nish is out to save Varietal from its folly, including a “full-of-itself wine list [that] boasted obscure, uninspired vintages masquerading as hidden treasures,” and desserts that were “scary messes.” [NYT]
Behold, the Starbucks master plan for growth — which may help to explain its aggressive anti-union strategy, which has roused the ire of the National Labor Relations Board. [Business Week]
Ask a Waiter
Ian Tomaschik of Chanterelle Will Serve You Fake Wine If Your Secretary AsksActor Ian Tomaschik is a server at Tribeca standby Chanterelle, where he must also act as his own bartender, expediter, and runner, which means making his patrons’ cappuccinos, stocking bread and silverware, even shelving clean glasses while also plating and clearing a six-course tasting menu. “In the beginning,” he says, “I didn’t think I could pull it off.” Still, he saw the restaurant through its temporary closure and downturn in business after the terrorist attacks of 2001 and has now been there almost six years. We asked him to reflect on his time there.
