Albert Hammond Jr. of the Strokes Keeps It in the East Village
Is Albert Hammond Jr. — the Strokes guitarist who’ll perform songs off his solo album, Yours to Keep, at Maxwell’s on Saturday — truly a creature of the East Village? When we talked to him, he was on his way to a rare business lunch at Second Avenue institution Frank. He clued us into some other neighborhood favorites when he recounted everything he ate during the past week.
The Other Critics
Michelin’s Explosive New Red BookMichelin dropped its ratings bomb today, and it’s safe to say that the New York restaurant world is, as usual, reeling. Though not as consequential as a Zagat snub, business-wise, the Michelin ratings are closer to the hearts of top chefs. (French chef Bernard Loiseau was widely believed to have killed himself over a Michelin downgrade.) The book is supposed to be in stores tomorrow (though our local Barnes & Noble says it’s not even at the distributor yet). We do, however, know of some surprises. Messrs. Boulud, Bouley, and Takahama are no doubt having lousy afternoons.