Today's review roundup includes: La Masseria, Krystal's Cafe, Ono, Abboccato, Peperoncino.
NYTimes Frank Bruni reviews La Masseria one star, "Italian rustic, just off Broadway" (235 West 48th Street; 212-582-2111):
The menu ranges far and wide over land and sea, carpaccio and capesante, in a naked bid to appeal to all audiences. There are unfamiliar scene-stealers, including a dish of fettucinelike noodles with wedges of eggplant and smoked mozzarella in a light tomato sauce. There are familiar star turns, including that tagliatelle. And there are unfamiliar performances from familiar players, most conspicuously a limoncello-flavored tiramisù that, like most other desserts, was worthy of nothing more than faint applause.
You can pretty much count on generous portions but not, sadly, on careful preparations. With the exception of that pompano and the shrimp, scallops and squid in an absolutely wonderful fritto misto, the seafood I sampled at La Masseria was overcooked. So was grilled chicken, which bore the additional indignity of too much salt.
RECOMMENDED DISHES Stuffed fresh mozzarella; baby octopus with broccoli rabe and fava beans; fritto misto; scialatielli with eggplant and smoked mozzarella; veal chop; rabbit; tartufo ice cream.
NYTimes $25 and Under visits Krystal's Cafe, serving up Filipino comfort food in Woodside, Queens ( 69-02 Roosevelt Avenue, Woodside, Queens; 718-898-1900):
Chicken adobo ($4.95), supremely tender, primarily dark meat chicken, was braised in garlic, bay, vinegar and soy. My friend assured me that it lived up to his memories. It is the sort of elemental preparation that is impossible to tire of; it is what your mom would have waiting for you on the stove when you came home for the holidays if it was in her repertory.
Pancit bihon ($4.95) was a similarly homey dish. Though the menu promised rice noodles with shrimp, pork and vegetables, cabbage and celery seemed to dominate the mix. No matter. It was simple and straightforward, and I could immediately imagine myself as a child in front of the television, downing a plate of it with a glass of milk.
The sizzling sisig ($7.95), minced raw onions and diced pork delivered to the table on a piping hot cast iron platter, is like a relative of corned beef hash from a country where pig is big. At the table, an egg yolk stirred into the meat and onion hash cloaks it with a velvety coating, and a squeeze of lemon brightens the dish.
... The East Village offshoot of Krystal's, on First Avenue near 11th Street, opened in 2002 and has slightly higher prices.
BEST DISHES Chicken adobo; sautéed rice noodles; sizzling sisig; lechon; barbecued chicken.
NYPost Steve Cuozzo gives Ono two stars, "Ono is no Rocco's. You can eat well, and the wait staff couldn't be sweeter"(18 Ninth Avenue; 212-660-6766):
The menu baits the swap-and-share crowd with a zoo of small plates, sushi rolls dubbed "o-no" for no rice or "o-yes," and "very large plates" that really are very large.
The party starts with irresistible, salted rice paper crisps dusted with sweet-and-sour barbecue powder. Specialty rolls have crackle and spark, too. But Kazuhiko Hashimoto's nigiri offerings sport chuckleheaded toppings like a green jalapeno blob on toro.
One night when we were recognized, the kitchen spotted us the house parfait of uni, foie gras and tofu ($9). We recognized it, too: It's an eerily close cousin to a dish at davidburke & donatella, where executive chef Scott Ubert last worked.
Kobe carpaccio pizza ($14) is what a friend called "the worst kind of silly." I was ready to give up after braised pork belly ($17) arrived inedibly blubbery and burnt.
But other choices bring home the bacon. Mostly terrific robata snacks come with five scintillating dips. Salmon "chops" on the bone ($9) are out-of-this-world juicy.
NY Mag reviews Abboccato (136 W. 55th Street; 212-265-4000):
The proprietors of Abboccato are the Livanos family, owners of Molyvos and the fine seafood restaurant Oceana. They are diligent, successful restaurateurs, and if they haven't quite gotten the hang of the new Italian aesthetic yet, they certainly know how to choose a chef.
... The menu at Abboccato may be jumbled and overwrought, but the food has a polished, uptown elegance. Among the pastas, there are two very good ravioli, one filled with beets and Gorgonzola and sprinkled with poppy seeds, the other stuffed with wild greens. The excellent seafood pasta I sampled was folded with sweet razor clams and slivers of chewy, dissolving fish roe called bottarga, and the carbonara is made with strands of bucatini, salty bits of duck prosciutto, and whipped duck-egg yolks that grow richer and more buttery as you get to the bottom of the dish. The elaborate meat dishes for two are mostly worth their high sticker price (they�re all over $30 per head, without side dishes), particularly the Fiorentina porterhouse (served in a proper sauce of anchovies and crushed garlic), the big, truncheon-size veal shank, and the rack of lamb, which is baked, pastry-style, in a sea-salt crust infused with fresh mint.
Ideal Meal: Crudo or quail stuffed with mortadella, pasta with razor clams and bottarga, bucatini carbonara, veal shank, "Dolce Federico."
Village Voice Robert Sietsema reviews Peperoncino, the newest Italian trattoira in Park Slope, joining Al Da La and Convivium Osteria (72 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn; 718-638-4760):
... Memories still linger of paccheri alla Genovese ($13), an oniony and white-wine-laced beef ragu without a trace of tomato sauce, poured over al dente paccheri. Like short lengths of cardboard tube, this pasta is so obscure that it doesn't appear in John Mariani's Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink. Score 10 points for Peperoncino. Delve deeper and you'll discover that the sauce has a fascinating backstory: It was first introduced to Naples by Genoese merchants in the 17th century.
From the oven proceed some of the best Neapolitan-revival pizzas in town, giving Franny's on nearby Flatbush Avenue a run for its money. These pies hark back to 19th-century Neapolitan models, rather than American ones. The crusts are slightly thicker than Franny's, with small charred spots here and there.
