NYC Wine & Food Festival: Bruni Unveiled
Posted by bellastraniera - 12/10/09 at 01:10 pm This weekend’s NYC Wine & Food Festival reflected the current state of the food industry: corporate sponsors mixed with independent chefs, TV cameras were everywhere, and the competition was fierce. One of the kickoff events was a particularly good interview of Frank Bruni by Eater cofounder Ben Leventhal, who, after some initial palling around, leveled some tough questions at the former Times restaurant critic. Let’s hope the interview cleared up some questions about whether or not a “blogger” can be a “journalist.”
Bruni recounted some memorable times he was recognized at restaurants, discussed the evolving NYT star system, bristled at some feedback by restauranteurs, and chose what he would eat if stranded on a desert island. Some key excerpts from the evening, after the jump.
El Chod
Bruni joked about Jeffrey Chodorow’s full-page ad: “I’m still bitter I didn’t get any commission for that.”
Drew Nierporent
On reviewing Nobu 57: “Drew Nierporent was stalking the room like a caged lion” while their waitress eavesdropped on their conversation. When Bruni had a klutzy run-in with the soap dispenser in the bathroom, the waitress took three glasses of wine off the tab, and the manager offered to buy him a new shirt. “At that point I was like, it’s soap. It should come out.”
Two Stars vs. Three Stars
Ben Leventhal pointed out that many restaurants go to the added expense of using white tablecloths and serving amuse bouche because that’s what traditionally constitutes a three-star restaurant. He named the John Dory as an example, which only got two stars from Bruni. On the other hand, Momofuku Ssam got three stars, and not only does that restaurant not use white tablecloths, it has a bin of chopsticks in the center of each table.
Bruni countered: “Stars should reflect your level of enthusiasm about the place, how much you want to direct people there.” Bruni wanted his print recommendations to match the recommendations he was giving friends when they asked where they should go for dinner.
The Future of Dining
Bruni predicted that “No longer would culinary ambition wear predictable clothes” and cited The Redhead as an example of the new scrappiness. “Very talented chefs are taking unconventional settings” and turning them into great restaurants.
Another prediction: “I don’t think we’re going to have that many four-star restaurants. A lot of it is economically driven” – because it’s so expensive to open a four-star restaurant, but also “I don’t think people care as much about that anymore.”
Nierporent vs. Chang
Leventhal circled back to the stars issue, saying that Drew Nierporent felt slighted by Bruni’s star ratings. At this point, Bruni seemed irritated.
Bruni: “Drew feels slighted? Why does he feel slighted? I gave three stars to Corton.”
Leventhal countered that some restauranteurs think that “Dave Chang has a much easier time of it because of his profit margins.”
Bruni said, “I don’t think we should shortchange his accomplishments at Ssam,” adding that he has eaten many excellent meals there. “Why should you just get awarded points for following a [white tablecloth] script?” As for Chang’s profit margins, “Well, good for him then. He’s figured it out.
The Brooklyn Dining Scene
While Bruni readily agreed that the Brooklyn dining scene has improved by leaps and bounds during his tenure, he doubted there would ever be a four-star restaurant there. “To get four stars you need a certain level of ambition. It’s sort of like the Olympics”: a perfectly-executed swan dive is not the same thing as a perfectly-executed triple flip. Furthermore, “there are a bunch of things you need to use a restaurant for, including business dinners,” and he doubted downtown Brooklyn in its current state could attract that. “It takes a big investment” to open a four-star restaurant, and it seems unlikely that investors would pick Brooklyn for a four-star place.
View From the Other Side
A server raised his hand and said he had waited on Bruni twice and found him to be very courteous. But the server gave everyone some insight about what’s going on behind the scenes when the Times’ restaurant critic appears: “When you walk into a restaurant, it’s like a bomb went off.”
Zero Stars
Bruni said that the thing people don’t know about is the number of restaurants that never get reviewed, because it seems “immoral” to give an unknown restaurant zero stars. On the other hand, he had no qualms about giving well-publicized restaurants zero stars. (Ninja came up often.) “I think you need to write a number of zero-star reviews in order for one star to have any meaning.”
Dos and Don’ts for a Restaurant
“You can never recover from a bad first impression.” Bruni said he was “shocked” at the number of restaurants that bungle the phones and the host station greeting. “It’s so easy to control.”
Do You Cook?
Bruni confessed he has never been a very good cook because he’s too impatient, often eating most of the ingredients before they make it into the oven.
Least Favorite Food
Whole anchovies and brussels sprouts.
Most Transcendent Food Moment
The toro roll at Masa was the best thing he ate during his tenure.
What Turns Him On About Restaurants
“The orthodox level of pampering. You sit there, and they serve you, and it’s the highest level of infantalization.”
Desert Island Food
Leventhal finished with a old question with a twist: If Bruni were stranded on a desert island and had to choose between Mr. Chow, Ninja, and [two other places] for his food, which would he choose?
Bruni: “Neither. I think I would pull a Tom Hanks in Castaway and fish with my hands.”
Related posts:
bellastraniera
a.k.a. Marcy Swingle - obsessed with food and fashion.
Email 
Twitter 
RSS