After 12 years, Pete Wells is stepping down as the NY Times’ restaurant critic. “I realized I wasn’t hungry. And I’m still not, at least not the way I used to be.” But also: “My cholesterol, blood sugar and hypertension were worse than Iād expected.”
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Discussion 2 comments
See also The Most Memorable Reviews by Pete Wells, ranging from Per Se to Guy's American Kitchen & Bar.
These viral reviews were a bit over the top. Per se, maybe- they are charging people hundreds of dollars, so they deserved to get kneecapped if they fall off. Did the NYT really need to review Guy's? It's a tacky tourist trap in Times Square. Unnecessary hit piece on a guy whose show gives exposure to small restaurants all over the country (on a trip from SF to LA I made my family stop at 2 DDD restaurants in random spots, and I'm not ashamed to say that). And Lugers? Lugers still rocks. It's priced like a steak house in NYC. There are for sure better steak houses (see Hawksmoor, etc). But Pete's over the top reviews seemed self serving to me. For restaurant reviews I mainly use the Infatuation, and maybe an NYT review for more detail. That said, I look forward to his new direction.
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