The 2004 Zagat rankings for the NYC area just came out and among the list of the best restaurants in New York, outranking perrenial faves like Gramercy Tavern and Babbo is Smith Street's own Grocery.
Now, I've eaten there several times and it's a wonderful restaurant, but it's a wonderful neighborhood restaurant. And, frankly, I don't think it's any more wonderful than its neighbor Restaurant Saul. In fact, discounting Grocery's garden, which is only open during fair weather, Saul boasts a much more serene and elegant environment. I've often been so cramped in Grocery's little dining room that I felt like I was dining in a subway car, rather than a fine restaurant - let alone a Zagat topper.
After originally giving the Brooklyn restaurant one solitary star back in 2000, William Grimes decided to revisit Grocery in light of the new Zagat pat on the back:
The Grocery, three years on, is a far better restaurant. Dinner proceeds at an orderly pace, and even though everyone at my table ordered different dishes for each course, there were no delays. The food philosophy remains the same, but the execution is crisper, the flavors even more defined...For what it is, the Grocery is about as good as it can be. So in one sense, the Zagat voters are correct. The Grocery deserves a nearly perfect score. But perfection at one culinary level does not compare with perfection at a higher level. Olympic diving might offer the best analogy. A perfect reverse somersault with one turn cannot earn as high a score as a perfect reverse somersault with two and a half turns. By the same token, the perfect three-minute pop song cannot grip the imagination and hold it the way a three-minute polonaise by Chopin can. Subtlety, finesse and refinement deserve a higher score. Art trumps craft. The best bistro in New York should not be considered the equal of a Daniel or a Le Bernardin.
In this sense, either the Zagat voters are wrong or the scoring system incorporates an absurdity. Mr. Kiely and Ms. Pachter would probably be the first to point it out. The Brooklyn Cyclones could win all 76 of their games, but they would still be a minor league team. A great one, but still minor league.
And, his current review got me curious about his take on Saul. Unfortunately, the NYT Web site doesn't offer one up, but I did find this one line review:
Of all the little places that have opened along Smith Street in Brooklyn recently, Saul's food is the most refined and elegant.
Don't know if those are the words of Grimes, but nonetheless, I wholeheartedly agree.
Tim and Nina: Lemme know if you ever want to go. I'd be happy to join your party. And, unlike Grocery, there'll be enough extra elbow room to go around.
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