Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Nicoletta product placement or just trash?


Spotted early last evening on St. Mark's Place at Second Avenue... earlier in the day, Pete Wells bestowed a crushing 0 stars on Nicoletta in his review at The New York Times.

24 comments:

Crazy Eddie said...

"to manage the people willing to wait 90 minutes or more for a table"

Nuff said.

randall said...

"Mr. White has said he engineered the dough to stand up to the rigors of delivery and reheating with no loss of quality. In that, at least, he has succeeded. Warmed up a day or two later, a Nicoletta crust is just as stiff and bland as when it was fresh from the oven."

OUCH!

Maybe he should have just tried making dough instead of engineering or imagineering it.

Marty Wombacher said...

Trash.

Anonymous said...

so over these yuppie pizza places

Anonymous said...

The chicks at the door with clip boards are a bit much.

THE NOTORIOUS L.I.B.E.R.A.T.I.O.N. said...

$25 pizzas in a atmosphere described as "the most popular pizzeria in a small Midwestern college town" sounds awful.

Kurt said...

The chicks at the door with clip boards are a bit much.

How so? Two girls in black Nicoletta t-shirts and black pants aren't exactly a detriment to the neighborhood. And I've never seen more than 6-8 people outside. There is no 90 minute wait from what I can tell.

Anonymous said...

Ryan Sutton reviewed Nicoletta today at Bloomberg News, and gave it 1 star of out 4.

Crazy Eddie said...

Hey Kurt, it’s only friggin Pizza. Must everything now in the EV have attitude?

Anonymous said...

Thank you CE. It's so pretentious. Looking forward to their headsets!

Anonymous said...

Why *do* they stand outside? Has anyone been inside? Isn't there an area for a host-hostess stand? That Times review said that people were waiting upwards of 90 minutes for a table. Is that true?

Kurt said...

@Crazy Eddie, What attitude? Have you ever spoken to them or just dislike the idea of them standing there telling people how long the wait might be? That sidewalk could not be wider it's not like they are in any one's way. Of all the thing to complain about I do not even understand how people could fixate on this.

Anonymous said...

I appreciated the part in the review where he lays into the modern trend of charlatan celebrity chefs. I am sick of these shysters being glorified. They are not the real heros of the cooking world, far from it. They might be responsible for some tasty dishes and what not but IMO very few chefs actually warrant a celeb status.

Anonymous said...

@kurt Because it's rediculous for this tiny pizza place to put TWO people with clipboards on the street. It's an attention seeking gimmick. When I walked by one night I overheard one of them say it was a 20 minute wait. Someone walked out and I could see the place was half empty! It's a trick to create buzz and their clientele is so naive it seems to work. Unlike the pizza recipes.

Crazy Eddie said...

@Kurt-On the 4th of July this year, on a real dog day afternoon, I walked by this place. There, in the shimmering haze, stood the two Valkyries in black just outside the door. The place was empty. Even Momofuku, also a place I would never go to, doesn’t do this. This is done to create a “scene”. I know how this game is played. Last night, I went to the Yaffa Cafe. Good food, great service, nice crowd, no BS or attitude. If you want be a foodie and patronize a place like this, go ahead, be my guest.

Anonymous said...

The clipboards are pretty rediculous. What's next, valet parking and concierge services?

Kurt said...

@Crazy Eddie, if they are trying to create a scene they are doing a terrible job 1) Because it's really never crowded and 2) They leave the door open so you can see that it's not very crowded.

I still don't understand where the idea there is attitude comes from. Are they turning people away?

Crazy Eddie said...

Kurt, I guess this comment went right by you. “When I walked by one night I overheard one of them say it was a 20 minute wait. Someone walked out and I could see the place was half empty! It's a trick to create buzz and their clientele is so naive it seems to work”. And the other poster’s comments as well. And Pete Wells is a liar as well. And my previous comment that they were standing OUTSIDE in the brutal heat while the place was empty. Get it, having two very attractive people standing in front , dressed in black screams out to the hicks ”Are you are the guest list?” This is SOP for a restaurant or club trying desperately to be hip for their 10 minutes. OK, full disclosure, what financial interest do you have in this place?

Anonymous said...

#Kurt You're misinterpreting CE's use of the word attitude. He doesn't mean the clipboard folks are rude, or are throwing shade, they actually seem friendly. I believe what he means is that stationing people in the street to deal with a waiting list comes across as pompous for a place that sounds rather low brow.

Kurt said...

I'm really Michael White

we$tville ea$t said...

107 was not pizza to write home on, but i can tell this place sucks
seems like a fake imitation of Motorino for frat types.. who would wolf down this pizza within 2 blocks..
crazy eddie why did you have to bring momofuku into this.. you know it's good.. of course its not the best just marketed very well..
however this place is obviously just plain shitty just by their delivery range stunt and clipboard antics. trying to lure 13th holers off the street..

Anonymous said...

Then you must be very depressed right about now.

Crazy Eddie said...

@we$tville ea$t-Momofuku-OK, I confess, I went there once for lunch. It was good. But not organismic. A little too much hype. I miss Mee Noodle. I was a weekly regular there. Sob.

Gojira said...

@Crazy Eddie - I am with you, Mee was the best. I have a collection (growing ever-larger) of menus from now-defunct restaurants (Old Devil Moon, Five Roses Pizza,Village Mingala, etc.), and the menu from Mee is one of the highlights. Tried the one on Second Avenue once - not bad, but not the same.