Dominic Perri

Chefs John Bignelli (left) and Wylie Dufresne (right) at Alder

This week's review is of Alder, Wylie Dufresne's new restaurant in the East Village, where I found the platonic ideal of clam chowder -- lean but incredibly silky, full of flavor -- with a particularly delicious trick up its sleeve.

Photographer Dominic Perri took so many excellent photos at the restaurant, it seemed a shame to show you only one. See the rest after the jump.

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Dominic Perri

Alder's take on pigs in a blanket.

This week Robert Sietsema reviewed Cole's Greenwich Village, a West Village restaurant in a building "shaped like a wedge of brie," while Tejal Rao took a crack at Alder, Wylie Dufresne's new spot in the East Village.

Sietsema begins with a history lesson:

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Kajitsu's glass noodles

On this sunny May Day, our critics single out two new restaurants to usher in the season. In Midtown, Tejal Rao bows her head in favor of the vegan Japanese Buddhist temple cuisine at Kajitsu, while Robert Sietsema slurps up soup dumplings at Full House on the Bowery. Read on to see how the professionals rated their meals.

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Is it summer yet? Not quite. But our dining professionals found themselves in the kind of casually inviting spaces that seem to usher in the warm weather (at least, we hope they will).

Robert Sietsema checked in on longtime West Village favorite Cafe Cluny, while Tejal Rao ventured to Carroll Gardens to visit the brand-new and buzzy Nightingale 9. Find out if the hotspots lived up to their hype after the jump.

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Mark Hewko

Spring is ripe with surprises (80 degrees, 40 degrees, you know the drill). This week, our professional eaters explored two curveball restaurants and were pleasantly delighted--though not equally--by each. Tejal Rao appreciated the food at Pearl & Ash more than the dark and noisy space on the Bowery, while Robert Sietsema was bowled over by Kittery in Carroll Gardens.

Find out more about this week's choice eats after the jump.

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David Penner

Spring is (finally) in the air and the warm weather seems to be lightening our moods as well as our wardrobes. Did the rising temperatures have the same effect on our critics?

Tejal Rao has mixed feelings about Manzanilla in Gramercy, while Robert Sietsema writes a rave for Cathedral in Flatbush. Read on to find out how they really felt.

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Mark Hewko

This week, our critics were equally charmed by a petite French bistro and a bustling Bowery tapas joint. Robert Sietsema dug into a mussels poutine at Three Letters in Clinton Hill, while Tejal Rao scooped up hearty bites of paella at Cata on the Lower East Side.

Will the professionals go back for second helpings? Read on to find out.

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Village Voice

This week, our professional eaters sought out plates that reminded them of home -- if not theirs, then someone else's. In Astoria, Robert Sietsema enjoyed an Egyptian feast at El Omda, while Tejal Rao sopped up the sauce at Red Gravy in Brooklyn Heights.

How did our critics rate their Middle Eastern and Italian feasts? Find out after the break.

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Dominic Perri

Despite the calendar's promises, New York doesn't seem to know that it's spring. Perhaps our food critics had a feeling that the winter chill would linger in the air, as they both sought out belly-warming comfort food this week. Robert Sietsema slurped up ramen at Suzume and Ganso, while Tejal Rao opted for a Mexican-influenced meal nearby at Xixa.

How did the professionals rate their choices? Read on to find out.

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Liz Barclay

This week, Robert Sietsema introduces his meal of crossing-bridge-noodles at Tribeca's Lotus Blue through a Yunnan folktale. Further uptown, Tejal Rao reminisces about the highs and lows of restaurant staff meals before exploring the Upper West Side's new Mexican comfort-food restaurant, Cocina Economica.

Fables and family-meal memories aside, how did our critics rate this week's homier dishes? Read on to find out.

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