Gotham Gastronomy

A Virtual Vase for the Flowers of Food and the Whorls of Wine...

Friday, March 03, 2006

Good Idea/Bad Idea

Today, we debut a new segment here at GG! The title would work better with the proper prosody and jingles allowed by audio, but since we work with the written word, you'll have to use your imagination!

Good Idea...
Real estate agents operating on the Upper West Side allow us an amuse bouche or two, playing Pavlov and sending Upper-Westies into a frenzy of salivation. Two "big name restauranteurs" are both (independently) (and quietly) searching Upper Broadway for ventilation equipped space sized at roughly 8000 square feet. Several martinis coupled with shameless groveling failed to harvest any further details, but the prospect of any opening in the area is exciting. Case in point, consider the inexplicable elevation of Tom Valentini's Ouest to super star status; likewise, look at the success enjoyed by the late Arthur Cutler's junta in the area. A little goes a long way up there, and here, at GG, we think that even a cookie-cutter-cafe will be a welcome addition... Good Idea!

Bad Idea...
Multiple sources tell us that Colors is looking to expand. The worldly, worker owned and run restaurant is staffed by former employees of Windows on the World and features a menu comprised of dishes from their home-countries. Despite a myriad of mediocre reviews, the establishment is always packed; so, an expansion sounds simply superb! However, it's not! The problem lies in the fact that Colors is all heart; I respect their cause and concept, but at the end of the day, the food is everywhere and subsequently nowhere, not to mention the tables are too close and the service while happy and extremely amiable, well, leaves something to be desired on the fine dining level. Now, we are told the aim is to open a downscale version where the employees can "afford to take their own families." Once again, nice concept, but fine tune the existing aspects before pushing your luck guys... this city can eat you (alive)... Bad Idea!

Better Idea...
Colors should open a series of smaller vending establishments a la Danny Meyer where customers can sample savory bits of the ethnic cuisine, in effect advertising the mothership. With some work, Colors can be a presence in this town, but don't rush it!

Good Idea...
Kudos to Glenn on his return to Wd-50 as GM!

NOTE
After publication, I received an email from COLORS' publicist contradicting this report. He writes, "While it is true and has been reported in the past that ROC's goal is to open more restaurants based on the COLORS model in the future, there are no plans to do so at this time or in the near future."
Ethics dictate that I include this information, but I will respond that the information was readily volunteered to me by employees over the course of my two (and a half) visits... as I understand it, the restaurant is worker owned which would make my sources the owners.?! Perhaps, this confusion is an argument for a traditional ownership model? I hope not; preferrably COLORS can sort out all of their confusion and continue displaying their hues for years to come.

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