Two Stars for Bushwick's Blanca

[ramsay de give for the times] the juke box at blancaMuch has been said about Blanca since it opened in April, including the fact that guests may pick records provided by the owners to soundtrack their meal.  The restaurant is Roberta's newest family member and it's home to Carlo Mirarchi's multi-course dinner that he serves to only 60 guests a week.  Sam Sifton wrote about "A Sleek Surprise Around Back of Roberta's" in June, Bon Appetit placed Blanca second on their America's Best New Restaurants List, and Adam Platt's three out of five star review of Blanca came out last Monday.  In our post about his review last week we asked, " What would Pete Wells do?"  Turns out he'd give it two stars.

Located on the Roberta's compound at 261 Moore Street off the Morgan stop on the L train, Blanca gives the city its fourth tasting-menu-only chef's counter.  David Chang's Momofuku Ko came first, then Cesar Ramirez gave the world Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare, and Matthew Lightner's food quickly reached cult status at Atera, his 12-seat Tribeca totem that opened in March.  That restaurant earned three stars from Wells in July thanks to a "steady sense of wonder."  Blanca falls a star short of Atera and two short of the Times' ultimate reward due to some inconsistencies in the 27-course meal:

Despite a few misgivings, Wells sees plenty of potential in what Blanca and its staff is doing, saying "More often, though, it is not Blanca’s ragged edges that impress so much as its polish and sophistication. Mr. Mirarchi and his staff are trying to find a new voice for fine dining, one that is both gracious and fun, and that could do for Brooklyn now what places like Chanterelle and Montrachet did for downtown Manhattan a few decades ago."