Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Do not listen to this man!

Unlike my other foodie friends, I don't usually join in the pile ons against Frank Bruni. When he encounters something he doesn't like (like Ago, for instance, or Kobe Club) he can be a pretty funny writer. And while his taste is hit and miss, he's a pretty good judge. Mostly.

But I have to say, his review today of Szechuan Gourmet was just ridiculous.

I've never actually sat down at Szechucan Gourmet, but in my free-wheeling pre-cholesterol-worrying days, my editor and I used to order in from there pretty frequently.

It was decidedly mediocre. (Better than average -- but only slightly. Not nearly as good as Wu Liang Ye if you're looking for Chinese food in the Midtown area.)

However, we stopped ordering from Szechuan Gourmet when we ordered lunch from them one day and it took them more than an hour to deliver it. I got into such a fight with the lady on the phone that I told my editor, "I can't ever call there again. I think I'm on a list."