Rolling the Dice: 10 Downing

The Line: Tomorrow, Frank Bruni reviews Jason Neroni’s comeback at 10 Downing. The Eater oddsmakers have set the action as follows (√√ denotes the Eater bet):

Zero Stars: 8-1
One Star: 3-1
Two Stars: 4-1 √√
Three Stars: 55-1
Four Stars: 20,000-1

The Skinny: The range of outcomes here is bounded by Bruni’s past reviews of Neroni’s work: two stars at 71 Clinton, a singleton at the short-lived Porchetta. We found 10 Downing promising when we visited in mid-December. We weren’t quite ready to buy into two stars, but we certainly thought it could be headed in that direction.

The restaurant has been open for four months. That’s longer than Bruni normally waits. We’re guessing he was on the fence between one and two stars, and wanted to see how Neroni’s performance here would mature.

The Bet: This has been the year of the one-star restaurant. We think Bruni has been itching to find a place to get excited about. Perhaps 10 Downing is that place. We agree with Eater that Frank Bruni will award two stars to 10 Downing.