The Payoff: Co.

Yesterday, Frank Bruni awarded one star to Co. We are still not sure what this review was doing in Bruni’s territory. If ever there were an obvious $25 & Under candidate, this was it. Anyhow:

Its sire and guiding spirit, Jim Lahey, hails from the breadmaking side of things. It’s bread above all he knows and loves, and you may well have tasted the evidence of that if you’ve eaten out in New York over recent years. Many restaurants buy loaves, rolls, focaccia and such from Sullivan Street Bakery, his yeasty baby. At least they do if they’re smart.

… … …

But he could indeed improve upon his pizzas somewhat. Although the best of them are outstanding and all pack the pleasures of a serious crust with serious blisters — Mr. Lahey uses an oven that generates heat in excess of 900 degrees — he hasn’t yet nailed the toppings. It’s as if he’s too focused on, and maybe too confident about, what lies beneath. A pizzaiolo-come-lately, he needs to sweat the cheese and the rest of it a little more.

We and Eater both took the one-star bet, but it paid only even money, so we win just $1 on our hypothetical one-dollar bets.

	Eater		NYJ
Bankroll	$126.50		$147.67
Gain/Loss	+1.00		+1.00
Total	$127.50		$148.67
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Won–Lost	57–25 (70%)		59–23 (72%)

Rolling the Dice: Co.

The Line: Tomorrow, Frank Bruni gives yet another audition for the $25 & Under column with a review of Jim Lahey’s Vongerichten-backed pizzeria, Co. (pronounced “Company”). The Eater oddsmakers have set the action as follows (√√ denotes the Eater bet):

Zero Stars: 10-1
One Star: EVEN √√
Two Stars: 5-1
Three Stars: 500-1
Four Stars: 20,736-1

The Skinny: Today’s action won’t detain us for long. We’re not regulars on the pizzeria circuit: there just aren’t enough days in the year, nor spare calories in our diet. But the notion of betting on anything other than one star strikes us as absurd, crazy, or absurdly crazy. Take your pick.

The Bet: The year of the one-star restaurant continues. We are betting that Frank Bruni will award one star to Co.