Bronwyn, Blue Dragon Make Esquire's Best New Restaurants

"National listicles like Esquire's are silly, but congrats anyway to Bronwyn and Blue Dragon," tweeted local food critic MC Slim JB about John Mariani's annual "Best New Restaurants" listicle. Bronwyn is praised as "a neighborhood place that deserves national attention for reinventing food we thought we knew" and Blue Dragon as "a revelation of flavors and preparations."

In the Boston press, Bronwyn has received uniformly strong praise, though Blue Dragon's reviews have been far from overwhelmingly positive. Former Improper author B.N. Lee went so far as to recommend other new modern-Asian gastropub Shojo over Blue Dragon in that critic's review of Ming Tsai's Fort Point restaurant. Mariani's reputation is not necessarily the most solid. In fact, in a Daily Meal poll taken of big-name chefs about food critics, he ranked 20 of 22 in three categories: overall, culinary knowledge, and integrity. Seven chefs commented on his "reputation of accepting, and seeking 'freebies.'" Sound off with your thoughts on Mariani's Boston picks in the comments below.
· Best New Restaurants 2013 [Esquire]
· All coverage of Listicles on Eater [~EBOS~]