Frank Bruni, the once-elusive prestigious food critic for the NY Times wrote his swan song today for the food section. Scattered amongst a mix of general tidbits of advice he had never had a chance to write prior, Bruni gives his tried-and-true method of navigating a restaurant menu to reach the good dishes.

Scratch off the appetizers and entrees that are most like dishes you’ve seen in many other restaurants, because they represent this one at its most dutiful, conservative and profit-minded. The chef’s heart isn’t in them.


Scratch off the dishes that look the most aggressively fanciful. The chef’s vanity — possibly too much of it — spawned these.


Then scratch off anything that mentions truffle oil.


Choose among the remaining dishes.

[NYT]