Lobster Thermidor at Monkey Bar. Photograph: Donna Alberico/The New York Times/Redux

Jay Cheshes awards three stars to Graydon Carter’s exclusive Monkey Bar, writing that while “the food under [chef Larry] Forgione is much improved…the coddled clientele doesn’t come here for a dining adventure.” [TONY]

Bark Hot Dogs is a four-star neighborhood favorite, serving a wiener that’s “everything a hot dog should be.” [TONY]

The historic King Cole Bar, birthplace of the Bloody Mary, gets only two stars. Caveat emptor: “Leave the mixology to your pals south of 14th Street.” [TONY]

Sam Sifton files the long-awaited Marea review, awarding it three stars and writing that while it’s “a seafood restaurant…it is perhaps more accurate to call it a restaurant inspired by seafood—but by no means in thrall to it.” [NYT]

Adam Platt finds a “pleasantly intimate, cocktail-party feel,” and a “very standard bistro menu” at Joseph Leonard. He also visits Civetta, where, “if you choose wisely, it’s possible to have a decent meal.” Each restaurant only manages one star. [NYMag]

Ryan Sutton will never cross the river for a pie again now that he’s found that the “pizza is outstanding” at Motorino. [Bloomberg]

“Tables for Two” tackles the banh mi craze, recommending “Sau Voi Corp.’s exemplary bánh mì dac biet,” but dismissing Baoguette’s take, which “verges on garish.” [New Yorker]

Steve Cuozzo looks at SD26’s practice of offering half-size portions, which are as “attractively presented and fully realized as the bigger ones.” [NYP]

Abe & Arthur’s “may look like drinking and mating but it tastes like a restaurant,” says drinker, mater and restaurant lover Gael Greene. [Insatiable Critic]