Ligaya Figueras Gives the Relocated and Reimagined Double Zero One Star

Atlanta Journal-Constitution food editor Ligaya Figueras reviews Double Zero, which relocated to Emory Village and updated its menu in September. Figueras hands out a “good” rating of one out of four stars, praising the small plates but calling into question the pastas and pizzas.

The restaurant has two impressive-looking wood-fired brick ovens, open for all the world to see — even through a glass window in the bathroom hallway — and yet it serves a floppy pizza, hardly the crisp, crackly crust and steaming hot, blistered toppings I anticipated, particularly because, prior to the move, its name was Double Zero Napoletana. Even if the flour — the double zero that lends this place a name — is authentic, the soggy pizza coming out of the oven is not Neapolitan. ... The restaurant makes its own extruded pastas. It gets credit for freshness, but the pasta was overly thick, like the dense tubes of spinach garganelli (no longer on the menu) with a salty chicken ragu.

The upper half of the menu is devoted to small plates whose ingredients and flavors seem more broadly Mediterranean than Italian in focus. ... The arancini might well be the best I’ve tasted in the South. It is also arancini of the American South. The balls are more meaty than rice-y, laden with smoky, barbecued brisket. Those balls were fried to a perfect golden brown, the insides wonderfully moist with melted cheddar and topped with an exacting dab of exquisite sweet honey truffle aioli.

Over at Atlanta Magazine, critic Jennifer Zyman takes in Food Terminal, the new Malaysian wonderland in Chamblee. Zyman awards an “excellent” rating of three out of four stars and says the restaurant is a symbol of Buford Highway’s modern resurgence.

Food Terminal, which opened in March, is the quintessential expression of this resurgence. The restaurant looks more like an upscale food hall with neon lights and yellow-coated industrial metal stools, and it serves Malaysian food, which is inherently a mix of Chinese, Indian, Singaporean, and Thai flavors. There is no better cuisine to illustrate what Buford Highway has become: a collage of cultures, where different is treasured and even sought out. ... As someone who holds Buford Highway so dear that I chose to live near it, I’m encouraged by the arrival of Food Terminal. It tells me that BuHi is becoming, once again, the most exciting place to eat in Atlanta.

THE ELSEWHERE AND THE BLOGS: Creative Loafing food editor Hilary Cadigan takes a first look at Petit Chou, a charming breakfast and lunch destination in Cabbagetown. Roamilicious says Food Terminal is worth several visits to eat one’s way through the menu. Bella Vivere finds excellent Korean comfort food at Takorea & Ssam Bar. Fried Chicken Lips is a fan of the noodles and dumplings at Lan Zhou Ramen. Hot Dish Review likes the yakitori and fusion tacos at Whiskey Bird. Friday Date Night says sushi at Bishoku is a hidden gem in Sandy Springs.

• All Week in Reviews [EATL]