- On Wednesday, Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov made a bid to buy a majority stake in the New Jersey Nets, a deal which also involves 45 percent ownership in the Barclays Arena, the focal point of Bruce Ratner's troubled Atlantic Yards project. [NYO]
- Could Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz—an enthusiastic advocate of the development—be embarrassed by the sale? [NYP]
- On Friday afternoon, Tavern on the Green's labor union is expected to protest future operator Dean Poll's proposal to reduce wages, change benefits, and adjust scheduling provisions at restaurant. [Crain's]
- Poll has other ideas for the eatery up his sleeve, including not hiring a big-name chef, sticking to an American menu, reducing the number of seats, and hopefully keeping the site open during a renovation that could take up to four years to complete. [NYP]
- On Tuesday, the Museum of Chinese in America opened its new Maya Lin-designed home on Centre Street. [NYT]
- The Andaz Wall Street hotel will debut in January with 253 rooms, meeting space, and a 3,550-square-foot restaurant. [HotelChatter]
- Gourmet's travel editor visits the Crosby Street Hotel, a boutique SoHo property scheduled to open next Tuesday, which he claims is poised to steal the spotlight from the Standard Hotel. [Gourmet]
- Kent Swig, president of Swig Equities, a real estate development company involved in the construction of the Nobu hotel-condo venture in the financial district, may file for bankruptcy protection. [The Real Deal]
- Steve Cuozzo reports that the Plaza hotel still appears to be suffering from the downturn, with its restaurant only open for dinner and the Palm Court still closed to the public. [NYP]
- Much like the Cooper Square Hotel and the Thompson Lower East Side, the Jane Hotel is drawing complaints from neighbors, who dislike the noise and crowds that emanate from the property's bar and lounge. [Curbed]
- For the second week in a row, The New York Times dining editor Pete Wells runs a no-star review, this time criticizing the Hotel Griffou for treatment that worsened with each visit, food presentation that's "scattershot," and "wildly inconsistent" service. [NYT]
- At Gus & Gabriel, Jay Cheshes finds chef Michael Psilakis' "tasty new approach" to casual fare an experiment in "excess over extravagance," where "prices are low and portions enormous." [TONY]
- Andrea Thompson checks out TriBeCa's new sports bar Warren 77, where "satisfying" food and televisions "set high, at neck-craning angles" "seem to signify that the owners were more interested in style than sweat." [New Yorker]
