Seymour Britchky, 73; New York City Restaurant Critic

Seymour Britchky, 73, a New York restaurant critic who chronicled the city’s eateries in a monthly newsletter and wrote a compilation of reviews that was published annually for 16 years, died Friday in New York City of pancreatic cancer.

A former marketing executive, Britchky turned to restaurant criticism at age 41, launching a newsletter he dubbed “The Restaurant Reporter” in 1971. His primary credential to become a critic, he always said, was that he ate three meals a day.

Five years later, he stopped publishing the newsletter and created an annual compilation, “The Restaurants of New York.” The guide was published by Random House from 1976 to 1983 and by Simon & Schuster from 1984 to 1991.

From 1980 to 1991, Britchky published another monthly newsletter called “Seymour Britchky’s Restaurant Letter.” In 1995, he co-wrote a cookbook with Andre Soltner, the chef and former owner of Lutece restaurant. The gastronomic tome was called “The Lutece Cookbook.”