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Looks like Mayor de Blasio has snow on his face.

After defending the city against critics who claimed sanitation workers were slow to plow a ritzy Manhattan neighborhood after a record snowfall, de Blasio reversed himself Wednesday after visiting the area.

“I determined more could have been done to serve the Upper East Side,” a chastened de Blasio said in a statement. “I have instructed the commissioner of the Department of Sanitation to double-down on cleanup efforts.”

But just hours earlier, de Blasio dismissed as flaky reports that the high-priced ‘hood got shafted because it's awash in wealthy people like former Mayor Bloomberg who opposed the recently elected Democratic mayor.

Marcus Santos/New York Daily News

At 53rd St. and Park Ave., drivers were slipping and sliding Wednesday before snowplows finally arrived.

"They're just mistaken," de Blasio said. "No one was treated differently. We believe in a five-borough approach in everything we do. People need to be mindful when they hurl those charges."

Earlier, Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty said most of the snow hit during the Tuesday evening rush hour, making plowing tough in the congested neighborhood.

“I had 278 pieces of equipment working that area," he said. "Some people see a lot and some people don't see a lot. I know what I have out there. We were out there working hard."

NBC weatherman Al Roker ripped de Blasio for not being better prepared for the storm.

Rob Bennett for the Office of Mayor Bill de Blasio

Mayor Bill de Blasio visits the Upper East Side on Wednesday after denizens complained sanitation workers were slow to plow there.

"They claimed it caught them off guard, that it came in early," Roker said on the "Today" show. "No, no, no, it didn't! They should have been watching us!"

PHOTOS: NEW YORKERS SLIP AND SLIDE THROUGH JANUS’ SNOW AND ICE

Also, it was hard not to notice how snow-free the streets looked in Park Slope, Brooklyn, where de Blasio is from.

“It’s a good as it’s ever been,” said Tom Lipinski, a 31-year-old neighbor of hizzoner.

As Roker spoke, four snowplows were barreling down Lexington Ave.

Barry Williams for New York Daily News

One of several snowplows finally clear the southbound lane of Park Ave. near 50th St. on Wednesday.

PHOTOS: METLIFE STADIUM BURIED UNDER SNOW FOLLOWING WINTER STORM JANUS

“I’m surprised that it’s taken the plows this long this time,” said 50-year-old James O'Brian, who lives on the Upper East Side. “They usually respond quicker. It's unusual."

But other residents said gripers need to get a grip.

“It wasn’t a blizzard,” said 61-year-old Yvonne Murray who lives on East 78th St. “How often do we get these snow storms?”

PHOTOS: WINTER STORM JANUS BRINGS MORE SNOW, FREEZING TEMPERATURES TO U.S.

Marcus Santos/New York Daily News

New Yorkers dug their way out of the second major snowstorm of the year, but pedestrians slipped and slid at 53 St. and Park Ave. ? the way vehicles did before plows finally arrived.

It’s understandable why de Blasio might not have taken the complaints from the Upper East Side too seriously.

Taking shots at mayors for snow removal is a time-honored tradition. And when de Blasio was public advocate he accused Bloomberg of prioritizing Manhattan over the other boroughs after a 2010 snowstorm.

Then as now, Doherty was in charge of the snow plowing.

Still, De Blasio reported that city workers using some 1,800 pieces of snow removal equipment "made a lot of progress overnight."

STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images

A snowplow clears up East 91 St. near Madison Ave. on Wednesday, after residents in the area complained the city left their streets snowbound overnight.

"As of 6 a.m. this morning, 100% of primary streets have been plowed, 99% of secondary streets and 90% of tertiary streets," the mayor said.

Public schools were open Wednesday, but about half of the students played hooky. The citywide attendance rate was 47.1 percent. On an average day, it’s roughly 90 percent.

"Many students were hoping for a snow day; one of those students resides in my home," de Blasio said, referring to his son Dante, who attends Brooklyn Technical High School. "I had to make the call to disappoint him last night and tell him that the right thing to do was to keep school open."

Asked how Dante reacted, de Blasio said he "personally escorted him to school."

David Handschuh/New York Daily News

Shovelers ? out in force on the Upper East Side long before the snowplows ? did their part to clean up snow at 53rd St. and Third Ave. after Tuesday's snowstorm.

"He was grousing the whole way," the mayor said.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service warned the brrrrutal weather will be sticking around for a while.

"It looks like by Saturday we could get into the lower 30s, but even that is below normal,” said meteorologist Michael Silva.

New Yorkers braved windchills of minus 10 to 14 degrees a day after Tuesday’s wintery wallop, during which a new snow record of 11 inches was set for that date in Central Park.

Police reported the first injury of the cold snap ? a man in his 20s who suffered a split lip when he was hit by a football-sized falling icicle at 30 W. 48th St.

“A piece of ice fell first right in front of him and he stopped, looked up, and said, ‘They need to do something about this’,” said witness Onikwa Thomas, 46. “Then he looked back up and a piece hit him right in the face.”

With Kerry Burke, Caitlin Nolan and Erik Badia

csiemaszko@nydailynews.com