Skip to content, or skip to search.
Skip to content, or skip to search.
• Good news! It seems that baked goods made without trans fat taste just as good, if not better, according to a taste test. [NYDN]
• Spike Mendelsohn from Top Chef thinks Washington, D.C., is the next big food city. [WP]
• Ko’s reservation system has turned into a Net obsession? You don’t say. [Wired]
Leave the state; take the cannoli.Photo: iStockphoto
NJ Bakers' Fat Chance [NYP]
De Niro’s Tribeca Grill is the latest restaurant to be sued by ex-waiter complaining that managers skim tips. [NYP]
Kiwis consider the real key to Gordo’s New York success to be “Waikato farmboy” chef de cuisine Josh Emett. [New Zealand Herald]
The downstairs at La Esquina is reportedly open. [Down by the Hipster]
Little progress seems to have been made at Chumley’s, which was supposed to reopen in two weeks. [Lost City]
Shake Shack’s vanilla frozen custard deemed superior in a taste test of national favorites. [Serious Eats]
Alex Ureña is closing Ureña and turning it into “a bistro-style eater called Pamplona.” The modern Spanish curse continues! Now Suba alone carries the banner. [Eater]
Rocco DiSpirito doesn’t seem to mind being called a douche bag: “I was thinking he must have worked for me to know I'm a douche bag,” the chef tells Nina Lalli. [VV]
Related: Joey, Latest ‘Top Chef’ Non-Winner, on Why Rocco Is a Douche Bag
On his Top Chef blog Tony Bourdain has some wise words to console Joey: “Joey's the chef of a damn famous restaurant in New York freakin' City. The place every ambitious cook and chef hopes to work — in the big leagues. So he's already a ‘Top Chef’ — and already a winner in my book.” [Bravo]
Related: Adam Platt Finds the Moral in Last Night’s ‘Top Chef’
A myriad of consultants and experts are surrounding Sirio Maccioni, giving advice on how Le Cirque can recapture its now-departed magic. [Insatiable Critic]
Dessert bars are a hot enough trend right now that some restaurants and bakeries are transforming themselves at certain hours, while others, like P*ONG, are built expressly for the genre. [NYP]
Related: Because Our Desserts Are as Good as Everyone Else’s Entire Meals
Speaking of which, Asian dessert guru Pichet Ong will open a shop devoted to ice cream, pudding, and cookies next door to P*ONG on August 17. [Strong Buzz]
The owner of Pearl Oyster Bar sues the owner of Ed’s Lobster Bar for intellectual-property theft, accusing her former sous-chef of having stolen everything from the paint job to the Caesar salad dressing. [NYT]
Alain Ducasse has taken over Brasserie LCB and is looking to convert it into a bistro along the lines of Benoit, his casual place in Paris. [NYT]
It might not be such a good idea to hire a Top Chef. [NYO]
Pastis sits atop Zagat’s just-released nightlife rankings, with Buddha Bar, Balthazar, and Spice Market following close behind. [NYDN]
The city invited 33,000 restaurant and food-supply workers to attend their trans-fat seminar, and only 20 showed up. Half of them were city employees. [NYP]
Maybe Tony Bourdain doesn’t hate The Next Food Network Star as much as he makes out. Today brings another suspiciously obsessive-sounding post by the acerbic chef-author. [Ruhlman]
Chef Jason Neroni leaves Porchetta, citing “irreconcilable differences,” and claiming that pastry chef Mandy Brown and “most of the kitchen staff” are leaving with him. We don’t know the details (yet), but this seems pretty harsh: The restaurant gave him absolute creative license, as far as we can tell, for as long as it’s been open. [Eater]
Related: Chef's Desperate Plea: Nominate Me for an Award! [Grub Street]
New Yorkers aren’t really spooked by health violations: “If you take the subway, you know what’s down there.” [Diner’s Journal/NYT]
The city wants Burgers and Cupcakes to take down its huge, incandescent pink cupcake sign because it's too close to a hydrant, saying, "This isn't a campaign against cupcakes." [NYP]
The Central Park Boathouse has allegedly been scamming the city — hiding money and giving away meals. [NYP]
Ollie’s Grill workers, claiming they are paid only $1.44 an hour, bring a federal lawsuit against the place. [NYS]
Jeffrey Chodorow is back to business, promoting Kobe Club on the Today show. The highlight? “This beef actually lowers your cholesterol.” [MSNBC]
Bruni ponders bathrooms, giving a shout-out to Grub Street's Restroom Report; apparently the Sultan had a pretty nasty encounter with the ones at Gordon Ramsay. [NYT]
Hamptons officials loosen up and consider lifting the music ban in restaurants — if there's very tight regulation of it. [NYP]
E! wrap-up on the Top Chef finale, including a plate-by-plate account of the competition’s Last Supper, which is more interesting, to us anyway, than whether Ilan got his money and new oven. [E!]
Related: Ilan Won, Yes, But What Does It All Mean?
Yesterday’s Ilan Hall winner profile? Just one of two we had ready, says Food & Wine. Read Marcel's. [Food & Wine]
Related: 'Top Chef' Winner Revealed — For Real! [Grub Street]
Bruni weighs in on Top Chef, giving the cooking elements of the show a surprising amount of respect. [NYT]
Sara Dickerman looks at the new wave of cooking shows and finds them all totally ridiculous — but entertaining. [Slate]
Courtesy of our man in Tokyo.Photo: Ko Fujimura
I was in Shinjuku last week. I was there just to hang out and found huge crowds of people … then I look up and there is a huge sign … Krispy Kream [sic]!! People are lined up for an hour just to get these!!!
We hear they go great with cod sperm. — Daniel Maurer
Critics don't concern Danny Meyer much. Or so he claims. [Denver Post]
The inspirational tale of an empanada mogul. [NYDN]
Will healthier foods lead to a healthier restaurant business? [Axcess News]
Labor organization mad as hell over economic inequities. [Brooklyn Rail]
The Soup Nazi and David Bouley both come to Miami, but probably not to stay. [Miami Herald]
City promises low-key enforcement of trans-fats ban. "This is not going to be, like, a 'gotcha' thing." [IHT]
Resisting the ban, one Krispy Kreme at a time.Photo: AP
Libertarian organization Consumer Freedom responded with full-page ads in USA Today and the Post, warning that pizza, coffee, and corned-beef sandwiches might be next. [Center for Consumer Freedom]
Even the Times has gotten in on the "we miss trans fats already" action, reporting on how hard it is to cook without them. "I can tell you in advance, the Crisco will make a flakier crust." [NYT]
Krispy Kreme, the entity that serves trans fat in circular form, probably can't get with the program in time. [Winston-Salem Journal]
But Denny's can. [Business Wire]
Finally, restaurants wonder how the law will be enforced. [Dominican Today]
Well, now they've done it: The City's Board of Health has unanimously agreed to ban trans fats from New York City restaurants. Starting July 1, 2007, eateries won't be able to fry with the stuff. They will, however, have another year to make all their foods 100 percent trans-fat free. That means there's precious little time to enjoy delicious trans-fat-fried doughnuts and steak fries, and only a year more before we have to give up flaky empanadas and other goodies with the trans fat built right in. (The board also passed the less-publicized rule requiring chain restaurants to print their calorie information directly on the menus, assuring that New Yorkers will at least feel a pang of regret when they order a Burger King "Triple Stacker.")
Trans Fat Ban Unanimously Approved [Crain's New York Business]
Earlier: Trans-Fat Haters Winning Hearts and Minds
Biscuit Battles ChipShop: Are White Castles Better Fried or Smoked?
In the fight against trans fats, bad publicity might just do for New York what a protracted legal battle could not. The city's move to ban the deadly oils, which was rolling forward like a hungry man heading toward a bodega for chiccarones, seems to have been stopped in its tracks, or at least slowed, according this Crain's story referenced in yesterday's Morning Line. Part of the reason might be the prospect of a long and costly war with Ronald's army, which we outlined earlier. But even without being regulated, companies are tripping over each other to abandon the good stuff. KFC took the hint weeks ago. Taco Bell just saw the light, and earlier this week, the Girl Scouts got on board the zero-trans-fats train. At this rate, they might not have to pass the law at all. Except for McDonald's, of course.
Holy crap.Photo: AP
McDonald's Readies for NYC Trans Fat Fight [Crain's New York Business]
I believe that I can fry ...Photo: Carl & Ann Purcell/CORBIS
Chewing the Fat Over Ban [Newsday]
How Is a Trans Fat Like Rat Poo? (Answer: Not Much) [Daily Intelligencer]
Trans-Fat Ban: The Restaurants at Risk [Grub Street]
• Public hearing reveals support for trans-fat ban and printing of calories on fast-food menus. [NYT]
• And KFC makes it official: minimal trans fats by April — coincidence? [NYS]
• Soup Nazi ponders a self-glorifying museum at the site of his original store. [NYO]
• Alerting us to video restaurant reviews, Andrea Strong somehow fails to nod to America's Amusingest Food Videos. [NYP]
• Public opens a wine bar; another izakaya, this one with buttons at the table to summon waiters; gourmet pizza on Bedford Avenue. [Strong Buzz]
• Rocco DiSpirito waits tables with Gilbert Gottfried. (A benefit, not our dream reality show.) [NYP]
• Batali goes bi-coastal: Pizzeria Mozza finally open. [Chowhound]
• Absolut, Bacardi, and other reformed booze bizzies fork over $2.3 mil to end Spitzer probe. [NYS]
• "Top Chef" Marisa busts out the bikini. [Chow]
A burek models a new line of sheer napkins.Photo: iStockphoto.com/Peli
• The city bans trans fats from restaurants, despite the fact that nobody minds the stuff, the industry is against the regulations, and New Yorkers stand to lose their flaky pie crusts. (NYT)
• McDonald's, meanwhile, donates $2 million to childhood-obesity research. (Nation's Restaurant News)
• And hackers bust open Burger King's free Whopper offer. (A Hamburger Today)
• More women are hitting the hard stuff. (NYDN)
• In a champagne-and-caviar matchup, fired Gilt chef Paul Liebrandt will consult for Stephen Starr, the mogul behind Buddakan and Morimoto. (Snack)
What to expect from New York Magazine's food daily.
Copyright © 2008, New York Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
GET THE RSS FEED
The Look Book: Best Friends
The Nastiest Real-Estate Battles 
How to Minimize Sweating
Where to Eat Cheaply in 2008’s Hard Times
Most Commented
Daily Intel
Last 7 Days
Vulture
Last 7 Days
Grub Street
Last 7 Days
The Cut
Last 7 Days