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Grub Street

3/ 6/08

1:30 PM

Baird Jones Memorial Party at the Plumm Might Have Actually Pissed Him Off

So on Friday night there will be a big, open-to-all bash to celebrate the memory of New York nightlife mainstay Baird Jones at the Plumm. The art collector, promoter, and gossip stringer died two weeks ago of a heart attack, and now everyone's invited to toast his memory. Except, according to Grub Street, the venue might not be one that Baird himself would have been too happy about. In fact, at times he even worked to shut the club down. Baird called New York to complain of some of Plumm owner Noel Ashman's poor business practices, including paying for underage models to visit the club and ripping off promoters. (He didn't complain about how Plumm publicists incessantly exaggerated celebrity items to gossip columnists, but we'll throw that in there because it's always annoyed us.) Baird's fellow promoter, Ivy Supersonic, says that she and the Webster Hall curator had a whole bunch of correspondence over the issue. Click on through to Grub for the whole story and Noel Ashman's response.

Baird Jones's Memorial Party to Be Held at Club He Secretly Tried to Close [Grub Street]
Related: Gossip Guru Baird Jones Reported Dead

More: baird jones, ivy supersonic, nightlife, noel ashman, plumm, webster hall

Grub Street

8/ 7/07

9:54 AM

Egad! Change at Peter Luger!

Porterhouse, with spinach and potatoes.Photo: Lock's Flickr

How'd we miss this yesterday? Our compatriots at Grub Street report that — are you sitting down? — Peter Luger has changed its menu. (The south-Williamsburg beef temple does, by the way, officially have a menu, though one rarely actually sees, much less uses, one.) After 120 years of serving porterhouse, Luger has added the option of rib eye. Why the change? It seems there just isn't enough good porterhouse in the city to meet the restaurant's needs, so the only alternative was to start offering other cuts (or to, as the Grubbies say has recently happened, force some diners to eat fish). Grub Street is not displeased with this development: "Truly great porterhouses are hard to come by; they’re not marbled the way rib eyes are, and they don’t have the same depth of flavor." Perhaps, but we won't be eating them. You go to Luger for the experience as much as for the food, and the experience includes porterhouse. We could get a good rib eye without riding the J train.

After 120 Years, Peter Luger Introduces a New Steak [Grub Street]

More: brooklyn, food, peter luger, restaurants, steak, williamsburg

Grub Street

5/30/07

11:05 AM

Boxed Out

Remember when we told you that the Box, Simon Hammerstein's new, insufferably pretentious so-called "dinner theater" non-club on the Lower East Side was in fact so insufferably pretentious that we'd never set foot in the place again? Well, we rest our case.

Michael Herr of the Box Serves Scarlett Johansson, Experiences a ‘Brush of Excitement’ [Grub Street]
Earlier: ‘Radar’ Throws a Party, and We Discover We Are Not Cool Enough to Buy Drinks
Related: What's In the Box? [NYM]

More: clubs, grudges, nightlife, the box

Grub Street

5/17/07

1:29 PM

Will Katz's Make Way for Condos?

Katz's Deli on Houston and Ludlow. Photo: Shanna Ravindra

We had to give smelling salts to Grub Street's Josh Ozersky after he heard a rumor that Katz's Deli might be the next victim of a new Lower East Side condo. Working all night, sustained only by a crust of rye and one slice of pastrami, Josh uncovered the truth. Or at least some more reliable rumors. Look to Grub Street for reassurance.

Mother of Mercy! Is This the End of Katz’s [Grub Street]

More: katz's, lower east side

Grub Street

5/16/07

11:42 AM

The Cheese Commutes Alone

The cheese taking questions today at Grand Central. Photo Illustration: Everett Bogue

Whatever your plans are for today, they should include a stop at Grand Central to see "The World's Largest Cheese." Murray's Cheese and the Dutch cheesemaker Beemster have somehow rolled a Guinness-record-holding Gouda into the train station. Besides a tasting, the cheese gets its own press conference (gleefully imagined, above). We're not sure what you do with a cheese that big, but Grub Street has some excellent suggestions.

World's Biggest Cheese in Town Today [Grub Street]

More: cheese, food, grand central

Grub Street

5/15/07

9:11 AM

‘Top Chef’s Marcel Still Viewed as Bad Guy

From left, wd-50's egg and Marcel Vigneron's.Photo: wd-50 and Wired

Remember Marcel Vigneron, the foamy villain from last season of Top Chef? He may not be on TV anymore, but he's still causing trouble in the kitchen. The staff of wd-50 believes Vigneron ripped off a Wylie Dufresne dish in a recent issue of Wired. Grub Street has all the dirt. Or foam.

Did Marcel From 'Top Chef' Really Just Rip Off Wylie Dufresne? [Grub Street]

More: food, top chef, wired

Grub Street

5/14/07

1:45 PM

Pork: It's What's for Lunch

Photo: Melissa Hom

If you're looking for an inspired lunch to grab this week, go no further than Grub Street's "Sandwich of the Week." This week, sandwich seekers Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld happily discover the tamarind-pork sandwich (above) from Lassi. This "Indian-Dominican powerhouse" includes pork, garlic, chiles, cilantro, ginger, salt, and a tandoori masala, among other ingredients. Too bad it's only available Wednesday through Sunday.

Sandwich of the Week: Lassi’s Tamarind-Pork Sandwich [Grub Street]

More: food, sandwiches

Grub Street

5/11/07

9:51 AM

N.Y. Diet: What Rapper Sean Mims Eats on the Road

Sean Mims enjoys some shrimp now and then.Photo: Melissa Hom

While rapper Sean Mims is off tearing up clubs performing "This Is Why I'm Hot," he thinks longingly of the habichuela con dulce from his native Washington Heights. Mims loves shrimp, is working his way toward sushi, and refuses to eat on planes (not even in first class). Find out what Mims puts on his rider and how you balance Blue Fin with Sonic over on Grub Street.

This Is Why Rapper Mims Likes His Tea Hot [Grub Street]

More: food, sean mims

Grub Street

5/ 9/07

12:31 PM

When Brunch Goes Bad

Lynnea Scalora at Enid's. Photo: Melissa Hom

Meet Lynnea Scalora, a waiter-bartender (and bassist-artist) treading the fine line between the "dolled-up" LES cool and the "messy" Greenpoint cool: She slings booze at the Annex, where "people are very concerned about their image" but prefers waiting tables at the laid-back Enid's. How laid-back? Well, they toss Polish locals out for talking to customers. And scoff at the rubes who order dirty martinis, or coffee-and-dessert, or decaf, or Splenda ("these things aren't what happens at Enid's"). And snicker at bickering couples. Otherwise, it's an oasis of tolerance! There's more Lynnea at Grub Street.

Lynnea Scalora of Enid’s and the Annex Can Tell Her Hipsters Apart [Grub Street]

More: brunch, restaurants

Grub Street

5/ 2/07

9:52 AM

Pure Food and Wine Is Turning French-ish, Bro

Photo: Melissa Hom

David Moltz has been a waiter at the raw-food mecca Pure Food and Wine for a little more than a year. So how does he withstand the onslaught of celebrities, raw-food obsessives, and irritable vegans? By talking to the new chef. "Our new chef makes French-style cuisine," he says. "Me and him totally bro down about French stuff." To learn more about bro-ing down and why the staff had to stop ordering nachos and what goes down on the "hump couch," head to Grub Street.

Pure Food and Wine's David Moltz Hangs With Gisele, Chases Raw Foodists for Tips [Grub Street]

More: food, pure food and wine, waiters