Make magazine's Mark Frauenfelder didn't appreciate Eater founder Ben Leventhal's advice on how to ingratiate yourself to a restaurant.

Alex Balk didn't appreciate being the forgotten co-founder, except insofar as it allowed him to taunt Kurt Andersen.

Cablevision, the company, trolled Jeff Jarvis, the internet pundit. Successfully.

Time magazine's Karen Tumulty was in the White House, as an actual reporter, and immediately launched an investigation into the plants at the press conference. When Time Inc CEO Ann Moore said "trustworthy.... fact-based reporting" would save her company, this must have been what she was talking about.

Air America's Ana Marie Cox, meanwhile, spent her White House time responsibly looking for guy she makes great fun of every week.

Did you witness the media elite tweet something indiscreet? Please email us your favorite tweets - or send us more Twitter usernames.

Forman broke up with ubiquitous yet pointless media presence Julia Allison last summer, right around the time he raised a round of $1.5 million. Digg founder Kevin rose also briefly dated Allison last year, and then raised a ton of money. The conclusion: Severing ties with Allison is the most sure-fire way for a tech boy to get rich! This is good news for Eater editor and fellow Allison ex Ben Leventhal, who is surely due for more funding.

(Photo by Nick McGlynn)

Preternaturally hunky Curbed editor Ben Leventhal, ordered by ex-girlfriend Julia Allison to suggest a dinner spot, told her to Google the keywords "sugar daddy restaurants."


ABC newsman George Stephanopoulos felt compelled to clarify after reporting that his White House lunch with the president included "leeks and pot."

Spy cofounder Kurt Andersen's job was amazing today and yours wasn't.

New Yorker writer Susan Orlean caught the flu.

Funnyman John Hodgman announced his hate of the word "meh," and stirred up a fuss among the obstinantly nonchalant.

Ohai, Ben! You have been fearing this day for a while, haven't you?

How does an auto-overexposed fameball gal go from being relationship kryptonite to having an actual relationship that has literally gone three complete months without being blogged? We're sure Leventhal came up with a long list of rules about them dating. Like, no being seen in public together, no being photographed in public together, no mentioning him on her all-inclusive Nonsociety blog, etc. That is so romantic.

Sadly, all this hush-hush secrecy and behaving like real celebs will only further inflate the self-importance of everybody involved. And thus, life will mimic art.

[Photo: Nick McGlynn for Random Night Out]

Writes Ben Leventhal from Eater: "Such blogs [like Down by the Hipster] tend to fade, giving way to bloggers' day jobs, kids, or boredom. And it tends to happen right around the one-year marker."

Yeah, not like SERIOUS, career bloggers!

DBTH, written and co-owned by Curbed alum Scott Solish, blazed itself into the blogsphere... just over twelve months ago. Like the great indie blogs that came before, it was an instant mix of good intel, access and attitude. With very strong ties to the hotel biz—and also, somewhat randomly, to the nightclub Cain—DBTH has been a machine, and of late has upped its postcount...


But, Solish isn't making money on DBTH, has a day job, and has begun to talk of such things as book deals and joint ventures. Plus, the presence of a new, way off-brand, contributor suggests he's getting tired of the grind. So, it's time to put it out there: Are Down By the Hipster's best days behind us?

We even spent some QT together, buying Lock a beer and watching his murse for hours. But while we enjoyed ourselves, Lil BL secretly seethed, desperate to know why anyone dared challenge his authority as the ultimate insider. But the anger and fear is justified. Sitting in that lonely FiDi apartment, seeing Grub Street, Guest of a Guest, and just about everyone else with access to the internet scoop him must drive him batty.


Pinkberry, Momofuku and Shake Shack couldn't open enough locations to keep him on the inside. Frank Bruni only only takes him on review dinners every so often. So what is he to do?

One of the burger competitors (and sharemate with Leventhal) was Mo Koyfman, who kind of serves as a chaperone to College Humor on behalf of their boss, Barry Diller. It's weird that he was grilling cheeseburgers, since he's supposedly kosher. Anyway, he lost.

Schoeneman even brought her gay albino housecleaner Marco, who cleaned during the party. Momofuku's David Chang was there with Frankie's Spuntino owner Frank Falcinelli as a judge, as was Peter Meehan of the Times. Ken Friedman of the Spotted Pig showed up too late to judge anything. This girl I went to N.Y.U. with was there and now she is married to Bob Vila's son, Chris. That made me feel old. [Ed. Note: Jesus Christ, you're like 12, Josh.]

That goofy-looking actor from 30 Rock, Lonny Ross, was there with his cute girlfriend. And though the party was first reported on New York magazine's Grub Street, its editor Josh Ozersky was noticeably absent, or not-invited. Chalk that up to the fact that David Chang and a few of the other attendees absolutely hate him.

[Photo: Ricky Van Veen/Flickr]

Freeman has been accused of shilling for restaurants—she denies it. But her response to the clearly troubling fact that everyone knows what she looks like (she played Maria Giaculo on the Sopranos and plasters her face everywhere she can) isn't reassuring.

I want to give chefs and restaurants their best opportunity to communicate a vision. Restaurants aren't running out to grab different ingredients or a new chef simply because you're recognizable. Besides, let's be honest, everyone knows what Frank Bruni looks like. There are photos of him in every important kitchen in NYC.

Perhaps the most succulent morsel in this sordid story of sex, fame and food is alluded to by the 27th commenter on the Eater post, who asks, presumably of Eater editor Ben Leventhal but maybe also of Eater publisher Lockhart Steele, "Isn't this your girlfriend?" We asked—denials were uniform and believable. But hasn't science shown that this is exactly the type of things dudes lie about?

I only spent a few hours with them so maybe i don't have all the answers you're looking for though. oh and i should mention they said "this whole dinner is off the record" and i responded "i can't make that promise" hahhahahahhaa

Question from(Dick Johnson @ Apr 19 2007, 10:48 AM) * Are they gay?

Abbe: no i don't think so. actually lockhart-steele did recount a story about a dinner date he had at Gusto. with a GIRL

then again
any boy who doesn't blatantly sweat me i always automatically assume is gay.

Dinner with Eater