Upon walking into Eataly, the mammoth new food experience from Joe Bastianich, Lidia Bastianich, Mario Batali and Oscar Farinetti, you might actually think you were in Italy. Besides the produce, nearly everything is imported, and the 50,000 sq. ft. bi-level space is filled with rows upon rows of dried pasta, nougat, olive oils and anchovies piled 12 feet high. You're welcomed with a smart espresso bar as the space opens into seven "restaurants," 14 food stations and a full "piazza" with a raw bar, fresh-cut prosciutto and marble-top tables. But this is not the Italy most Americans imagine—the Italy of quaint Tuscan towns and pushy grandmothers. This is the Italy of Vespas and stilettos. And as Mario Batali hopes, "It could be the cornerstone of Italian gastronomic culture." more ›

What’s worth watching on food-TV this week? We're definitely setting our DVR to record The Martha Stewart Show. She’s got a three great New York Italian chefs on today: Odetta Fada of San Domenico, Lidia Bastianich of Felidia and Del Posto, and pastry chef Gina DePalma of Babbo. On Tuesday she’s got cookbook editor Judith Jones, and on Wednesday, New Orleans chef Susan Spicer (Monday-Friday, 1pm, NBC). But the prime time highlight might be a... more ›

What’s worth watching on food-TV this week? Martha Stewart’s all about Thanksgiving this week; she even has a hotline up T-Day emergencies (email thanksgivinghotline@marthastewart.com). Her mashed potatoes tip? Use buttermilk instead of heavy cream or cream cheese—“Delicious,” she says. On Monday, she’s making sides and teaching people about heritage birds and how to find the perfect turkey. On Wednesday, she’ll be answering people’s last minute holiday questions—sent in via the hotline--throughout the show (Monday-Wednesday, Friday,... more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? This Wednesday on Kitchen Nightmares (9pm on Fox), Ramsay does his thing on Finn McCool’s in West Hampton. Are we the only ones who wonder if his advice actually does any good? Most places that he revisits after his makeover revert—at least in part—to their prior ways. But if you own a restaurant you want Ramsified, now’s your chance. Download an application to be featured on the... more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Next Sunday is the finale of The Next Iron Chef (9pm on the Food Network). Michael Ruhlman has a comment from Chef Chris Cosentino on his blog about the airplane episode—he was clearly getting crowded by cameras, but for him the crowding was to the degree that he couldn’t work, and he wanted to clarify that fact “now that 1/2 the country thinks i am an asshole.”... more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? more ›

A confession. In general, we’re not big Food Network Fans. We do make an exception for Iron Chef (it always sucks us in), and we love it’s latest incarnation. Last week on the premiere of The Next Iron Chef (9pm on the Food Network, Chef Traci Des Jardins got the ax, brought down by her salmon roe dessert (ick). Read the Amateur Gourmet's unique and often hilarious take on things on his blog on the Next Iron Chef site (“We all know the whole Iron Chef universe is a fabrication, right? That the chairman is an actor? What? You didn’t know that?”). Judge Michael Ruhlman is happy with episode one; says the kitchen was so hot during filming that one of the chefs had to be hospitalized afterwards for dehydration. more ›

October 11: Restaurant Reviewing in New York City more ›

What’s worth watching on food-relatedTV this week? more ›

In time for next week’s Columbus Day festivities, the Post’s Steve Cuozzo lets his Ital flag fly with two gushing columns on Italian cuisine. He points out that Italian restaurants outnumber all other kinds of restaurants in New York by a big margin (and that’s not because of the ever-metastasizing Olive Gardens.) He cites seven “marvelous” eateries – Del Posto, A Voce, Abbocatto, Insieme, Fiamma, L'Impero and Alto – that “establish Italian as the cuisine to beat.” Nobu can sleep with the fishes. more ›

What’s worth watching on food-TV this week? more ›

This week on food-TV, we've got: more ›

What’s worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week? more ›

What’s worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week? Be warned: it’s the dog days of summer, so there’s not much new on the air… more ›

What’s worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week? more ›

This week on food-related TV, we’ve got: more ›

What's worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week? more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Here’s the breakdown: more ›

What’s worth watching on food-related TV this week? Here’s the breakdown: more ›

Where can you taste dishes from Bobby Flay, Lidia Bastianich, Dan Barber, Tom Valenti, Joey Campanaro and Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto all under one roof? At New York Magazine's annual Taste of New York, a fundraiser for City Harvest. The cocktails (from some of the city's best: Pegu Club, Flatiron Lounge, and Little Branch) were flowing and the crowd was on a mission to taste everything these chefs could dish out. more ›

Bruni goes to Lidia Bastianich’s Felidia (last reviewed and three-starred by Ruth Reichl in 1995) and reaffirms the three-stars. He’s crazy about the risotto, and calls its food “surprisingly distinctive in a city infatuated with, and just about saturated by, various kinds of Italian cuisine.” more ›

On Sunday afternoons, when we're getting slightly upset about the weekend coming to a close and not getting nearly enough done, we find solace in watching Lidia's Family Table on Channel 13. It is, by far, one of the best cooking shows, and that's because Lidia Bastianich is our secret Italian grandmother - and that's not just because she makes a mean beef short ribs braised in red wine. A good part of it is probably kitchen envy - she has a big, bright kitchen (she lives in Douglaston Manor, Queens) filled with all sorts of pots and pans and beautiful Italian dishware to plate the food - but Lidia has a very calm, soothing voice (no fingernails-on-chalkboard Rachael Ray screeching here) and demeanor that makes us believe everything will be all better. And when she talks about food bringing families together, you believe her, since she usually involves her family in the show - there are apperances by her restaurateur son Joe and grandchildren, but the best is when her 84 year old mother Erminia comes in to show Lidia how to cook something. It's just a lovely, escapist yet possibly attainable, hunger-inducing half hour on Sunday afternoons, and after watching one episode, if you're not inspired to cook something yourself, you'll probably be inspired to appreciate what you have more. more ›

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September 12: Save New Orleans Cocktail Hour more ›

Gothamist went to Compass the day her addition was announced in the Times. Many others had the same idea, and Katy Sparks was circulating in the room (we're pretty sure that's her in this picture, on the left), with many diners telling her how excited they were to see her. The low point of the meal was, in fact, the service: Our server freaked out at a busboy, yelling at him and demanding to know where the receipt from the table the busboy had just cleared gone; it turned out another server had taken the receipt to be rung up. Our server apologized with complimentary champagne, but it was still distressing. So, Gothamist can attest to the crappy time it seems Amanda Hesser had. more ›

Other Nominees: more ›