Our coverage of that same party mentioned the appearance of Madhur Jaffrey, who, regardless of the fact she’s known more as a food writer than a chef, has taught more people to cook good food than any number of debonair or bad-boy, mustachioed chefs in the city. On the subject of gender and cooking, one of the city’s more prominent female chefs—Anne Burrell— had just opened Centro Vinoteca in 2007 when we interviewed her, and she weighed in on the subject of women chefs:

[T]here’s been this whole big thing about female chefs, and I don’t really know why. I’m a girl, and I’m a cook- I just like to cook, and I don’t like to worry about the distinctions. We’re just supposed to make good food.

Forty of New York's "star chefs" anonymously shared their secrets in a survey for Time Out NY, dishing on a wide range of topics, from ingredients in their kitchens they'd never admit to using ("Chopped meat from SYSCO") to the dumbest Health Department rules ("The gloves thing. I use them all the time, but a fuckload of people don’t know how to use them correctly or change them enough. I’ve seen people do some fucked-up things with gloves on—wipe their ass, grab their goodies, touch raw chicken and then go back to cooking/salad-tossing with the same gloves on.") But enough talk of salad-tossing, let's get to the sex! 50% of these chefs insist they've "nailed a hostess," and 69% (ha?) of those claim the "nailing" occurred on the bar. But at least one chef was unamused: "First of all, this question presumes the person completing the survey is a man, and second, it insinuates that the hostess is some kind of bimbette that can be pounded. (I don’t see you asking if you’ve ever blown a busboy in the dish room.)" more ›

The mice at The Mermaid Inn’s East Village location picked a mischievous moment to scurry out into the dining room a few nights ago – as luck would have it a writer for Time Out New York was there waiting for a table! The immodest mice must have been looking for their 15 minutes of fame, because they timed their appearance perfectly with TONY staffer Jordana Rothman’s emergence from the bathroom. more ›

FESTIVITIES: Forget about that big shiny show-off in Rockefeller Center. Tonight the menorah and Christmas tree in Washington Square Park will be illuminated for all. Come bask in the glow of holiday, people. 6pm // Washington Square Park [W 4th St to Waverly Pl between MacDougal and University] // Free FILM: In a week-long tribute to Italian director Pier Paolo Pasolini (pictured), tonight The Film Society of Lincoln Center will be screening Notes for an... more ›

The Mermaid Inn, that inviting East Village bistro beloved for its rich seafood entrees, has moved on up to the west side with a mostly new menu. Their second Manhattan outpost is appointed with old nautical maps, dark wainscoting and roll-up doors that will surely suck in the crowds during warmer months. (Alec Baldwin must be pleased about the eatery boosting Amsterdam Avenue’s cachet.) The Inn’s famous lobster sandwich survived the move, but there’s now... more ›

Time Out New York is telling secrets and talking about all the little things that make up this city (for instance, did you know a baby was baptized in the lobby fountain at the Guggenheim?). Some of our favorite items dished include: more ›

It's time for Time Out New York's fifth annual food-stravaganza featuring tastings from over forty participating restaurants and beverage purveyors. Get a bite from L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Mai House, or Morimoto while sipping on drinks from Chopin Vodka and Stella Artois. Tickets are $100 and include a copy of the 2008 Eating & Drinking 2008 guide. Skylight Studios, 275 Hudson St at Spring St. 6:30–9:30pm. For more info or to purchase tickets, go to timeoutnewyork.com/eat. more ›

, "Showcases the talent of one of the more promising short story writers in America today." And a boy who Rebecca had a crush on at 18 said, after being poisoned by her, " This is the worst thing that's ever happened to me." Let's see if Curtis, who certainly is as talented and witty as the reviewers say, can talk her way out of that one! more ›

If you've lived in New York for any period of time, you know that the food here is incredible -- the variety, the quantity, and the quality. You'll also know that you don't have to pawn off your valuables to taste all that the city has to offer. This week's New York Magazine celebrates the city's cheap eats. Rob and Robin provide an extensive list of their picks, including some of our favorites: Bocca Lupo, Flatbush Farm, Go!Go! Curry, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, and Peri Ela (just tried it for the first time last weekend), among many others. more ›

Museum of the Moving Image, Queens more ›

As we get closer to the kick-off of the much anticipated High Line Festival, let's take a closer look at what's to come, and at the man who co-founded and curated the whole thing, David Bowie. The eleven days of music, film, art and comedy starts Wednesday at Radio City Music Hall. Who else to play the first event at the inaugural festival than Bowie-beloved Arcade Fire? Pair 'em up with Brooklyn's The National and you've got a lineup that already beats most out there. more ›

For someone who graduated from college just last year, Ohio native, Soho-transplant Jill Donenfeld has really made a quick study of the New York food scene. As the founder of The Dish’s Dishes, Donenfeld oversees a team of kitchen ninjas she calls Culinistas™ (she also holds the word’s trademark)- who prepare meals en masse and in-house for clients using raw materials from greenmarkets, organic bakeries, and the subterranean caves of Murray’s Cheese, among other hand-picked sources. Donenfeld is also a soon-to-be cookbook author and the current writer of a weekly food intelligence one-sheet (available to DD clients). Gothamist sat down to talk shop with The Dish’s Dishes entrepreneur #1 last week at Jacques Torres on Hudson Street, and left with a recipe for squid salad. more ›

We were fortunate enough to be at the Time Out New York Eat Out Awards last night to watch the winners of both the Readers' Choice awards, chosen by readers who made over 14,000 submissions, and the Critics' Picks awards, selected by the TONY staff. The coveted plates hang on restaurant and bar walls throughout the city. more ›

There’s drama pinballing through the theater blogs this week, people! In a recent letter to subscribers, Carolyn Cantor, the director of Adam Rapp’s play Essential Self-Defense, took issue with Charles Isherwood’s “scathing” review in the Times. Isherwood has become something of a punching bag among theater bloggers for his perceived stodginess, and the review is, at times, unnecessarily ad hominem: “A self-conscious exercise in stagy attitudinizing, it could almost have been composed by a computer. Well, maybe a computer that spends a lot of time posing in funky bars in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.” [Disclosure: we once caught a nasty virus from a computer we picked up in a funky Williamsburg bar. Never again.] more ›

"Sweet Heart," composed of Necco Conversation Hearts by Nathan Sawaya. more ›

It may be cold outside, but it's perfect fondue weather. Riverdale Garden will be serving up classic cheese, hearty herb flavored oil with beef and chicken and, of course, bittersweet chocolate. Complete dinner is $29 including house wine and draft beer, or just drinks and music for $15. Dinner starting at 7PM, music at 8:30PM. Reservations are recommended and can be made on Open Table or by calling 718-884-5232. 4576 Manhattan College Parkway, Bronx. more ›

Okay, so you left it to the last minute once again. Never fear, there are still options for eating out on New Year's Eve. Time Out New York rounds up options for every budget, ranging from $20.07 snacks and apps at the Silverleaf Tavern (the bottomless glass of wine will cost you an additional $70, however), to a five course dinner at Cafe Gray including unlimited champagne and dancing for $550. Citysearch has a fairly long list, with most of the menus hovering around the $100 range, and Open Table lists restaurants serving their regular menus in addition to those with special New Year's Eve menus (we wouldn't mind spending our New Year's Eve at Blue Smoke, which is serving their regular menu that night -- any year is off to a great start with sidecars and ribs). more ›

We really can't beat this roundup of food gift roundups, courtesy of The Food Section. They've culled together gift suggestions from the likes of the New York Times, the Washington Post, NPR, Food & Wine, Epicurious, Time Out New York, Cravings, and Chow. Whether you're looking for cookbooks or food-related reads, kitchen gadgets, edible gifts, or something a little boozy, you're bound to find it here. more ›

• Sasha Frere-Jones took first place in music criticism for his work in the The New Yorker, the New York Times, the Village Voice and others. We like his blog, too. more ›

Midtown Subway Monkey by |Shrued. more ›

Have you taken Time Out New York's Essential New Yorker? It's a mammoth, challenging exercise that tests people's knowledge of the city and its people. Naturally, there was a Law & Order question (page 5 of the quiz) that challenged whether you could sift through, oh, about 100 names or so to find the needle in the haystack: "Which one of the following actors has never appeared on New York’s quintessential cop show?" more ›

October 7: Beer on the Pier more ›

- Got a donut craving? Consider taking doing an international taste test. Time Out New York brings us donuts (or their equivalents) from around the globe. more ›

September 7: Sake Tasting more ›

You gotta love New York. Even for all the obsessive coverage of the city via newspapers, TV, bloggers and the ol’word-of-mouth buzz, some food and wine spots still stay below the radar. Sure, Time Out New York may run a blurb when they open and there may be a mention elsewhere, but then nothing again – no follow-up, no PageSix mentions for a fancy birthday party, nada. If you live near one of these spots, you know of what we speak. Often just about empty, occasionally showing a flurry of strong crowds – sometimes their financial viability is inexplicable. more ›

Time Out New York came out with their Cheap Eats issue this week and they certainly took no shame in taunting New York Magazine. Time Out's cover is virtually identical to NY Mag's, with reversed colors, down to the box highlighting their star rating system, except that Time Out calls it's issue "The Real Cheap Eats." TONY gleefully notes that "absolutely everything" on their list is under $20, clearly taking a stab at NY Mag's choice to include "bargains" like Lupa. more ›

Because our dollars don't ever pay for quite enough drinks, we're always looking for new dives, hook-ups, buybacks and, this week, we didn't have to look any further than Time Out New York. From this week til the end of the summer, the magazine has been getting its game on: Go to drinking establishments, find answers to trvia and/or take photos and win-- wait for it --a bar tab at one of the featured bars. And since 90% of the bars featured have cheap-ass options (avoid the Rise bar at the Battery Park Ritz Carlton if making rent is an issue), it's a win-win situation. This week starts with garden bars, an idea that goes down easy right now. more ›

In this week's annual cheap issue of Time Out New York, the writers highlight what ten whole dollars will get you at some fine bars, one decided dump and restaurants. more ›

I tend to go to restaurants soon after their grand openings expecting to see good indications of the future of a place. I have long believed that if a restaurant is open and accepting money you should be able to expect that you will get your money's worth. I just don't accept "we just opened" as a reason for poor execution. There are many ways a place can control chaos as they get up to speed, and the choices they make are in my opinion the best indicator of how a place will serve you going forward. more ›

Sometimes the best way to catch up with an old friend is to dine in a new restaurant. Conveniently, on my way to the Little Owl, recently announced in The New York Times, Time Out New York, and New York Magazine as being newly open, I had looked in on Lederhosen, an establishment of self-purported German goodness and thought to myself, “If I had known about that place it would have been perfect.” Discovering Lederhosen made it okay with me when I popped my head in the door of Little Owl to find out from a young man at the top of a ladder that they were not yet open, but hoped to open in the next two weeks. more ›