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A Dovetail Spy Scandal; Gordo Ruins New Jersey Valentine’s Day

A Food & Wine contributing editor has been working as a hostess at Dovetail, the new three-star restaurant, for the past two months. Part of her arrangement with chef John Fraser? To spot food writers and alert the kitchen, but apparently she was no help in pointing out Frank Bruni. [Mouthing Off/Food & Wine]

Shake Shack and Burger Joint will face off tonight at the South Beach Food & Wine Festival for the title of champion in the “Burger Bash.” [Diner’s Journal/NYT]

Landmarc at the Time Warner Center is throwing an Oscar party of sorts this Sunday, featuring a five-course tasting menu and two flat-screen TVs in the dining room. [Zagat]

Romantic Valentine’s Day dinners were cut short or canceled at a restaurant in New Jersey because Gordon Ramsay had some filming to do for his TV show. [New Jersey Star-Ledger]

Perhaps the combination of a casual environment with well-executed food at dell’anima can be explained by its owners’ first jobs in food: Joe Campanale had a internship in the kitchen at Union Square Cafe, and Gabe Thompson was a busboy at the Olive Garden. [Restaurant Girl]

Kind of like the soda drinks they aim to replace, sparkling teas are really sweet and fizzy. [WSJ]

Staten Island will be the site of a two-acre vineyard that will produce up to 7,000 bottles a year, only to be given away to tourists and served at government functions. [NYDN]

Pepsi paid $100 million to place its logo at the center of the 287-foot-tall Ferris wheel at the Meadowlands Xanadu shopping complex in northern New Jersey, in a deal that includes wheel-naming rights and beverage placement throughout most of the complex. [WSJ]

This list of the city’s “best” tasting menus includes some obvious picks (Babbo, Per Se) but also some overlooked options like Payard Patisserie & Bistro. [amNY]

A Dovetail Spy Scandal; Gordo Ruins New Jersey Valentine’s Day