Ed Levine Eats, But Not As Much As You’d Think’Alex from Blondie and Brownie brought over some Elvis cupcakes topped with bacon, peanut-butter frosting, and [they] were banana cupcakes — this is what I’m subjected to all the time.’
Ed Levine Ponders the Stars“Easy” Ed Levine is going to start reviewing restaurants, but isn’t sure he should have a star system. We say: Follow the ‘New York’ way.
Bagel Claim Laid Bare?When we read in The New Yorker last week of a Long Island man who claimed to have invented the everything bagel 30 years ago in Howard Beach, one line stood out: “So far, no one has contested Gussin’s claim, setting his invention apart from the radio (Marconi vs. Tesla) and calculus (Leibniz vs. Newton). ” A droll enough observation, but one we suspected wouldn’t last long in a city filled with boastful, self-promoting bagel mavens. And sure enough, Serious Eats reports that marketer Seth Godin has already contested the claim. But are we really to believe that the world waited until 1977 for the invention of the everything bagel? Somebody’s zayde in Warsaw is going to be getting a phone call soon.
Who Really Fathered the Everything Bagel? [Serious Eats]
Mediavore
De Marco’s Maniac Caught On Tape; NYC Denied Shamrock ShakesThe NYPD releases a surveillance video of the De Marco’s gun battle. It’s difficult to make out, but very graphic and not a little disturbing. [WNBC]
Brace yourselves: McDonald’s has decreed that there will be no more Shamrock Shakes in NYC, although they’re still widely available elsewhere. What’s up with that? [NYDN]
The Smith and Wollensky Restaurant Group is enjoying a sudden bidding war for its acquisition, after having already accepted a good offer. [Crain’s]
Back of the House
Caught on Video: Susie Essman, Jeffrey Steingarten Eating FrenzyIt’s a standard gripe among foodie types that TV food personalities are too plastic, too telegenic — that in other words, they’re chosen for their appearance rather than their cred. But witnessing a dinner conversation between the acerbic comedian Susie Essman, of Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Vogue food critic (and Iron Chef guest judge) Jeffrey Steingarten on Serious Eats helps explain why TV food hosts look the way they do. Essman is likably gruff and witty, and Steingarten erudite, but these might be the two unhealthiest-looking people we’ve seen since Alexander Litvinenko. Watching them devour fried rice, egg rolls, and noodles at Chinatown Brasserie while talking about eating horse fat made us want to join an ashram and live on nuts and berries. And that’s saying something. Bring back the Stepford chefs! We finally see why TV needs them.
Serious Eats Video: Hecklers and Horse Fat [Serious Eats]
