Sayonara Autumn!

The calendar says we've still got a couple of weeks till the start of winter (and the warm temps today make the cold weather seem months away), but the fact is, Old Man Winter will be here before we know it. The good news is, that also means the arrival of restaurant Park Avenue Winter, which has shed its autumnal cloak in favor of clean whites in the dining room and comfort foods in the kitchen. Chef Craig Kotesu has many succulent delights in store for patrons, including the seared scallop sandwich at left, stout-braised lamb shank, aged cheddar polenta & green apples and John Dory with black truffles.

Suddenly, winter doesn't sound all that bad.

*To see New York Insider's last visit to Park Avenue Winter, when the restaurant was taken over by Gossip Girls, click here.

Indochine at 25

Our friends at Indochine recently celebrated their silver anniversary and to commemorate the occasion, invited a slew of fashion-industry celebs, hoteliers and Hollywood sorts to come by the restaurant to toast its twenty-five years of attracting New York's most glamorous crowd. In this special birthday video (shared with us by the Indochine powers that be), you'll spot boldface names including Iman, Padma Lakshmi, Carmen D'Alessio, Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber. From all of us at New York Insider, happy birthday, and here's to the next 25. (But we'll excuse you if you stop counting at 29!)

Kicking Off the Awards Season

At Cipriani Wall Street tonight, the Gotham Independent Film Awards began the 2009-2010 award season that will stretch straight through the New York Film Critics Circle awards, the Golden Globes and ultimately, the Oscars. It was a star-studded evening, with special career tributes being accepted by Stanley Tucci, (left), Natalie Portman, Kathryn Bigelow and producers Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner. As busy and talented an actress as she is, how Portman, at age 28 and whose breakout role was in The Phantom Menace a mere ten years ago has earned a "career tribute" was not entirely clear.

Among the other celebs who took their turns on the red carpet this evening included Brooke Shields, Alec Baldwin, Ellen Burstyn, Chris Rock, Oliver Platt, Willem Dafoe, Ryan Reynolds and a sidesplittingly funny (and super-generous with his time) Patton Oswalt, wearing a suit by L.A.-area clothier Savvy Row. Sadly, Meryl Streep, one of the night's presenters, was a red-carpet no-show.

NBC President Jeff Zucker, another expected guest, did not appear on the red carpet, but forgiveably so, given the ongoing negotiations between General Electric and Vivendi Universal, which the Times reports have made a breakthrough today, helping to clear the path for a deal with Comcast.

The Era of Eero

The ever-on-the-ascendant Museum of the City of New York pulled back the curtains on its Eero Saarinen exhibit last night with a gala preview. The famed architect, whose work is the stuff of legend (the TWA terminal at JFK airport, the Gateway arch in St. Louis), is celebrated in grand style at the exhibition, with large-scale mock-ups, architectural drawings and film footage aplenty.

Although he handled commissions throughout the United States, two of Saarinen's most notable works (the aforementioned Terminal 5 and CBS headquarters, not-so-affectionately known as "Black Rock") are both in New York City, a metropolis that clearly nurtured and appreciated his vision.

Fans of all things mid-century will also appreciate the display of Saarinen furniture at the musuem, including his famed Womb Chair and single-pedestal tables, designed for Knoll.

The exhibit runs through January.

Let Them Eat (And Paint) Cake

Art and cake. Last night, midtown art gallery Haunch of Venison hosted Cake Happenings, an event presented by Kreemart and American Patrons of Tate. The event had dozens of beautiful New Yorkers reveling in celebration of art that tasted as good as it looked, with guests marveling over the creations put forth by paired pastry chefs and visual artists. While some duos chose to sent half-nude bodies through the crowd, others managed such ingenius concepts as a life-size Mies Barcelona lounge--which we almost sat on it until we realized it was a cake! For the "after" shot of this cake, check out our album.

Most brilliant of all were the feathers of gold left on the lips of those lucky enough to participate in the first demonstration of The Abramovic´ Experiment, a collaboration between Marina Abramovic´and Executive Pastry Chef Dominique Ansel of Daniel. As lucky cake-eaters left the session and wandered the gallery, their lips told the story of a relationship between cake and the body.

All of which inspired us to connect with something Abramovic once said: “What I think is that a good work of art must hold prediction...and must have that energy which cannot be rationally understood.” And hey, doesn’t hurt if it tastes like lychee and rose petals.

Bachelor Bacchanal

The Esquire Bachelor Pad, a fantasy living space that even the hippest guy you know could not dream of owning, is back in New York after a stint in Los Angeles. Now in its seventh year, the 2009 edition of the apartment is sited in a penthouse at SoHo Mews. Host to night after night parties, the Bachelor Pad and its wrap-around terrace, pictured at left, is actually the combination of two apartments and features two kitchens, a bedroom and master bath with clear-shot views of the Empire State Building, a poker room, the sickest pool table you've ever seen (a projector mounted above the table tracks the movement of your balls as you play and responds with images accordingly) and frankly, too many more rooms to count.

New York Insider had the pleasure of getting a tour of the apartment last night with Insider correspondent Alex Ott. A master mixologist, Alex was there throwing a party for Amarula liqueur, which is one of the home's sponsors, along with Hugo Boss, Bombardier Learjet, Jose Cuervo and others. Fittingly for any paty that Alex throws, the place was hopping. Sadly, despite yesterday's mild weather, the hot-tubs remained empty.

Next up, the house will be hosting a party for VH-1's Save the Music, on Thursday night.  For more pics of the apartment, click here.

 

Halloween Happiness

So who doesn't love chocolate?  This year's 12th annual Chocolate Show, at the Metropolitan Pavilion, capped off our Halloween weekend sweetly.  Popping over to live demos by Francois Payard and Jacques Torres, chocolate lovers of all ages greedily gobbled up chocolate from fondue fountains, bars of all sizes and even pieces made from camel milk!  Dove Chocolate was there to promote Dove Chocolate Discoveries, a special program that pays you to host a chocolate party with friends. 

Our favorite part of the show was this live exhibit from Cotton Tree Lodge.  On a single tabletop, these guys demonstrated the chocolate-making proces—from bean-roasting to fermentation to edible product (after adding sugar.)  It was a fascinating way to discern the roots of the sweet we all have a tooth for. 

For more luscious pics, click here.  

Caviar Comes Calling

Alexandre Petrossian (heir of the caviar business that bears his family name) this week showcased some of his company's newest menu offferings. There were treats aplenty at Petrossian restaurant, but our favorite was this playful blini topped with a quail egg (can we ever have enough eggs?), caviar and a snippet of crème frâiche. Also featured was one of Petrossian’s newer products, pressed caviar. When prodded about what they do with the “juice” left from pressing four kilograms of caviar into one kilogram of condensed, surreal deliciousness, the heir merely smiled and answered that this was a family secret. We'll report back if we discover what that secret is.

Our breakfast at Petrossian was a feast that touched our innermost voluptuary. Don’t forget, the restaurant's boutique and café also offer some of the finest gourmet foods in Manhattan. Their pastries are perfectly flaky, and the Greek honey they’ve sourced is so floral and fresh, you can taste the summer breeze. Perfect for the colder days now upon us. Or for holiday gift-buying. Because much as we love eggs, who doesn't love caviar?

 

Reverse Course

It was a fun-filled evening of fashion and fundraising at Diane Von Furstenberg’s downtown studio last night, as New Yorkers celebrated the first-annual Reverse Rett Gala. Partygoers enjoyed a special performance by acclaimed pianist Ido Alexander and additional tunes from DJ Jon Oliver while sipping on cocktails donated by Lotus Vodka and Manhattan Beer Distributors. Among the notable guests in attendance included Stephen Baldwin, Horizon Media CEO Bill Koenigsberg and his wife, Jessica, Bill Cummings and Bernt Heiberg, Sonny and Michelle Kalsi and Dean Palin.

A silent auction featured items like New York Yankee “Leader Seats” tickets, a Salvatore Ferragamo handbag, DVF luggage, a Steinway Piano lease, designer gowns from Derek Lam and Philip Lim, and many other items. In sum, the night brought in more than a quarter of a million dollars, with 98-percent of that amount going directly to fund research for Rett, the most physically disabling of the autism spectrum disorders.

The night was hosted by Diane Von Furstenberg, Heidi and Jonathan Epstein, Jennifer and Thomas Lopez, Rachel and Jason Rothschild, and Paula and David Southren, MD, who hope to one day make Rett the first reversible brain disorder. –Wendy Furrer

 

Gone to the Dogs

We've all seen them on the streets of New York....hapless canines dressed in "cute" outfits by their owners. "Get me out of here," the dogs' eyes seem to plead, as the biped holding the leash grins from ear to ear about how adorable the ensemble looks on his or her pet.

Not so the dogs at Howlaween last night, an event benefitting the Humane Society of New York and sponsored by Wendy Diamond and Animal Fair magazine. Dressed as characters from the Big Bad Wolf to Shrek's Princess Fiona, Jackie O to hero pilot "Sully" Sullenberger, these pooches loved every minute of being in Halloween costume. Parading on a runway at M2 Ultralounge, in Chelsea, the dogs (and their costumed caretakers) delighted a standing-room-only crowd that came out to enjoy the kind of creativity that was truly something to bark about.

Celebrity judges for the night included the cast of National Geographic's Rescue Ink,  Real Housewives of New York's Ramona Bass and Miss Teen USA, Stormi Bree Henley. For more pictures of man's best friends lapping it up on the runway, click here.