Mario Batali
Senate Sanitation Hawk Picks On Batali's Del Posto
Celebrity chef Mario Batali's critically acclaimed Del Posto restaurant earned a more dubious distinction on Sunday, when state Senator Jeff Klein set up outside to announce his second annual round-up of New York City's dirtiest restaurants.
Mr. Batali's three-star eatery on 10th Avenue flunked a city health inspection this past June, racking up a total of 44 violation points for pest problems and spoiled food -- "proving that even world class kitchens cannot afford to scrimp on pest control," according to Senator Klein's office.
If Mr. Batali is interested, this reporter happens to know some good exterminators.
However, Del Posto was far from the city's filthiest eatery. read more »
Mario Batali Would Look Like Gwyneth if He Worked Out
Mario Batali, who likes to be photographed wearing sausage links as a scarf and holding piglets, says that Gwyneth Paltrow looks the way she does due to her three-hour-workout-a-day regimen.
"I think she works out three hours a day - which is one of the keys to success," Mr. Batali told US Weekly. "If we all did that, we’d all look like Gwyneth Paltrow," he said. "Or at least closer." read more »
Clark Kent in the Kitchen
At 4:30 on a recent Friday afternoon, Del Posto, the 10th Avenue behemoth of a restaurant owned by Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich, had a bustling and vaguely portentous feel. Servers in black and white scurried up and down the two grand staircases in the main dining room, which, multi-tiered and blandly opulent, has been compared to a hotel lobby. An imperious maître d’ in a suit and tie manned the phones from a desk in front of a massive dried flower arrangement, while a few bald, corporate-type older men, possibly holdovers from lunch, sipped wine at scattered tables. Mark Ladner, the restaurant’s Clark Kentish and taciturn executive chef, sat at the far end of the long granite bar in full chef regalia: white apron, designer jeans rolled at the ankle, white Crocs.
Mr. Ladner, 38, was finishing up a business meeting with a man in a suit. He is not in the habit of lurking around the dining room of his 26,000-square-foot, 400-seat, double-Michelin-starred restaurant, particularly when actual customers are present. read more »
Batali's 'Pigsty' Falls Short On Filth Scale
(The restaurant's score was actually 33, according to the Health Department's Web site, but who's counting? A score of 28 or higher is failing.)
How bad is it at Mr. Batali's purported "pigsty"? Bungalow 8 bad, Coney Island Buffet bad -- but still a far cry from KFC-Taco Bell bad, or worse.
As far as food-safety scofflaws go, Mr. Batali ranks rather low, in fact.
George and Hilly
George and Hilly
George and Hilly
Big Boys in the Kitchen Cooking Up a Gutsy Meal
Big Boys in the Kitchen Cooking Up a Gutsy Meal
Batali To Sell Bistro
Mario Batali.
Now, the New York Post reports that Mr. Batali is putting Bistro du Vent on the market. The 42nd Street eatery has only been open for about 15 months. read more »
- Michael CalderoneBatali's On Boil With Landlord Of Restaurant
Batali’s On Boil With Landlord Of Restaurant
A Trattoria Supplies the Goods To Chefs and Food Lovers Alike
Wallace Hopper Rowe
