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- Michelle Harper at Theyskens’ Theory
- Tweed Coat and Spectator Shoes, Outside Lanvin
- Winter Layers, Outside Donna Karan
- Mary Alice Stephenson
- Shala Monroque at Valentino
- Angelo Flaccavento in a Red Bow Tie, Outside Costume National
- Vanessa Friedman in a Red Cape, Outside Valentino
- Karmen Pedaru in a Fur, Exiting Louis Vuitton
- Kasia Struss in a Tweed Coat
- Brown Suit and Orange Tie, Madison Avenue
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bellastraniera
a.k.a. Marcy Swingle - obsessed with food and fashion.View my photography website.
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Tag Archives: East Village rants
This Is Why You Have High Blood Pressure
The battle against salt has been portrayed by the city and the media as a strike against the fast food and processed foods industry, and by extension, legislation to protect the poor. But before you think you’re not affected because you don’t subsist on Cheez-Its, consider what you eat, especially if you follow food blogs like this one. Just because something is freshly-made and preservative-free doesn’t mean it’s good for you; in fact, food at restaurants and upscale take-out shops can be nearly as high in salt as that McDonald’s fare. What’s the secret ingredient in that delicious ramen soup? That succulent barbecue? That sandwich by Tom Colicchio? That smoky pork taco? You guessed it.
I learned the hard way that no one is exempt from the “salt = bad” rule this spring when I found this spring out I have the beginnings of hypertension. Even though I exercise regularly and avoid processed and fast food, I was relying on calorie counts and a general knowledge of nutrition to find the “healthy” stuff on the menu whenever I ate out, which was most of the time. But chefs tend to be heavy-handed with the salt. After all, it’s not their job to monitor your blood pressure, it’s just their job to keep you coming back for more. And it often takes salt to make food taste good. (more…)
Cocktail Trends: El Gin Tonic?
Cocktail trends come and cocktail trends go, and sometimes they even come back again before you even know they went. According to today’s Times, rum is on the up and up, meanwhile, it seems like just yesterday that tiki bar Waikiki Wally’s opened, then closed, in the East Village.
But you really don’t realize how ridiculous cocktail trends are until you see them at work in another culture. In Barcelona right now, the coolest possible drink to order is not something involving bitters, chartreuse, absinthe, or even rye, it’s a good ol’ gin and tonic, pronounced “GIN TOH-neek.” That’s right Mom and Dad: Your taste in drinks is big in Barcelona. (more…)
Sweatpants: Why?
Alexander Wang’s influence notwithstanding, I am mystified by the sweatpants trend. Perhaps because I was born in the pre-Lycra, pre-wicking-material era, I associate baggy gray sweatpants with the general humiliation of high school gym class. Imagine running down the main street in town in the most unflattering clothes imaginable. It’s great that athletic clothes are now designed by people like Stella McCartney, but not so long ago, shapeless sweatpants were the only option. And they were horrible.
Nevertheless, women are now decking themselves in gray sweatpants material without being forced to by school uniform codes. This “jog top,” above, actually sold out at indie retailer Pixie Market. Why? Just the word “jog” is still cringe-inducing, especially when it’s anywhere near the words “heather gray.” Yet sweatpants are now everywhere. More examples, after the jump. (more…)
Heeere, Bunny, Bunny
What do you think of the Olsens’ mouse and rabbit ear get up for the Tokyo Opening Ceremony party? As mentioned, I haaaated the Louis Vuitton bunny ears on Madonna at the Costume Institute Ball. They even look dumb in the styled ads. With Madonna, as soon as she arrived on the arm of Jesus (Luz) five seconds after her divorce, it seemed like a typical attention ploy. But in the Olsens’ case, maybe they are just being their slightly weird selves?
Update: the ears are Maison Michel.
photo via Because I’m Addicted
What do you think?
[polldaddy poll=1940523]
Dining Psychology: Confessions of a Hoarder
What’s surprising about Bruni’s hilarious article today on the psychology of diners, What They Brought to the Table, isn’t that his guests didn’t behave as scripted in restaurants, it’s that they would ever agree to the bargain at all. You couldn’t pay most people to only eat a quarter of what’s on their plate, then pass it dutifully around the table.
And by “most people,” I mean me. Years of sharing with female friends who insisted that they weren’t that hungry, didn’t order much, then ate half of what was on my plate have definitely turned me into a hoarder. The “shared plates” trend has only exacerbated the problem. What’s the point of ordering the arancini if you only get half of one delicious fried rice ball? And no, the fact that I get some of your sauteed spinach in return isn’t much consolation.
There is nothing rational about saying, “I’m going to get the rice balls. But I am going to eat them all, so if you guys want some, maybe we should order more.” Yet I have said this to my friends. In restaurants. Aloud.
Other than hoarders vs. sharers, here are a few more categories I’ve noticed over the years: the Manglers, the Impatients, the Meg Ryans, and the Switch Orderers. (more…)
On the Stump for Coffee
Here it is. Coffee. A seemingly innocuous substance, yet Stumptown, a fair trade coffee brand based in Portland, Oregon, caused a fervor – and a backlash – as soon as it landed in New York this summer, the likes of which we haven’t seen since mid-90s Starbucks encroachment. A NY Press article questioning the boho spirit of the brand – true or poser? – incited a series of inordinately belligerent comments on Eater.
In the past few months, when I tell people I write about food, a couple New Yorkers immediately asked: Have you tried Stumptown coffee? Not what do you think about Bruni’s demotion of Union Square Cafe to two stars or what’s the best pizza place, but have you tried Stumptown coffee? Really, you haven’t? At this point, after proclaiming the merits of this miraculous beverage, they usually change the subject awkwardly, suddenly unsure that I would ever have anything useful to say about food. (more…)
Heavy Metal: Boulud Goes OTT Industrial
Eater has just released photos of the new Daniel Boulud restaurant DBGB Kitchen & Bar, to open on the Bowery in two weeks time. Apparently the place is “meant to evoke the restaurant supply stores that are fast going extinct on the Bowery,” but it looks like an army barracks. Even after construction is finished, the walls will consist of industrial metal shelving – which will eventually hold copper pots donated by famous chefs around the world. (Because more metal will add to the warm and fuzzy atmosphere?)
I was hoping mess hall decor would stop at Hill Country, but now it’s trickling up to a Daniel Boulud spot? Make it stop! Also, it seems kind of ironical that one of the wealthy new Bowery tenants pushing out the old restaurant supply stores is paying homage to the dying culture of restaurant supply stores.
Let’s hope the DB sausage and beer makes up for it all?
Go to Eater for the actual photos of the interior of DBGB Kitchen & Bar: Sneak Peeks: DBGB Unleashed to the Media!
The Advent of Evil: Domino’s Bread Bowl Pasta
Have you seen the ads for Domino’s “Bread Bowl Pasta”? It’s a big, healthy serving of chicken alfredo, Italian sausage marinara, or three-cheese mac-n-cheese in a bread bowl. Because why have just pasta or bread when you could have twice the carbs in one dish? And there’s nothing like a big chunk of yeasty bread to cut the starchiness of pasta.
Interestingly, Domino’s hasn’t released the nutrition information for the bread bowl pasta on their website yet. But they do have a handy calorie calculator that tells you that there are 265 calories in one slice (1/8 pie) of deep-dish “Deluxe Feast” pizza (pepperoni, savory Italian sausage, green peppers, mushrooms, onions and cheese). From this 12-inch pizza information we can deduce the approximate calories of the 10-inch bread bowl pasta: (more…)
She Said, She Said: Post-Game Hissy Fit Analysis, Met Costume Institute Ball
I would say that fashion is like high school, but that wouldn’t be fair: actually, it’s more like junior high. The amount of sniping that went on before this year’s Metropolitan Museum Costume Institute Ball – first with the bashing of Vogue and Anna Wintour’s involvement in the ball by author Michael Gross in the Post, then the hissy fit thrown by designer Azzedine Alaia, who felt snubbed by the museum – is unprecedented. But as models like Naomi Campbell and Stephanie Seymour dropped out of the “Model As Muse” event in support of Alaia, the show went on without them and seemed just as fun, just like that 7th grade mixer you refused to attend for a very important reason.
If the brouhaha surrounding this year’s event illuminates anything, it’s the clash between old and new definitions of “culture.” Surely the museum’s curators had no idea they were causing such grave offense by neglecting Alaia, who they thought would refuse to participate in a group show; after all, curators are intellectuals who’ve never had to do the seating chart for a fashion show. For the ’80s, the museum went in the direction of mass, choosing names that the average museum-goer would recognize from a sunglasses shop, like Versace and Armani. What’s interesting is that it was the fashion world that objected, expecting the museum to take the High Art road. Per celebrity ringmaster Marc Jacobs in the Times:
He’s very upset. Azzedine is a great friend of mine. I admire him so much… He’s had a huge influence on the way women are shaped, the way women look. I do think he’s one of the greatest influences. I’m really sad that he’s not part of this exhibition.
Well, fashion world: what ye sow, ye shall reap.
But now onto what’s really important – what people wore!!!! OMG.
Breaking News: New Yorkers Don’t Eat at Applebee’s
In a shocking discovery, the Times revealed today that no one is dining at an Applebee’s in Manhattan: in fact, the restaurant is full of empty tables. The exact reason is unclear, but it may be because there are so many other similarly mediocre restaurants in the Times Square area offering up stiff competition, including Chevy’s, Dallas BBQ, ESPN Zone, and Dave & Busters.
Top analysts concur that as the demand for bad food lessens, many restaurants serving bad food are vulnerable to closure. Applebee’s franchise owner Zane Tankel once considered his only competition to be the inimitable Olive Garden, but:
“We’ll see some weeding out,” he said one recent lunch hour, sitting in a near-empty Applebee’s dining room overlooking 42nd Street. Noting a restaurant above him and another across the street, he said, “One of the three of us is not going to be here.”
Will Manhattan’s dining scene survive without Applebee’s? Where will local heroes like Plaxico Burress eat before putting a loaded weapon into the elastic waistband of their pants? If such pinnacles of New York fine cuisine fall prey to the recession, the future looks grim indeed.
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