Between all the wild movements of Fashion Week — pushing past Anna Wintour for a front-row seat, asking Christian Siriano if your outfit is fierce, and so on — all those boldfaced names need a place to sit down, relax, and, well, eat. And sometimes it’s not the pomp or majesty of the fashion shows that creates those magical little moments; sometimes those moments happen in the downtime, like, say, at breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Celebrated fashion blogger Bryanboy, for example, took to Balthazar at the crack of dawn on Tuesday morning and complimented his “super friendly and lovely waiter” via Twitter. After the waiter noticed the blogger’s kind message and tweeted back, Bryanboy showered him with even more praise. On the celebrity side of things, the love was flowing, too, perhaps in early anticipation of Valentine’s Day: Katie Holmes and her adorable child Suri shared a midday treat from Magnolia Bakery, while Paris Hilton dashed out of Serafina with some highbrow takeout for her boyfriend in tow. Below, this wondrous week in celebrity dining.

Balthazar: Fashion blogger Bryanboy and his waiter exchange a series of adorable tweets.

Bar Breton: Two politically minded fiancé-fiancée pairs double-dated at this swanky French flatiron joint: first daughter Chelsea Clinton with Marc Mezvinsky, and Brooklyn/Queens Representative Anthony Weiner with Huma Abedin. [NYP]

Da Silvano: Funny people Howard Stern and Sandra Bernhard traded zingers over dinner. [NYP]

Le Perigord: Pesky patrons grill Mario Cuomo on when his son Andrew will announce his gubernatorial candidacy. [NYP]

Magnolia Bakery: Katie Holmes and daughter Suri sneakily departed the Bowery Hotel and emerged — via some sort of subterranean tunnel known only to Sex and the City characters and Scientologists, we assume — at Magnolia Bakery to have a cupcake. [Cityfile/Zimbio]

Maximo Pino Café: Fox News anchor Shepard Smith sampled some free gelato and fled, perhaps, as the ever-observant Post supposes, “because CNN was playing on the eatery’s TV.” [NYP]

Philippe: Kanye has committed some notable faux pas in certain other venues, but don’t count this week’s early departure from the haute Chinese resto among them: He didn’t wait the requisite 45 minutes for his Peking duck, but he did foot the bill for it, adding on a generous tip. [Grub Street]

Serafina: Sporting a silver minidress (is there any other type of dress that she wears?), Paris Hilton managed to flee the paparazzi outside the midtown west joint while dutifully carrying a doggie bag to her boyfriend. [NYP]

Swifty’s: Peter Bacanovic, former stock broker of the felonious Martha Stewart, dined with Yanna Avis (whom the Post says is a cabaret-singing widow) at the septuagenarian favorite. [NYP]

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Filed Under: balthazar, bar breton, bowery hotel, Celebrity Settings, da silvano, le perigord, magnolia bakery, maximo pino café, philippe, rare bar & grill, serafina, swifty’s

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While a large chunk of New Yorkers spent last week on a post-Grammy vacation in sunny, warm L.A., some out-of-towners like U2 and Sarah Silverman took advantage of our celebrity vacuum and filled it with self-promotion. After celebrating artist Damien Hirst’s new exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery over the weekend, U2 band members dispersed across the city, dining with various attractive women: Bono at Da Silvano with a group of leggy blondes, the Edge at Morandi with a former Victoria’s Secret Angel. Sarah Silverman, in town to promote the premiere of her show’s third season, picked at some health food. Below, the week in boldfaced dining.

Butter: Governor Paterson’s endorsement of Kirsten Gillibrand didn’t stop him from sitting down with Harold Ford Jr.; Ford allegedly footed the bill. [NYP]

Da Silvano: Bono and artist Damien Hirst dined with some ladies. [NYP]

Dylan’s Candy Bar: Alec Baldwin, who says he needs to lose a couple, buys fudge, Swedish fish, and chocolate. [NYP]

Emporio: On Wednesday, Thomas Keller of Laundry and Per Se paid his respects. On Thursday, Matt Dillon stopped by. [Grub Street]

Grill Room: Martha Stewart and former ImClone CEO Sam Waksal, both convicted felons, dined separately at opposite ends of The Four Seasons restaurant, possibly in the presence of other inside traders. [NYP]

Josie’s Restaurant: Sarah Silverman stayed wholesome with two friends. [Gawker]

La Esquina: John Mayer ate some tacos and maybe texted girls. [NYP]

Morandi: U2’s the Edge stopped in with model Helena Christensen. [NYP]

Nougatine: Sting popped in to talk to his manager, who was dining at the bar. [NYP]

Pure Food and Wine: Janet Jackson and rapper ex Jermaine Dupri both ordered “Master Cleanse Tinis.” [NYP]

Rose Bar: Mick Jagger spent some quality time with Mickey Rourke’s girlfriend, Elena Kuletskaya. [NYP]

Swifty’s: Barry Humphries — better known as Dame Edna — dined with his wife. [NYDN]

The Waverly Inn: Channing Tatum dined with Dear John co-star Amanda Seyfried. [People]

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Filed Under: celebrity settings, butter, da silvano, dylan’s candy bar, grill room, josie’s restaurant, la esquina, morandi, nougatine, pure food and wine, rose bar, swifty’s, the waverly inn

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This week: Birthday girls Mischa Barton and Estelle took to Abe and Arthur’s exclusive downstairs lounge SL to celebrate their special days — but not together, unfortunately. Mischa and ladyfriends had their cake and ate it with their bare hands, while the classy recording artist, joined by Darrelle Revis, Tyson Beckford, and John Legend, toasted her 30th with finger-friendly cupcakes. Older ladies prefer haute uptown establishments: Cindy Adams of “Page Six” transcribed the ecstasy of her Porterhouse steak into her daily column, while populist favorite Sarah Palin popped open some Perrier-Jouet on the Upper East Side. A pretty standard week for celebrity dining, below.

Bowery Hotel: Just in case you were wondering what exactly Lyndon B. Johnson’s daughter has been up to these days: She’s downing cocktails with Upper East Side “tastemakers.” [Guest of a Guest]
Brasserie Cognac: A playboy model, a Real Housewife, and a Sex and the City actor walk into a bar … to fête the Russian New Year, of course. [Page Six/NYP]
David Burke Townhouse: Sarah Palin and hubby sip Perrier-Jouet, Champagne of the people, at the rather populist Upper East Side joint. [Page Six/NYP]
Mariella Pizza: Busy bees Uma Thurman and son Levon Roan order a slice to go. [Cityfile]
Manaña: John Bolton, the ex-UN ambassador with no relation to soft-rock balladeer Michael Bolton, dines with the opposite of an ugly blonde. [Page Six/NYP]
Nobu 57: Jets strong-arm Mark Sanchez enjoys some small pieces of fish. [Cityfile]
Porter House: Cindy Adams waxes poetic about a certain rendezvous with Michael Lomonaco’s steak: “. . . ooooh, so good . . .” [Cindy Adams/NYP]
Shanghai Pavilion: Michael J. Fox does Chinese with his wife. [Page Six/NYP]
SL: Mischa Barton and girlfriends have their cake and eat it with their bare hands, while fellow birthday belle Estelle dined on finger-friendly cupcakes with Darrelle Revis, Tyson Beckford, and John Legend. [Page Six/NYP, NYDN]
Tao: Flexing their gastronomic muscles, fifteen Jets players paired their surf-and-turf meals with all the appropriate libations: lychee martinis, tequila shots, and water. [Page Six/NYP]
The Waverly Inn: At long last, Oprah made her pilgrimage to the Graydon Carter’s temple of exclusivity. The saintly talk show host graciously rewarded her driver with a doggie-bagged Waverly Burger. [NYP, Grub Street]

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Filed Under: celebrity settings, abe and arthurs, bowery hotel, brasserie cognac, david burke townhouse, manaña, mariella pizza, nobu 57, porter house, shanghai pavilion, stresa, tao, waverly inn

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Last week, we ran a guide to restaurants and venues where the Haitian community in New York has been convening to share food, stories, and news from back home. Since then, the charity movement has expanded beyond expat hangouts and inspired various others outside of the Haitian diaspora to lend a helping hand. Ilili, for one, has rallied 40 American restaurants, most in New York, to join them in donating 10 percent of this Sunday’s sales to relief efforts. Our updated list for the week follows; again, if we missed any food-related benefits, leave them in the comments.

Magnolia Bakery: Cupcakes with the Red Cross logo sell for $3; $1 of that will go to the American Red Cross. [Grub Street]

‘wichcraft: “On Monday, January 25th, ‘wichcraft partners with La Colombe Torrefaction, Harry Wils & Co, and Imperial Paper to donate all proceeds from ‘wichcraft coffee beverage sales to the American Red Cross relief effort in Haiti.” They’re also donating half the proceeds made from sales of the ‘wichcraft book for the entire month of February. [Grub Street]

Restaurant Week Truck: For each serving of soup you buy, a dollar goes to benefit the Haiti Relief Fund at the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. Where to find it: “The truck will cater to patrons between 11am and 2pm, January 25-29 in Midtown (Broadway between 50th and 51st Streets), February 1-3 in the Flatiron District (Fifth Avenue between 18th and 19th Streets) and February 4-5 in TriBeCa (Greenwich Street between Warren and Murray Streets).” [Grub Street]

Kampuchea, The Norry at Kampuchea, and Num Pang Sandwich Shop: This Cambodian trio will donate 20 percent of this Saturday and Sunday’s sales to UNICEF. [Grub Street]

Bistro Truck: The Moroccan food truck has a box for donations that will go to the American Red Cross. [BistroTruck/Twitter]

For an even more exhaustive list of restaurants donating 10 percent of profits to charity this Sunday and Monday, check out Citysearch’s excellent compilation.

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Filed Under: user’s guide, foodievents, haiti

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