Top Chef at Sea offers vacationers Bravo dining and Celebrity cruising

Finding famous food destinations is a growing travel to-do. I mean, when's the last time you went on a trip that didn't include searching out at least one fun food spot? 

Unfortunately, package deals, like on cruises and resorts, sometimes have the tendency to be a bit of a let-down when it comes to culinary prowess.

The solution seems to be to travel for food or travel for ambiance... Two very different experiences.

Vacationers can now get the best of both worlds - a top culinary experience and a destination.

Top Chef and Celebrity Cruises have teamed up to offer a new cruise option -- Top Chef at Sea. 

Destinations include Bermuda (July), Alaska (August), Europe (December) and the Caribbean (November) and will feature former "Top Chef" contestants. The trip can include private cooking classes and events hosted by former chef’testants (at an additional cost as part of their vacation experience).

In addition to the four exclusive cruises with “Top Chef” alums, Celebrity will also introduce Quickfire Challenges and “Top Chef”-inspired menu evenings to its luxury vacations onboard 10 ships for all sailings departing July 2014 – June 2015.

My Ruined Life Season 3: Preimer party Wednesday at Underground Arts

Way back in January 2012 I posted about a new web series with a Philly focus, My Ruined Life. Back then its quirky insights were just in its infancy. But over the past two years this original, now award-winning comedy web series has shown some serious dedication and gained a loyal following.


In celebration of the series' success, Retro Peel Productions, and writer/producer/director of My Ruined Life, Lee Porter are hosting a FREE Season 3 premier party at Underground Arts on 12th & Callowhill in Philadelphia this Wednesday, January 8, from 7 -11 p.m..

They have a solid line up of musical guests including Work Drugs' Nero Catalano who performs the MY RUINED LIFE theme song, TJ Kong & The Atomic Bomb's Dan Bruskewicz, and Sean Huber of Modern Baseball and Steady Hands. DJ KidC will spin funk, soul and dance grooves and there will be a sneak preview of select Season 3 episodes. 

Fun stuff, good peeps and most importantly, Philly made. Support. 

Click through to MyRuinedLife.com and catch up on seasons one and two. 
Here's a bit from season two. 

Snowdon’s secrets sold; eBay founder to invest $250M in Greenwald, Poitras media start-up

When you’re a journalist on the story of a lifetime, with the mother load of government intelligence, and someone offers to invest $250 million to hire you, your partner and your super-secret stash of intel and launch a new for-profit media venture, what do you do?

If you’re Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras – the two reporters whom Edward Snowdon had entrusted full access to his cache of NSA files – you take the deal.

According to a post on Pandodaily.com, eBay founder Pierre Omidyar invested a quarter of a billion dollars to hire the two journos for a new media venture.

In the piece, ‘Keeping Secrets: Pierre Omidyar, Glenn Greenwald and the privatization of Snowden’s leaks,’ which published on Nov. 27, author Mark Ames seems to be firing more of a disclosure warning shot, preemptively stressing the importance of fair and accurate reporting.

It’s lengthy, but is worth a read for a bit more background on the parties’ financial interests. It also raises some interesting questions as to the legality of the deal, and the choice these writers made not to make the documents public, like Wikileaks.

Greenwald posted a response this morning on his site, UT Documents. In it he addresses the points raised in the Pando piece, at length, and raises some questions of his own.

But it’s not a denial.

Greenwald writes:

“I consider the opportunity to help build this new media venture to be a once-in-a-career dream opportunity. That's because the organization is being built from the start to support, sustain and encourage truly independent, adversarial journalism.”

“The people we have hired and will continue to hire - and, ultimately, the journalism we produce - will speak volumes about exactly the reasons we're doing this and why I'm so excited about it.”

As to the legality, Greenwald writes:

“The UK government is formally equating our journalism with "terrorism" and "espionage" and has said there are criminal investigations pending. Eric Holder's recent statements about whether I'd be prosecuted if I tried to enter the US was so riddled with caveats and uncertainties that it raised more questions than it answered.

 One of the few protections you have when you're reporting on classified materials is that you're doing it as a journalist. It's therefore vital that we never act as a source or distributor of the materials, which is what the DOJ would eagerly claim if - as individuals - we just started handing out massive amounts of documents to media organizations around the world, rather than doing what we've been doing: reporting on them on a story-by-story basis with those outlets.”

According to the UT Documents post, both Greenwald and Poitras began covering the Snowdon files under freelance contracts with the Guardian, NYT, Washington Post, and der Spiegel. They’ve partnered with media outlets all over the world strategically offering information to individuals whose privacy has been invaded.

The former freelancers have now been offered a very lucrative, and exclusive contract, (in addition to a pending book deal) all built upon their full access to what are estimated as between 50,000 and 200,000 classified NSA documents.

It will be very exciting to watch what kind of work a couple of dedicated writers and an Internet mogul can produce.

New book from Philly restaurateur, DiFillippo of Davio’s

Looking for that special something ... for the foodie in your life? 

How about a new book?! 

One that dishes the dirt on what it’s really like to be in the business.

It’s the story of a successful restaurateur – but told as if a bunch of us were having dinner, sharing experiences over a bottle of wine.

It’s an insider’s perspective, and a must-read for every would-be, up-an-coming restaurateur:

"It’s All About The Guest, Exceeding Expectations in Business and In Life, The Davio’s Way" by Steve DiFillippo

DiFillippo opened his first restaurant at 24. He’s now the CEO of Davio’s Italian Steakhouse and has taken his brand from Boston to Philly and just recently expanded into Atlanta and New York.

Doing it big in the restaurant business is tough cookies. 

Only a few names stack up when it comes to the art of expansion. Especially when they’ve spared no expense.

You’ve got Starr, Garces and Vetri – the holy trinity of Philly food.

They’ve created a brand and rarely disappoint. We love them for it, and reward them generously with packed-house patronage.

As is the case at Davio’s. They never fail to impress. And though the man behind the brand may not have a household name in the blog-o-sphere, he’s built himself quite the emerging empire.

Culling years of experience on the floor and behind the line, DiFillippo mixes anecdotes with helpful advice on controlling costs, the truth behind Open Table’s booking fees, finding a good public relations firm and the importance of sound legal advice.

He dishes the dirt on Yelp, on a narcissistic wait staff, on drugs in the kitchen and "why it's not all about the chef," chapter 8. 

DiFillippo also pays homage to his “big immigrant family," and the influences that his Italian-American grandmother and Portuguese-American mother had on him at a very young age.

And, of course, there was Julia Child.

Her Pomodoro recipe is listed among others that have inspired him, progressing along with the chapters like a prix-fix menu.

Recipes for, Kobe beef meatballs, basil pesto lobster, and panna cotta are brief, and easy to interpret.

Each chapter is punctuated with “Restaurant Lessons to Live By,” just a few words to the wise, from a man who’s been there, and done that.

Some final takeaways?

1: Treat your people like family.

2: Stay fresh or die. 

3: Bad things happen. Deal with it.

Good book and a good buy, signed for less than $30. 

Romeo and Juliet: The Killers, Dire Straits, Mark Knopfler

Great song. Feedback on your favorite?