Aug. 13 @ 1pm I saw Andre Leon Talley eating lunch at Benoit. He was with some young women who looked like they could have been summer interns having a farewell lunch. [Submit your own Gawker Stalker sightings to stalker@gawker.com]

• Aquavit's owner says the rumor the eatery is closing is pure nonsense. [GS]
• More good news: Although it appeared as if Ama has gone bust a couple of weeks ago, the closure was temporary and it's now back in business. [Eater]
• The critics: Frank Bruni of the Times gives Aldea a very solid two-star review today; Bloomberg's Ryan Sutton is pretty pleased with Locanda Verde; and the Post's Steve Cuzzo is happy to report Benoit is "a lot better." [NYT, BN, NYP]
• Rumor has it William Grimes may step in as the New York Times' temporary restaurant critic when Frank Bruni takes his leave next month. [TFB]
• A roundup of restaurants that have opened recently. [NYT]
• Joey Chestnut's record-setting 68 hot dogs at the Nathan's eating competition translates into 20,200 calories, in case you were wondering. [TFB]

• It's like Kozmo.com all over again: A site called Wakozi will now deliver booze to your door in Manhattan. Bklyn and Qns coming soon! [Wakozi via TT]
• If you shelled out big bucks for premium seating at the new Yankee Stadium, at least your taste buds will reap the rewards: Both Masaharu Morimoto and April Bloomfield of the Spotted Pig will be putting in appearances. [NYT]
• Tonda opens in the space formerly occupied by E.U. tonight. [Eater]
• Pierre Schaedelin talks about the biz and his bistro Benoit. [Gothamist]
• Good World will serve up its last drink on Saturday night. [GS]
• Will the restaurant industry "be blown away by the current economic storms"? Tim Zagat, not surprisingly, says the answer is "no." [Atlantic]
• Greenhouse has "hands-down rudest doormen in the five boroughs." [MM]
• Alain Ducasse and his wife Gwénaëlle just had a baby boy named Arzhel. And he now has a wax figure of himself in Paris, too, which can't hurt. [P6]

♦ Alain Ducasse has tapped Pierre Schaedelin to be the executive chef of his much-maligned Benoit. [NYT]
♦ Michael Psilakis and Donatella Arpaia's Kefi re-opens tonight. [Eater]
♦ A few photos and the menu from Cyril Renaud's new Bar Breton. [GS]
♦ R&L, which was quickly shut down by the Department of Health after opening in the former Florent space in July, is reopening this week. [Eater]
♦ The best places to pick up coffee in the West Village. [NYM]
♦ Citysearch's top 10 bars and clubs of 2008. [CS]

♦ Mirco del Vecchio, the executive chef of Ago, says he'll sue Robert De Niro for breach of contract if he's replaced at the restaurant by Jean-Georges Vongerichten. [Page Six]
♦ Why is Alain Ducasse's Benoit earning such bad reviews? Ducasse blames American journalists who "don't quite understand French bistro." [RG]
♦ Ruth Reichl paid an early visit to David Bouley's recently-relocated Bouley and describes it as New York's "loveliest restaurant." [Gourmet]
♦ The reservation line is officially open for John Dory, the Brit-themed restaurant by April Bloomfield, Ken Friedman, Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich that is scheduled to open on November 24th. [Eater]

• New York's Adam Platt spanks Alain Ducasse's new brasserie Benoit with a zero-star review. Some of his least favorite dishes? The lobster ravioli (a "viscous mess"), cassoulet (tastes like it was "preheated in a microwave"), and the steak tartare ("dressed with enough horseradish to choke a cow.") [NYM]