• The war against the Jane Hotel marches on. Not only does Jane Street Neighbors United, the "coalition" now facing off against the Village hotspot, have a lawyer, blog and Twitter feed, it's retained a publicist, too. [NYT]
• Openings: Nolita's Travertine debuts tonight with former Top Chef contestant Manuel Trevino behind the stove. And RobataNY opened yesterday in the EV.
• Tyra Banks explored the wide world of food trucks on her show today. And Frank Bruni's appearance on Martha Stewart's show last week is now online.
• The bar formerly known as Baraza has reopened as Summit Bar. [GS]
• The Bagatelle team is turning Merkato 55 into an Italian restaurant. [GoaG]
• Desperate times: Starbucks unveiled a line of instant coffee today. [WSJ]

• Openings: Tony and Marisa May's San Domenico reopened today with a new name (SD26), and in a sprawling new location (on East 26th Street); the new Oceana officially made its debut today, too; and opening on Thursday is Ed's Chowder House, Jeffrey Chodorow and chef Ed Brown's seafood venue in the Empire Hotel space that used to house Chodorow's Center Cut steak place.
• John McDonald and Josh Picard are partnering with nightlife king Serge Becker and dividing Chinatown Brasserie into two new venues. [TFB, Eater]
• A list of restaurants "where models, editors, designers and all things fashionable converge" during Fashion Week, according to the Times. [NYT]
• Rumor has it SushiSamba may take over the old Merkato 55 space. [GS]
• Minetta Tavern plans to start serving brunch on the weekends soon. [Eater]
• Marion's on the Bowery is going Mexican by way of Dumbo. [VV]
• A Frank Sinatra-branded line of wine is now available. Yes, one of the vintages really is called "Come Fly Away With Me." [Luxist]
• Once Tavern on the Green changes hands, its two public restrooms will no longer be open to the public. Try the nearby bushes instead. [NYT]

• A few new restaurants scheduled open this week or next. [Gothamist]
• Expansions du jour: Michael Psilakis (Anthos, Kefi, Gus & Gabriel) may or may not be looking to launch a Greek food-truck. And Michael Huynh (Bar Bao, Baoguettes) is planning to open O Bao Noodles & Grill on East 53rd St. this fall.
• Bars and restaurants often continue to operate after they file for bankruptcy. That doesn't appear to be the case with Merkato 55, though. [Eater]
• Oprah's diet was destroyed during a visit to NYC last weekend. Of course, potato skins at Planet Hollywood and dessert at Serendipity 3 will do that. [P6]

• It's a big night for Jean-Georges Vongerichten: He's cooking dinner at the United Nations for three past presidents (Carter, Bush I, Clinton) and one current president. Halibut's on the menu, in case you're wondering. [Crain's]
• Scott Sartiano and Richie Akiva of 1Oak and Butter are taking over the West 14th Street bar/club formerly known as The Plumm. [Page Six]
• Tom Colicchio's 'wichcraft is creating the menu for a Southwest Airlines-sponsored "pop-up lounge" in Bryant Park, slated to open June 19. [NYT]
• Merkato 55 (or Le 55, as it was known recently) is now bankrupt. [Crain's]
• Locanda Grande has a bakery café and it's now serving up breakfast. [GS]
• The city is evicting Citarella from its Harlem location. [NYT]
• Christian Albin, chef at the Four Seasons, died over the weekend. [NYT]
• What you missed at the Big Apple BBQ this weekend. [Gothamist, Metromix]

• Public Fare, Danny Meyer's concession stand at the Delacorte Theater, will be open for the debut of Shakespeare in the Park on June 10. [Zagat]
• Shea Gallante, the chef at Cru, will be leaving at the end of the month. [NYT]
• Daniel Boulud's DBGB is accepting walk-ins prior to its 6/8 opening. [GS]
• Flex Mussels on the UES gets a single star in the Times today. [NYT]
• Noah Tepperberg's Avenue opened last night. Wass Stevens and the Beatrice Inn's Angelo and Todd manned the door, Paul Sevigny provided the music, sister Chloë was in the house, and a jack and coke costed $19.20. [GS]

• Sneakers at Bouley? Not acceptable. You can wear them to Per Se, though, provided you also bring along a doctor's note. [TONY]
• A list of 75 outdoor cafés that have opened, in case you're feelin' brave. [GS]
• The Times would like to remind you that people are still spending big bucks to hit up brunch at Bagatelle and Merkato 55, recession or not. [NYT]
• Braeburn gets a middling, one-star review of in this week's New York. [NYM]
• A fire did serious damage to Coney Island's famed Totonno's pizzeria over the weekend, but the owners say they plan to reopen in six weeks or so. [NY1]
• Speaking of pizza, the highly-anticipated Kesté opens next week. [GS]
• Looking to open a restaurant? Cool! Here are some availabilities. [Eater]
• More trouble for Gordon Ramsay: A week after selling his LA eatery, he's been forced to sell off flagship in Paris because of the credit crunch. [NYP]
• Eric Ripert will tack one more honor to his resume tonight when he's awarded the Legion d'Honneur, France's highest award, at the French Consulate. [TFB]

• Rumor has it Iacopo Falai is in "early talks" to open up a space inside Andre Balazs's new Standard Hotel in the meatpacking district. [Eater]
• Chocolate Bar will reopen in a new West Village location on April 28. [NYO]
• The price of certain French cheeses quadruples on March 22. Ouch! [TONY]
• Tim and Nina Zagat are launching a new food website. And The Atlantic is launching a new food "channel" tomorrow. [GS, AdAge]
• Korean food is taking over America, apparently. [WSJ]
• Sign 'o the times: Arby's first Brooklyn outpost is opening in the landmarked space formerly occupied by steakhouse Gage & Tollner. [NYDN]
• Chefs Daniel Boulud, Floyd Cardoz, and Marco Canora discuss the biz. [GS]
• Matt Oliver, doorman at M2 and brunch at Merkato 55, chats nightlife. [BB]
• Bourdain on Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares: "It's a circus of cruelty, like shooting fish in a barrel with a cut-down 12-gauge shotgun. There's no cooking. It's just a bunch of dimwits—the lame, the halt and the delusional." [EMD]

• Eric Hara is leaving David Burke's Townhouse and Fishtail. He'll be replacing Joël Antunes as executive chef at the Plaza's Oak Room. [TFB, GS, DJ]
• Inakaya opens tonight. And the bathrooms totally rock. [GS, Zagat]
• Burger expert Josh Ozersky comes up with a revised list of NYC's top 10. [CS]
• Padma Lakshmi is "putting her passion for meat into a new commercial for Hardee's Bacon Western Thickburger." No comment. [People]
• Megu may take over the Merkato 55/Bijoux space on Gansevoort St. [DBTH]
• Dock's Oyster Bar on Broadway has closed its doors. [Eater]
• Your obsession with healthy food is killing your kids, just so you know. [NYT]
• According to a new poll, 41% of people in NYC describe themselves as "overweight" or "very overweight." The actual number? More like 56%. [NYP]

• Geoffrey Zakarian will reconceive the upstairs portion of Country as Country Steak. [Grub Street]