STARS HIT THE HOT SPOTS
Milo Ventimiglia, Martha Stewart, even LeBron all out on the town
It looks like Boston has been absolutely buzzing with big names over the last few days. So we’re giving you a thorough rundown of recent sightings, from national stars sneaking into some of our local establishments, to our city’s movers and shakers gathering at VIP parties:
“This Is Us” star Milo Ventimiglia apparently sandwiched his Hasty Pudding appearance in between a couple of eating sessions at nearby restaurants. Before he sat through the customary roast and accepted his coveted Pudding Pot at Harvard’s Farkas Hall, we’re told that the actor dropped by Harvest in Cambridge for lunch. And after wrapping up all of his Man of the Year duties, he also finished his day with a feast at Benedetto, where his mother, Carol, served as his date for the evening. We’re told that during his time at the Italian eatery, the “Gilmore Girls” vet was served a five-course menu specially prepared by chef Michael Pagliarini. The marathon of a meal consisted of: insalata verde; buffalo mozzarella with fresh winter citrus toasted pine nuts, fermented apple and anchovy salt; casarecce alla boscaiola with roasted autumn mushrooms, arugula and grana padano; local hake with crema di ceci, roasted fennel, braising greens and more seasonal citrus; and a dessert of bocconotti almond tortas with brown butter frosting and lemon zest that was crafted by James Beardnominated pastry chef Renae Connolly. He was said to be extremely kind and even stopped to pose for a selfie with a local boy and girl.
Domestic queen Martha Stewart paid local baker Joanne Chang a visit, exploring the latest addition to the Flour family while she was in town late last week. “Oh you know just your average day when @marthastewart comes to visit!” Chang wrote on Instagram. The restaurateur proceeded to detail Stewart’s drop-in: “She stopped (by) our newest Flour at IDB and loved the gorgeous design by @wolfinsheepdesign, she ordered an egg sandwich w bacon, brownie, ginger molasses and chunky lola cookies, flour power bar. She snacked on banana bread ends when she toured the production kitchen and agreed the the ends are the best part. She was gracious and lovely and everyone fangirled and fanboyed over her including me.”
It seems that basketball star LeBron James hit up a Seaport hot spot for a postgame refuel on Thursday night. We’re told that the LA Lakers great was spotted eating at Empire Asian Restaurant & Lounge after snagging a narrow victory against the Celtics at TD Garden. While there, LeBron was joined by teammate and Mr. BuzzerBeater himself, Rajon Rondo, as well as a few friends. The group gathered in one of the venue’s private dining rooms, where they downed dishes like shrimp shumai, lobster rangoons, tempura rock shrimp rolls and spicy salmon rice bites.
The Mandarin Oriental Boston rang in the Chinese New Year with style, throwing a flamboyant fete at its Back Bay ballroom on Thursday. Highlights of the party included a traditional tree full of fortunes, custom pieces of Chinese calligraphy for guests and an everlively Lion Dance. The bash, which marked the Year of the Earth Pig and the luxury hotel’s 10th anniversary in town, also featured remarks from its general manager, Philipp Knuepfer, and had internationally celebrated chef Daniel Boulud on hand to present a roasted suckling pig and other delicacies from Bar Boulud. Among the familiar faces spotted in the crowd: WinnCompanies founder Arthur Winn; Boston Athletic Association big Tom Grilk; Saks Fifth Avenue Marketing Director Kathryn Green; Emerald Necklace Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek; Kwong Kow Chinese School Board Chair Theresa Tsoi; MFA Fashion Arts Curator Michelle Finamore; Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism boss Francois Nivaud; real estate honcho Michael Carucci; Dr. Marisela Marrero and Winston Flowers sales exec James Reardon.
Restaurant master Seth Greenberg hosted an intimate dinner at Bastille Kitchen on Thursday night, welcoming a small group of friends to celebrate pal and local author Ben Mezrich’s birthday. We hear that the exclusive guest list consisted of the birthday boy’s wife, “Boston’s Red Carpet” host Tonya Mezrich, her sister, Sonya van der Meer, Boston Ballet principal dancers Kathleen Breen Combes and John Lam, choreographer Yury Yanowsky, Attache CEO Eric Jausseran, Trade coowner Sean Griffing, attorneys Jared Freed and John Ruggieri, and power broker Josh Golden. After the crew munched on homemade cake pops, they worked off that sugar rush by dancing the night away to live music playing downstairs at Bastille’s Chalet.