• Missed Top Chef Masters last night because it was pre-empted by The Fashion Show? Don’t worry, it comes back next week!
• Your patron saint Gretchen Rossi was at a trunk show hosted by fellow reality star Khloe Kardashian. Oh, to be a fly on the wall of that party… [Guest of A Guest]
• Speaking of Bangs, The Dirty posted another photo of her. I’ll let you go ahead and google that one.
• Dina Manzo was spotted leaving the set of soap opera One Life To Live. Was she visiting a friend or was she following in Danielle Staub’s footsteps? [Soap Opera Networks]
• It looks like some of Bravo’s hardworking PR team for NYC Prep were working it in the comments of local blog SFIst . Why they were doing damage control there is beyond human understanding. Also, why haven’t your fake comments popped up here, Bravo PR team? [SFIst]
• Despite all the outfits being in the three-digit price range, The Fashion Show’s online store has been doing extremely well, with most of the winning looks close to selling out. The cache of having an outfit that was made by the show, which isn’t available at the mall, is probably too much for fashionistas to resist. [Fancast]
• Want to live in the original Top Chef house in San Francisco? It’s available for rent, for $12,500 a month. [Eater]

• Four of the Real Housewives of Atlanta were on the red carpet at last night’s BET Awards. Wait, why wasn’t Kim invited?
• Tom & Lorenzo of the former Project Rungay got to attend The Fashion Show finale and gave their usual sassy spin on the goings-on.
• NYC Prep’s PC’s grandfather Pete Peterson just wrote a book on his rags-to-riches story. Grandpa Peterson is the founder of the Blackstone Group and writes at-length about how he doesn’t like to flaunt his wealth. Would love to hear his take on his grandson’s new venture. [Wall Street Journal]
• Speaking of excessive, unrealistic spending, how much did Rachel Zoe’s style essentials cost in her recent Entertainment Weekly story? $50,000. [Jezebel]
• Alex McCord: reality tv star, dubious social climber, graphic designer, former actress, mom and now…social media marketing guru? [The Huffington Post]
• Real Housewives of New Jersey villain Danielle Staub was able to block the release of her sex tape. Staub’s lawyer argued the filming was done without her consent. [The Insider]
• Do you have a deep yearning for Andy Cohen? Who doesn’t!? Starting in the summer, the Bravo executive will get his very own show, called “Watch What Happens.” Viewers will be able to send him questions via e-mail and Twitter. [Examiner]
• The Fashion Show has yet to come close to the ratings of Project Runway and we don’t even know if it will get a second season. [Buzz Sugar]
• DId you miss Stefan Richter, Top Chef Season 5’s “bad boy”? Playboy.Com has a few videos and an interesting story on what the chef’s been upto lately and how he really feels about the latest winner, Hosea Rosenberg. And yes, the link is safe for work. [Playboy]

[Image: INF ]

I headed to Bryant Park in New York City today to watch reality television’s classiest man, Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio discuss his sandwich book, ‘wichcraft: Craft a Sandwich into a Meal–And a Meal into a Sandwich . During the question and answer session, he inevitably fielded a question on the upcoming season of Top Chef, which just filmed in Las Vegas. In the following video (which I shot just for you, my dears!), Tom says that this new season produced the best food he’s had so far and that the finale has yet to be shot.

Another person asked about Top Chef Juniors, which was a show that was developed about teenagers competing for Top Chef, but he mentioned that that show hasn’t been finished yet because you can’t shoot it like a normal episode. A normal Top Chef episode, he said, takes 16 hours to shoot. Minors can only shoot for 6 hours a day. No wonder the chef-testants are so stressed.

After the jump, you can watch Tom talk about how the sandwich he’s most proud of from the book is the vegetarian sandwich that was conceived from interns who get to work with him via a partnership with the Fresh Air Fund. He describes, ever so lovingly, how the kids show up not knowing anything about food and leave with far more sophisticated palates. His love of kids was apparent through out his talk, he mentioned several times how he’s happy Top Chef is creating a new generation of foodies and how he loves it when kids come to his restaurant with their families. He’s even been known to let kids try their hand at cooking in his kitchen.

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I love these: there’s a blind item about a Real Housewife who got so drunk at a charity event that she started to think she was at Mardi Gras. Who do you think it is? My money’s on Gretchen, who recently was at event for Women of The Year (which she didn’t win). [Crazy Days & Nights]

Host of Top Chef Masters Kelly Anne Choi also has a book coming out called “The 20 Most Delicious Dishes in New York” But don’t expect her to read your blog; she thinks food bloggers are “mean.” [True/Slant]

The first (and sadly, only) female winner of Top Chef Stephanie Izard has just snagged herself a book deal with Chronicle Books, to be published in fall 2010. The working title is How to Think, Shop, and Cook like a Top Chef. Congrats to Stephanie! [Eat Me Daily]

Entertainment Weekly named the Real Housewives franchise as one of the top 20 best reality shows ever. Their favorite season? Real Housewives of NYC Season 1. [EW ]

Real Housewife of New Jersey Jacqueline Laurita is giving birth as we speak! [Life & Style]

• Top Chef season 5 stars Jaime Lauren, Leah Cohen, Jeff McInnis and winner Hosea Rosenberg were in New Orleans judging a contest to pick a new drink for the legendary Hotel Montleone’s Carousel Bar. The winner was the “Monteleone Cocktail,” a combination of rye whiskey, elderflower liquer, ginger liquer, orange bitters and ginger ale. [My Big Easy Life]
• You can find out more than you’ve ever wanted to know about Kelly Bensimon in this video interview on Obsessed TV. She talks about the Bethenny fight around the 20 minute mark. My favorite is her story about talking herself into Columbia.
• Only two episodes in and already a New Jersey housewife is promoting her jewelry line. It’s Teresa Guidice and she’s selling hair clips in her “bow-tique,” American Apparel t-shirts that say “happy wife, happy life” and $170.00 charm bracelets.
• Curious who one of the new Real Housewives of Orange County could have been? One of the potentials was Orange County writer Greer Wylder, who turned the offer down.
• Miami Social, one of the new shows Bravo announced at the upfronts a few weeks ago is supposedly debuting July 7, according to the chatty mouths of its stars, a bunch of rich “socialites” in Miami. This looks like it’s going to be a doozy — one of the major plot points involves the Kardashians. [Miami New Times]

[Image: Newscom]

• Perez Hilton has been Tweeting at celebrities all day in an effort to get them to support him at an Anti Prop 8 rally in California. Rachel Zoe tweeted back that while she supports marriage equality and Anti Prop 8 efforts, she would never support Perez. Ever the classy person he is, Perez tweeted back: ” You obviously can’t read. Die. Bananas.” [Twitter]
• A commenter who went through the Top Chef application process confirms the Top Chef shooting location as M Resort in Las Vegas. Still unsure why everyone involved is still acting like it’s some kind of secret.
• Real Housewife of New Jersey Teresa Gaudice is going to get those bubbies she asked for; she’s 4 months pregnant! This will be her fourth child. [People TV Watch]

• The news cycle is so slow E! has decided to invent a fake fight between Bethenny Frankel and Kelly Bensimon about who will get to go on Dancing With The Stars. [E! Online via Reality TV Scoop]
• Maybe they are talking to the press about going on DWTS because one of them will not be a Real Housewife anymore? Word is that the producers have sent out a casting notice for season three. I couldn’t find it on Craigslist or Reality Wanted. [Ace Showbiz]
• Has Bravo has created an addictive formula by churning out very similar shows? Or have they just dumbed it down? You decide. [The Mouthinator]

[Image: INF]

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• Kate of Trout Media sent me the above portrait of Millionaire Matchmaker Patti Stanger. Not sure how Patti would feel about it. Thanks, Kate! [Image by Kate Tratschould, used with permission]
• On Real Housewives of New Jersey, we saw cougar Danielle Staub get stood up by a dude she met on a site called Wealthymen.com (at least she is upfront about her gold digging!) who went by the name ‘GucciModel.’ I thought I’d found a conversation with the actual man behind GucciModel, but instead it was two practical jokers on Sling.Com. If you find that conversation in your internet travels, know that Gucci Model is still out there, having phone sex with unsuspecting single housewives who just want to marry a man for his wallet. And love. But mostly wallet.
• Sheree Whitfield’s fashion debut is getting to her head. In an interview with Essence magazine, she ragged on fellow Atlanta housewife Lisa Wu Hartwell’s “Closet Freak” line, by saying “”For Lisa, this isn’t her passion, and she hired someone to do the line for her.” [Essence via S2S]
• Bethenny Frankel is going naked for PETA. I’m sure someone will track down a photo of her wearing leather or eating meat eventually. It’s a requirement to be a PETA spokesperson, practically. [Gawker]
• More notes from the scene at Top Chef Vegas! Tyler Florence got caught Tweeting he was a guest judge and then quickly deleted the evidence. However, several of his followers re-tweeted him and little does he know that the Twitter search engine is forever! Behold the incriminating Tweet:

• The Fashion Show’s Markus hated having to live in cramped quarters to film the reality show; he calls himself “American Psycho anal.” I just hope he never has to go return any video tapes. [Miami Herald]
• Bethenny Frankel is blogging about the New Jersey Housewives “exclusively” for E!Online. Um, guess no one told Bravo about that since they also have a blog by Miss Frankel on the NJ housewives.
• Did you know Alex McCord used to be an actress? Here she is in a student film, watch around the 5 minute mark. [ONTD]
• Real Housewives of New Jersey produced the highest ratings for a Real Housewives premiere ever! It’s an “improvement of 91% over the premiere of The Real Housewives of New York City…186% over the Atlanta premiere and 341% over the original Orange County incarnation’s debut episode.” [Broadcasting & Cable]
• Isaac Mizrahi says the difference between The Fashion Show and Project Runway is the former is “more about competition and seeing what really goes into making clothing before it hits the runway.” And that makes it different from PR how? [Pop Eater]
• First Lady Michelle Obama caused a scene when she stopped by Good Stuff Eatery in DC, owned by Top Chef alum Spike Mendelson. She tried the “Prez Obama” burger, which is like Obama because the flavors all come together, “like the public behind Obama.” Aww. [The Dish]

[Image: Bravo/NBC Universal]

• Top Chef host Padma Lashkmi (pictured right) is one of the few Bravo-lebrities who gets in to the truly A-list stuff, like the White House correspondent’s dinner. [Image: Newscom]
• The Real Housewives of New York City rang the bell at the New York Stock Exchange yesterday morning. What’s next, the Kardashian sisters? Heidi & Spencer?
• Local blog aggregator Outside.In reports that Alex McCord is the most popular blog topic in Brooklyn. I’d like to see some numbers, please. [Cobble Hill Blog]
• Top Chef’a Fabio Viviani may have lost the competition but he is making sure we never forget his gelled hair. His cookbook, the Cafe Firenze Cookbook is due out June 15 and he’s signed on as the spokesperson a brand of pizza and for my favorite Euro treat, San Pellegrino. [Ventura County Star]
• Rachel Zoe is bringing her line of accessories to QVC in September. Look for huge sunglasses and lots of chunky bracelets. [Fab Sugar]
• Want to make the cupcakes Bethenny Frankel couldn’t give away in a recent episode of Real Housewives of New York City? Here’s the recipe. [Cupcakes Take The Cake]
• Xocai, the chocolate Jill Zarin has been pushing on her Facebook friends got written up in the New York Times. Creepy and reminiscent of Amway. If it looks like a pyramid scheme and sounds like a pyramid scheme… [New York Times]
• Boston.Com is running a fake casting call for a hypothetical Real Housewives of Boston spin-off. If you’re interested, you can send a video to the editors; the best ones will be featured on the site on May 12. [Boston.Com]

Imagine if you were filming a reality show out of Las Vegas. You’d expect to be be drunk the entire time, hook up with at least one housemate (preferably the one in a serious relationship back home) and best of all, you’d expect to live in a giant hotel room at the Palms, like all reality show contestants.

Top Chef Season 6 is not so lucky. The Las Vegas Review Journal reports the chefs are holed up in some warehouse near the airport and not at the M Resort like previously reported. If this is true, that sucks. I wonder how many prizes for quickfires will involve getting to go to the casino.