The Curious Case of Gwendolyn Butler
OK, I don’t actually know if Boston’s notorious "$3M Bartender" Gwen Butler was really christened Gwendolyn at some point in her life, but I just thought it sounded better in the title.
Anyhoo! PX This hereby presents the following NEWSFLASH: Gwen Butler’s recent appointment as General Manager of La Esquina has been terminated. We repeat: GWEN BUTLER HAS LEFT THE BUILDING.
Fascinating, isn’t it?
No? Why should you actually care, you ask? Who gives a goddamn, you inquire?
Well, New York magazine’s Grubstreet cares! So nyeah. And frankly, we here at PX This care too. And YOU— curious, sagacious, cognizant, voracious, zealous associate of the NYC Food & Beverage industry— maybe you should care too. Think of it as an compelling case study!
You may recall Boston’s scandalous "$3M Bartender"/"Full Comp"-blogger first made her big splash in NYC as anonymous-writer/Keith-McNally-pillorer "Sympathy for the Restaurant Industry."
She trundled through various undertakings, searing her mountainous brand upon the backsides of venues across the great island of Manhattan— Bubby’s, Daydream, Thunder Jacksons, etc— all culminating in an unprecedented and uproarious smackdown with Wonder Douche dumb chef, Ryan Skeen.*
Still, she managed to emerge triumphant, landing her "dream job" as GM of longtime über-hotspot, La Esquina.
Unfortunately, despite her entrusted duty-bound title, it wasn’t long at all before Butler was up to her old shenanigans, unable to resist the siren call of glorious foodie-blog superstardom. It seems that under Butler’s deft Deep-Throat email-wielding hands, La Esquina soon came under befuddled stupefied scrutiny, and avid supporters of "co-owner" Serge Becker were suddenly left scratching their heads wondering if they should take their patronage elsewhere.
Apparently, this didn’t bode well for La Esquina’s bottom line; "an insider" from the restaurant approximates it may even have possibly diminished the nightly cover estimate by as much as "30 percent," as the cool crowd moved their party up the street, to fellow chronic cool-dude Nur Khan‘s Kenmare.
However, another "La Esquina insider" tells us that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of Butler’s "wackadoo" tenure. As early as July 30, 2010 (mere weeks into Butler’s regime) the staff had already organized a mass email campaign to owner Derek Sanders, imploring the ejection of the newly-instated Butler.
Truth be told, we here at PX This have been fielding the plenitudinous grumblings ever since.
That surprises you, doesn’t it? I mean, after all, the whooole "blogger world" (whoever the hell that’s supposed to be) considers us to be "the La Esquina shit-talkers" (whatever the hell that’s supposed to mean)—
don’t they, dear?
[Please, by all means, hit that "La Esquina" tag-link, and just revel in all the "shit" we've been talking. While you're at it, try the "Gwen Butler" tag-link too, and then maybe you can figure out what we've ever done to have Ms Butler trying to unofficially "blacklist" us from La Esquina for weeks now. According to a "La Esquina insider" (or two, or four, or more) that is.]
Oh waaait, never mind, I got it. It’s this comment here by our chieftain, isn’t it?
Well— you certainly can’t say she never told you so.
*Yeh, don’t think we didn’t catch that snide ignorant little dig on your Twitter page before you deleted it, Ryan Skeen. 
Viva La Esquina!
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For more on this story, read PX Me – The Sequel to PX This Coming in the Spring of 2011
Admit it, you could use a drink right now. (The fact it’s only 10:44AM is totally irrelevant.) Need a cool recipe? (Ha, lookit that: September 27, 2010 – Avion Tequila Coffee Shooter! See? It’s got coffee in it!)
Check out your boy Yusef Austin‘s brand-spanking new webspot for ELITELIXIRS! It’s dope.
No seriously though, I’ve had it running in the background on my desktop for like 10 minutes now, cuz I really like that song. I almost feel like I’m sitting at Boom Boom with Yusef right now.
Except I’m missing a cocktail.
:(
♪♪ "… done my tiiime, paid my duuues, packed my bags and away i flew…." ♪♪
Okay okaaay, I messed up. Yes, I’m a week late. Yes, I did see these beyoootiful photographs earlier, and yes, I meant to steal them— but I like totally spaced and completely forgot. And yes, you are googling Karim Amatullah all day long and for some reason expect to find his shiny bald round head here. (Sorry, he’s actually more like here. And uh… here.)
In any case, fine. Now you’ve found him. He’s at the Jay Z & Eminem concert at Yankee Stadium! Or at least, he was. (Check it out, dude. Time travel! Wheee!)
Enjoy! Or ya know, try. Seeing as you’re probably dejected and disconsolate now you weren’t actually there in person.
:(
** With very special thanks to Karim Amatullah of Green Tea Innovative Marketing Concepts and Matthew Katakis
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For more on Karim Amatullah, read PX This – The Revised Edition and PX This Too (The Sequel to PX This) – Coming Soon
GREATEST HITS: PX This [The Blahg]
Hi! Thank you for your "search"!
This website is currently undergoing changes as it continually progresses, so the entry for which you are seeking has likely been archived within "The Greatest Hits – PX This [The Blahg]". It was removed from its original location in preparation for the upcoming release of PX Me – The Sequel to PX This. If you would like more information and/or further clarification on this particular narrative, please read PX This – The Revised Edition and/or PX Me (coming soon).
And so without further ado— by popular (search engine) demand, we proudly present THE GREATEST HITS of PX This [The Blahg]
[*** warning: Eats, Shoots and Ladders Leaves freaks, please CLICK HERE* and HERE before reading any further. then take that favorite book of yours and stick it up your ass. thank you! ***]
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2008. 12:18PM
this one goes out to my ole pal *hongkongcavaliers*
– for being there when i needed him.
*********************************************************************
pxthis.com archives
This is an abbreviated version of Abbe Diaz’s diary/blog entry on November 10, 2008, for archival purposes only. A far more detailed, thorough, and incisive account is to be included in Diaz’s upcoming second book, PX Me (How I Became a Published Author, Got Micro-Famous, and Married a Millionaire) – Coming Soon in the Spring of 2012
* "…The intellectual community, as usual, showed itself to be timid and divided, and even the most unexpected graphologists engaged in controversies regarding their inconsistent analyses of my handwriting. It was they who divided opinions, overheated the polemic, and made nostalgia popular…. Make no mistake: peaceful madmen are ahead of the future." – Gabriel García Márquez
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[Edited by Admin]
P.S. And this next one goes out me, *Dick Johnson* because I deserve it.
* * * * *
Have you heard?
Until the release of PX Me – The Sequel to PX This (Spring 2012), this website will henceforth be updated only intermittently (approximately once or twice a week).
Abbe Diaz’s new (daily) blog is now at: abbediaz.com
GREATEST HITS: PX This [The Blahg]
Hi! Thank you for your "search"!
This website is currently undergoing changes as it continually progresses, so the entry for which you are seeking has likely been archived within "The Greatest Hits – PX This [The Blahg]". It was removed from its original location in preparation for the upcoming release of PX This Too (The Sequel to PX This). If you would like more information and/or further clarification on this particular narrative, please read PX This – The Revised Edition and/or PX This Too (coming soon).
And so without further ado— by popular (search engine) demand, we proudly present THE GREATEST HITS of PX This [The Blahg]
[*** warning: Eats, Shoots and Ladders Leaves freaks, please CLICK HERE* and HERE before reading any further. then take that favorite book of yours and stick it up your ass. thank you! ***]
"Mark Baker and Vicky Andren"
MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2005. 10:48AM:
we just got back from europe, we went to the wedding of mark-baker and vicky-andren in stockholm, sweden.
wow, it was lovely. and totally fascinating.
weddings are such a trip.
ah haaa. literally
… there was rebecca-de.mornay and angie-everhart and ingrid-seynhaeve. and at the table with us was caroline-winberg (and her boyfriend "of two years" who apparently runs the Lydmar Hotel, he was really nice) and erik-wachtmeister who is the dude that founded aSmallWorld…
yah so then after that faboolous weekend in stockholm, we dropped by barcelona, spain…
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pxthis.com archives
This is an abbreviated version of Abbe Diaz’s diary/blog entry on August 8, 2005, for archival purposes only. A far more detailed, thorough, and incisive account is to be included in Diaz’s upcoming second book, PX This Too (The Sequel to PX This) – Coming Soon in the Autumn of 2010
* "…The intellectual community, as usual, showed itself to be timid and divided, and even the most unexpected graphologists engaged in controversies regarding their inconsistent analyses of my handwriting. It was they who divided opinions, overheated the polemic, and made nostalgia popular…. Make no mistake: peaceful madmen are ahead of the future." – Gabriel García Márquez
Ya know, just in case you were wondering.
Go, Heikki Sorsa! ♡
** See also (earlier):
• Homegirl Meets Coolest Dude Ever
• SPOTTED: Heikki Sorsa and Paris Hilton…
GREATEST HITS: theForum@px.this
PX This hereby presents The Forum’s Greatest Hits, a thread-by-thread archive of the most fascinating discussions from <"theForum@px.this" --- our online F&B oriented community IP.Board (founded in 2007) made virtually obsolete by the re-launch of theBlahg, pxthis.com, on August 31, 2009.
[theForum@px.this will be fully and permanently dismantled upon the definitive completion of its archive.]
RATATOUILLE writer: big PX This fan! :
Started: March 17, 2008. 2:54PM by *abbe* • Closed: August 10, 2010 11:34AM • Archived at 5,695 Views
PRIMARY SUBJECT : Ratatouille by Brad Bird
ADJUNCT SUBJECTS : abbe diaz, Quentin Tarantino, Rosario Dawson, PX This.
GIST OF TOPIC : How come there are so many coincidences between Ratatouille and PX This, hmmm…?
SIGNIFICANCE: There are a whole lot of coincidences between Ratatouille and PX This, mmkay. WHY IS THAT?! Is it like, a sign from the cosmos— or is Brad Bird (and/or Quentin Tarantino) totally sweating us? Whatever, you decide.
We’re just sayin’.
RATING: ★★★
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: Ratings range from zero to five stars and reflect the discussion’s entertainment value, from amusing to hilarious, with edification taken into consideration. Hyperlinks contained within are subject to change.
The archives of theForum@px.this have been edited for the sake of clarity, brevity, and squeakiness. [If you require an original unedited copy of the discussion, please e-mail px.this@gmail.com]
***********************************************
** See also :
● Do You Like Pictures?
P.S. Go on and NETFLIX THIS. You know you want to!
There seems to be a bit of controversy lately over our recent recommendation of La Esquina as the place at "the top of [the] list" to dine as a "hip and savvy local," should one happen to have a single night’s visit to NYC. It seems that the latest "changes" at La Esquina may not exactly be for the best (despite The NY Post’s rumination / elaboration-of-our-story over the speculative liability of "former" partner Serge Becker‘s “incorrectly reported” involvement).
Whew! That was a mouthful!
In any case, while we ponder the significance of the ongoing developments at La Esquina and the prospect of updating our suggestions, might I suggest you watch Antoine Fuqua‘s Brooklyn’s Finest. Sure, the plot may be a little tedious and slightly convoluted, but who wouldn’t want to behold La Esquina in all its fictional fabulosity? (Also, Wass Stevens is in it.)
Yeah, that’s the ticket.
GREATEST HITS: theForum@px.this
PX This hereby presents The Forum’s Greatest Hits, a thread-by-thread archive of the most fascinating discussions from "theForum@px.this" — our online F&B oriented community IP.Board (founded in 2007) made virtually obsolete by the re-launch of theBlahg, pxthis.com, on August 31, 2009.
[theForum@px.this will be fully and permanently dismantled upon the definitive completion of its archive.]
Started: October 1, 2007. 3:49 PM by *Ferret-n-Chicken!* • Closed: June 24, 2010 11:28AM • Archived at 17,670 Views
PRIMARY SUBJECT : Who would play the "lead character" in the TV/Cable/Web extravaganza PX This – The Series ?
ADJUNCT SUBJECTS : Actress Marja Allen Vongerichten, Thandie Newton, Gary Dourdan, Michelle Malkin, eater.com
GIST OF TOPIC : "DANG. DAT BE A LITTER A’ FINE BITCHEZ! WORD."
SIGNIFICANCE: "DANG. DAT BE A LITTER A’ FINE BITCHEZ! WORD."
Also: PX This – The Revised Edition is about (among other things)… a certain chef, see. Who just happens to have this wife. Who just happens to be an actress. Who just happens to look a lot like Abbe Diaz.
Do you seeee the possibilities? Freaky.
Oh, and also: Who would play YOU ? Mwuahahahahahahahahahaaaa
RATING: ★★★★★
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: Ratings range from zero to five stars and reflect the discussion’s entertainment value, from amusing to hilarious, with edification taken into consideration. Hyperlinks contained within are subject to change.
The archives of theForum@px.this have been edited for the sake of clarity, brevity, and squeakiness. [If you require an original unedited copy of the discussion, please e-mail px.this@gmail.com]
***********************************************
*Pictured: Abbe Diaz, Marja Allen Vongerichten, Thandie Newton
** See also (earlier): Abbe Diaz gets Personal
For more on this subject, read PX Me – The Sequel to PX This – Coming Soon in the Spring of 2012
* * * * *
Have you heard?
Until the release of PX Me (Spring 2012), this website will henceforth be updated only intermittently (approximately once or twice a week).
Abbe Diaz’s new (daily) blog is now at: abbediaz.com
Ohhh, you can run, but you can’t hide. Nice try, Mary.
But whatever, Cougar. Who’s the stud on the left?
***See also (earlier):
**SQUEEEEEEEE!**
eat that, bitches!
:)
i just had to screen capture that, in case he actually reads my book and then— aha ha haa ah argh augh uggh sob!— changes his mind.
but for now: yay! yay! yippee! hooray!
FREE E-BOOKS FOR EVERYBODY!
xoxo
p.s. if you would like to join the esteemed ranks of Salman Rushdie (and Fabio Trabocchi! booooya.) and be my "fan"— or even my lamp, or even my chair or whatever
please "fan" "like" me here —> http://www.facebook.com/pages/PX-This-by-abbe-diaz/40291641324
THANK YOU ♥
SHALL WE PLAY A GAME ?
In honor of the just-released e-book (and the soon-to-be-released print version) of PX This – The Revised Edition and PX This Too – The Sequel to PX This, let’s see if you’re knowledgeable enough to play Where Are They Now?
Winners will receive a FREE e-version of PX This – The Revised Edition and an affectionate pat on the ass. Answers will be displayed at the bottom of this page (hey, no peeking!). If your answers are ‘close enough,’ click here to collect your e-book prize immediately! Yay! Just kidding about the pat on the ass, sorry.
Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to correctly identify the current whereabouts of some of the ‘characters’ in PX This. As always, should any member of the F&B force be caught or killed, pee ex this dot com will disavow any knowledge of your actions. This web page will not self-destruct, but shall remain in the cosmos internets from now until the end of the world. Good luck.
Where Are They Now?
• eric-goode and sean-macpherson
• brian-mcnally
• "emil the maiterdee"
• "kamil the maiterdee"
• ben-affleck aka the *mackdaddy*
• Ferret
• "philippe the GM"
• "johnny the floor manager"
• marc-bagutta
• maxwell
• "laurent the GM"
• "alina the Balthazar maiterdee"
• gwyneth-paltrow aka gwyneth-paltroll
• Loser
[Scroll down for the answers.]
• eric-goode and sean-macpherson:
Well like, duh, who doesn’t know where they are? Only in like the hottttest restaurant in the wooorld! Eric Goode is also loving on the turtles (go, Eric!) and Sean MacPherson is… around. No really, he’s everywhere. Check over your left shoulder; he might be there right now.
• brian-mcnally:
Uggh. Let’s not start this again, shall we?
• "emil the maiterdee":
Evidently, looking at The Fedora with Graydon Carter.
• "kamil the maiterdee":
Evidently, getting media attention just for falling down. Go, boy.
• ben-affleck aka the *mackdaddy*:
The future Senator Affleck is out saving babies and the world, thank you very much. What the hell are you doing with your life, creep?
• Ferret:
Oh, "Ferret." "Ferret" finally gets a ‘real’ name in the upcoming PX This Too. You’ll be happy to hear that abbe and "Ferret" have… umm… kissed and made up. Hooray!
Actually, we really have no idea what "Ferret" is up to these days, since his awesome, adorable boss just got promoted to Superstar Banker of Deutsche Bank / Tyra Banks Yummy Man Candy. When you bump into "Ferret" out and about (and you will), just ask him yourself.
• "philippe the GM":
We love you, Philippe! That is all.
• "johnny the floor manager":
Well like, duh, who doesn’t know where he is? Only in like the hottttest restaurant in the wooorld! We haven’t seen him lately though, because we can’t get past the doorman. Seriously.
• marc-bagutta:
Here. No further comment… until PX This Too of course.
:)
• maxwell:
Come on now.
• "laurent the GM":
After a brief stint as the GM on restaurant-based reality television show
Rocco’s, and then opening a restaurant of his own, Laurent can be found these days in a lovely place like this.
• "alina the Balthazar maiterdee":
Oh, just here.
• gwyneth-paltrow aka gwyneth-paltroll:
Rilly? Does anybody actually give a shit? We find that very hard to believe.
• Loser:
Ha ha ha ha wooo child. No further comment— what fun would that be? But, thanks for the new fans, homeslice! Godd bless the googles.
So, did you win, did you win?! Good for you, you smart little cookie, you. Get it, girl.
Jonny Cruz performing for Heartthrobs&Friends at The Hammerstein Ballroom.
To hear more music from former F&B/Nightlife Superstar, Jonny Cruz, visit ReverbNation.
Just a reminder from your favorite "cocktail architect," Yusef Austin of Elitelixirs. Enjoy!
:)
New Spring Cocktails from Elitelixirs:
The Caledonia & The Exotique
White Mischief & Orange Glory
Flames of Paradise (all by Yusef Austin)
= "personne extraordinaire"