Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

• David Burke's Fishtail and the Oak Room come up short in this week's New York: Adam Platt calls the former "decent," while the latter goes away with no stars and is described as "overpriced," "outdated" and "oppressive." [NYM]
• There's a new chef at the meatpacking district's 5 Ninth. [TFB]
• Karen and David Waltuck's Chanterelle is offering an à la carte menu. [TONY]
• Balthazar's bathroom attendants are back, thank goodness. [GS]
• A report from Above Allen, the new lounge at the Thompson LES. [DBTH]
• Mark Birnbaum and Eugene Remm have tapped former Sheridan Square chef Franklin Becker to run the kitchen at Abe and Arthur's. [TFB]
• A tour of the White House kitchen, courtesy of Michelle Obama. [NYT]
• Tom Colicchio starred in a Coke commercial during last night's Oscars. [GS]

• You can't afford to eat there any more, but you'll be pleased to hear that Daniel is still a four-star restaurant, according to Frank Bruni, who says Adam Tihany's recent redesign is "genuinely gorgeous." [NYT]
• Jason Pomeranc's Thompson LES is opening a rooftop bar. [GS]
• Gramercy Tavern gives away free $24.07 gift cards, chaos ensues. [GS]
• Chocolate Bar is re-opening at a new location in the West Village. [NYO]
• Kevin Adey is taking over as chef at Park Slope's Bussaco. [TONY]
• Your Tony Bourdain rant o' the day: "Alice Waters annoys the living shit out of me... There's something very Khmer Rouge about [her]." [DCist via Eater]
• Spotted: Adam Platt's photo appears in Conde Nast Traveler. [Eater]

♦  New York has a roundup of bars and restaurants where you can catch the debate tonight. [Daily Intel]
♦  How are restaurateurs coping with the recession? They're opening for breakfast and staying open later. [NYT]
♦  Frank Bruni checks out the UES vegan restaurant Candle 79 this week and gives it one star for its "top-notch produce." [NYT]
♦  Chef Charlie Palmer opened Aureole during the stock market crash of 1987, so it only makes sense that he's in the process of moving the eatery to a bigger venue right now. [NYO]More

Pomeranc Talks Up the LES | Now that he has the Thompson LES to promote, hotelier Jason Pomeranc has all sorts of great things to say about the Lower East Side. In fact, "the Lower East Side is my favorite neighborhood in New York," he tells Fashion Week Daily. No word on whether that means he'd actually live there himself—his loft happens to be located in SoHo—although if he does decide to move and elects to stay at the Thompson LES while in transition, we'd recommend that he not use the hotel's WiFi. [Fashion Week Daily]

Thompson LES, the latest addition to Jason Pomeranc’s hotel franchise, recently opened its shiny doors. (Well, prematurely half-opened: Before you book a room or head over for a drink, bear in mind that the pool, outdoor bar, and restaurant are still under construction.) The luxe lodge's rooms are equipped with mini-bars stocked by Dean and Deluca, Sferra linens, and Frette robes. But most importantly, guests won't be offended by badly-dressed staff, thanks to their Rogan Gregory-designed uniforms. But Gregory, who collaborated with Bono on the eco-friendly clothing line Edun, is far from the first designer to cash in by dressing the help. Employees at other swanky hotels, waitstaff at restaurants, athletes, and even the Boy Scouts can boast of high-end names on their uniforms' labels. For example:More

Thompson LES Gets Sexy | What does Jason Pomeranc find sexy? Apparently silk ties, lubricant, condoms, and vibrators from Kiki de Montparnasse, at least judging by the "sensuality kit" he's tucked into the minibars at Thompson LES. At $195 the kit might seem a little pricey—especially considering it doesn't come with any furry handcuffs, which totally would have fit in with the theme—but it's a whole lot cheaper than hiring Ashley Dupre to entertain. [HotelChatter]

Hotelier Jason Pomeranc takes some time to chat with the Observer this week and addresses the issue that always seems to be staring him in the face, namely the delays that have pushed back the opening of his new Thompson LES on several occasions now (not to mention made Pomeranc something of a running joke in the industry). But Pomeranc has good news! Three of the 22 floors will open this week, although if you'd like to use the pool or sample the restaurant on the second floor, you'll have to wait until October 15th when it will probably be too cold to swim anyway. "There are always unforeseen circumstances that cause delays in scheduling," Pomeranc tells Chris Schott. (Not addressed: The rumor that Pomeranc spends more time jetting around the world with his hottie publicist girlfriend Ali Wise, above, than he does at the office.) But if you think the delays and bad press may have humbled Jason just a little bit, well, don't get ahead of yourself.More

Thompson LES: 39 Days and Counting | If there's one thing Jason Pomeranc excels at it's swearing up and down that he'll open a hotel by a certain date and then failing to follow through. Now he's promised that his Thompson LES will open on July 15th—and, shockingly, it looks like actually might. There's a first time for everything, even when it comes to overly slick hotel developers. [Hotel Chatter]