Tom Goodman

Moguls on the Menu: Brian Grazer, Tom Freston and Isaac Mizrahi - Posted May 16, 2012
We missed LL Cool J by a day. Oh, well. That's the great thing about Michael's: If it's Wednesday, you can pretty much count on an interesting scene. Today, there was plenty of tasty people watching. On the menu: Brian Grazer an... [FishbowlNY]

Ringing in the Holidays With Harold Ford Jr., Star Jones & Donny Deutsch - Posted December 14, 2011
The holiday revelry was in high gear today at Michael's. Those miracle workers at reception -- the amazing Loreal Sherman and Joana Andrade were working overtime... [FishbowlLA]

Real Housewife Melissa Gorga Dishes on Her Sister-in-Law From Hell - Posted November 30, 2011
Slow moving holiday tourists and presidential motorcades be damned. Nothing could keep the faithful away from Michael's today. With the place decked out in its holiday finery, the mood was like a swanky office party on steroids. While the usual suspects and a cool visitor from California (producer/composer ... [FishbowlLA]

Al Roker, Barbara Bush and Peggy Siegal Fetes Elizabeth Olsen - Posted November 9, 2011
We were disappointed to hear that we'd missed seeing Wendy Williams who'd come by on Monday for lunch with her parents. A little birdie told me that the talk show diva issued this rallying cry to mom and dad before departing to face the lone papa... [FishbowlLA]

Al Roker, Barbara Bush and Peggy Siegal Fetes Elizabeth Olsen - Posted November 9, 2011
We were disappointed to hear that we'd missed seeing Wendy Williams who'd come by on Monday for lunch with her parents. A little birdie told me that the talk show diva issued this rallying cry to mom and dad before departing to face the lone papa... [FishbowlNY]

Roger Ailes, Barry Diller & The Squawk Box Super Heroes - Posted October 26, 2011
Hail! Hail! The Wednesday gang is all here. The lunch scene at Michael's was firing on all cylinders today as moguls (Barry Diller! Roger Ailes!), high-profile edito... [FishbowlLA]

Roger Ailes, Barry Diller & The Squawk Box Super Heroes - Posted October 26, 2011
Hail! Hail! The Wednesday gang is all here. The lunch scene at Michael's was firing on all cylinders today as moguls (Barry Diller! Roger Ailes!), high-profile edito... [FishbowlNY]

Scottie Pippen Mixes It Up With the Media Mob & Does Rosie Have a New Lady Love? - Posted September 28, 2011
Things have been pretty busy at Michael's this week. On Monday, none other than James Bond aka Daniel Craig dropped by. ("His eye are so blue!" cooed one smitten staffer). Yesterday, a very laid back Rosie O'Donnell showed up... [FishbowlNY]

Ed Rollins' Wife on His Departure from Bachmann's Campaign - Posted September 7, 2011
Put away those summer whites -- but keep that rain gear handy! Now that Labor Day is history, the town car set has returned from their summer sojourns and is gearing up for the power lunch season. The Wednesday crowd at Michael's isn't back to full tilt just yet, but... [FishbowlNY]

Matt Lauer, Harold Ford Jr. & Neil Sedaka - Posted July 13, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE If the scene at Michael's today is any indication, summer vacations are so 2010. The place was full of magazine honchos (the cafeteria at Hearst must have been empty), media mavens (Does Jason Binn... [FishbowlLA]

Tom Brokaw, Trudie Styler, Joan Rivers & Happy Birthday, Jon Meacham! - Posted May 18, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE If you were wondering why the streets of midtown seemed a bit quiet today it was because everyone -- well, almost everyone -- was at Michael's today. I could barely keep up as the A-listers filed in one after another (Tom Brokaw... [AllTwitter]

Sinbad & Family Dish on Their New Reality Show - Posted April 6, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE It would have been hard to beat the head-spinning scene that I witnessed at Michael's last Wednesday, but this week came close. A camera crew from WNBC-TV's LX-TV was on hand filming a segment on celebrity lunch spots as the masters of the universe (... [semanticweb.com]

Separate Tables for Jann Wenner and Neal Boulton - Posted March 16, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE We were grateful that several faithful Lunch readers emailed to let us know Bill Clinton was at Michael's yesterday. Thanks guys! I guess Mr. Clinton didn't get the memo stipulating that all A-list... [FishbowlNY]

It's An A-Lister Buffet! Cate Blanchett, Debra Messing, Star Jones and The Morning Joe Team - Posted February 16, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE It's a sure sign that spring is actually on its way when the A-list comes out of hibernation and flocks to Michael's once again. The appearance of Cate Blanchett and ... [FishbowlNY]

Tina Brown, Al Roker and Facebook's Flummoxed Friends - Posted January 5, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE The holidays are over (finally!), so it was back to business for the moguls and mavens that trickled into Michael's today. The telltale sign was last month's run on red wine has been replaced by orders of Diet Coke (No more ducking out early 'to go Christmas shopping' for... [FishbowlLA]

Tina Brown, Al Roker and Facebook's Flummoxed Friends - Posted January 5, 2011
-- DIANE CLEHANE The holidays are over (finally!), so it was back to business for the moguls and mavens that trickled into Michael's today. The telltale sign was last month's run on red wine has been replaced by orders of Diet Coke (No more ducking out early 'to go Christmas shopping' for... [FishbowlNY]

Joel Klein, Diana Taylor and the December Diehards - Posted December 1, 2010
-- DIANE CLEHANE It was good to be back on the Michael's beat after a two week absence (Word to the wise: Get that flu shot!). I'm happy to report the monsoon-like rains didn't keep those dining room diehards away, although the mood was a bit more subdued than usual. The place... [FishbowlNY]

Joe Torre, Joan Collins and a Mogul Mashup - Posted November 10, 2010
-- DIANE CLEHANE I knew I was in for an interesting afternoon when I saw '80s icon Joan Collins and former Yankee skipper Joe Torre... [FishbowlNY]

Desiree Rogers, Kathie Lee Gifford & The Millionaire Matchmaker Meltdown - Posted October 20, 2010
-- DIANE CLEHANE There were plenty of movers, shakers and deal makers at Michael's today to keep things interesting, but a little birdie told me the media A-list was also out in force yesterday. So, as a public service to Lunch's faithful readers, here's who was there on Tuesday: ... [FishbowlNY]

Richard Belzer, Deborah Norville & the Real Ari Gold! - Posted July 21, 2010
— DIANE CLEHANE The dog days have arrived. Just ask Richard Belzer, who showed up in the Michael's dining room today with his pooch tucked under his arm. (No word on what Fido ordered.) The rest of the crowd barely noticed as the usual... [FishbowlNY]

Deborah Norville, Cindi Leive & A Slew of Fashionable Folks - Posted May 26, 2010
— DIANE CLEHANE Sometimes it seems like all roads lead to Michael's, and today was no exception. Everyone in the place seemed connected by less than six degrees of separation, as we observed plenty of old friends and former colleagues exchanging air kisses before dining and dishing. Then there was the completely... [FishbowlNY]

Ralph Lauren, Jenna Bush, and the Media Mob - Posted May 19, 2010
— DIANE CLEHANE It was good to be back at my regular perch at Michael's today after a nasty bug kept me home last week. I returned to a scene buzzing with a head-spinning mix of fashion designers, famous faces, and the requisite media moguls. Don't these people ever take a day... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Warren Buffett Dines & Dashes - Posted November 11, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE How about a side order of sound investment advice with that salmon? When none other than Warren Buffett showed up at Michael's today, every head in the dining room turned his way. Even if he is... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Special Evening Edition as Michael's Celebrates 20 Years - Posted November 5, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE As much as we enjoy observing the social customs of the various media tribes during our Wednesday lunches at Michael's, we jumped at the chance to mingle with the natives last night as they roamed free from the pecking order in the dining room. ... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Charlie Rose, Dan Abrams & The Rain-Soaked Usual Suspects - Posted October 28, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE The biblical rain kept most of the moguls and media mavens away today. So, rather than people watch, I passed the time by flipping through the latest issue of Avenue featur... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: A Smiling Anna Wintour, Hungry Brian Williams, & A Tasty Mogul Stew - Posted October 21, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE They were dishing like it was 1999 today at Michael's where it was SRO at the bar and in the lounge and filled with movers and shakers of every stripe in the dining room. I got a serious case of whiplash trying to keep track of it all. Between... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: What Recession? Michael's Keeps Buzzing with Walter Isaacson, John Sykes & The Gang - Posted October 14, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE The power lunch lives! While budgets are being slashed all over town, if the media mavens at the top are feeling the pinch, they're determined not to show it. For the past several weeks, I've noticed that Michael's is back to its pre-Great Recession level of buzz with a... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Christiane Amanpour Draws an A-List Crowd - Posted September 16, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE On the menu at Michael's today: a tasty stew of media mavens and moguls with a heaping helping of famous faces on the side. We could barely keep up with the goings-on in the dining room, since every other minute there was some boldface name heading to the Garden... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: The Lo-Cal Edition with Ron Perelman - Posted July 8, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE Now that summer is in full swing, the usual mix of movers and shakers at Michael's was a bit on the light side today. But Ron Perelman was there, proving this is no time to slack off if you're a ... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: A Heaping Helping of the Usual Suspects - Posted May 27, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE We've been spoiled by the steady stream of A-listers we've come to meet during our weekly Wednesday visits. So you can imagine our disappointment when we heard we missed Gabriel Byrne, who was i... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Barbara Walters, Barry Diller & Dana Perino - Posted April 15, 2009
— DIANE CLEHANE I'm glad I got to Michael's early today because by 12:30 they were literally lining up outside the front door to get in the joint. Even the Garden Room (Siberia to the uninitiated) was SRO. The groups of wannabe diners at the bar and in the lounge were enviously... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Tom Brokaw Holds Court; Jane Friedman Works The Room - Posted December 17, 2008
— DIANE CLEHANE 'Tis the season to be lunching, and the usual A-list suspects were out in force today with plenty of glad-handing and air kissing all around. Maybe it's because this is (mercifully) the last full week of work for the year or perhaps it's just because everyone is tired of... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Les Moonves, Barry Diller & Kathleen Turner - Posted September 3, 2008
— DIANE CLEHANE Forget the lazy days of summer. Class is back in session as the cool kids returned to the cafeteria today in force. The scene at Michael's was a tasty stew of moguls and media mavens with a side order of the random celebrity sighting -- ... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch: Where the Magic Happens - Posted July 30, 2008
— DIANE CLEHANE I thought I'd seen just about everything from my regular perch at Michael's during my weekly visits, but today topped all. They were serving up sides of card tricks with the Cobb salads today and the gang was just eating it up. When I arrived, illusionist ... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch At Michael's: Paging George Clooney! Fern Mallis is Saving You a Seat at Fashion Week! - Posted January 23, 2008
— DIANE CLEHANE What recession? The dining room at 55th & Fifth was buzzing with the usual assemblage of bold face names, social swans and television types that tucked into their Cobb salads with gusto while digesting some of the week's harrowing headlines. Hollywood figured heavily into many... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch at Michael's: Wesley Clark & A Model Mystery - Posted April 25, 2007
We missed Jane Fonda by a day. Today's lunch crowd was lacking the star power we've come to expect on our weekly visits so while we were disappointed our usual perch at the bar had been usurped by an unidentified exec, we didn't miss much from our less than... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch at Michael's: 'We're Off To Prison' - Posted April 18, 2007
For the boldface names and media mavens who flock to 55th & Fifth on a regular basis, the dining room is like a high school cafeteria without the adolescent angst. The richest and coolest kids in the class spend lots of time table hopping and there's plenty of gossip on... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch at Michael's: Teddy, Liz & The Gang - Posted February 21, 2007
The dining room at Michael's was buzzing today with moguls and media mavens who did more than the usual amount of table-hopping between bites — standing-room only in the bustling lounge as the regulars and requisite movers and shakers were out in force. (Liz! Lesley! T... [FishbowlNY]

Lunch at Michael's: Joan Rivers Keeps An Eye On The Door - Posted January 24, 2007
It was a typically atypical lunch crowd today at Michael's — Tom Brokaw here, Joan Rivers there, Cobb salads everywhere — making the Diet Cokes and Pellegrinos go down like fine wine. A quartet of Rubensteins — Howard, Richar... [FishbowlNY]