BlackBook recently caught up with Andrew Balick, the new chef de cuisine of DiLido Beach Club at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach - about the classiest place in the Sunshine State to sip a Belvedere and tonic while watching the beautiful people stroll by. The buzz on Balick began long before he began his new job at the start of the season. Here he discusses his background, his vision for the restaurant, and a tasty fish with an ugly name.

BlackBook recently called automobile maker Ford’s senior designer, Anthony Prozzi, to talk slick rides, Detroit, and, perhaps surprisingly, high fashion. The former Donna Karan technical designer, who we'd met at the Forward with Ford conference earlier this summer, was lounging in his blue Mustang when we caught him. Once a resident of Park Slope, Brooklyn, Prozzi has been designing automobile interiors in Dearborn, Michigan, for 12 years, and he hasn’t looked back since.

Remember the castle in the Harry Potter movies? Want to see the Grand Staircase from the Spice Girls video Wannabe? Then head to the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel in London, located next to St Pancras Station, which offers high-speed Eurostar trains to Paris and Brussels. We caught up with Harry Handelsman, the hotel’s owner and developer, at an opening- night party in May hosted by Adrien Brody. On that night, heartthrob Ed Westwick stayed in the Royal Suite, which is reputed to be the largest suite in London and costs a whopping $16,000 per night.

● Ryan Gosling at the Blue Valentine premiere: I have a restaurant in Beverly Hills called Tagine. I'm biased, but I think it's very good! ● Bobby Flay at Food Network's opening of Barney's holiday windows: We love The Breslin. I eat at Keith McNally's places a lot. In L.A., Bazaar, Jose Andres's place, where I order the classic tapas. ● Morimoto at Food Network's opening of Barney's holiday windows: I'm going to open a new restaurant in Tribeca that will close at 4 a.m. - no Japanese, no sashimi, no sushi. I don't know when I'll open it.

● Mario Batali at the opening of Eataly: My favorite places to eat are generally downtown in the Village: Pearl Oyster Bar, Spotted Pig, Grand Sichuan. My favorite thing to eat is anything anyone else makes! Da Silvano has an octopus salad and octopus grill that's really beautiful. ● Mayor Mike Bloomberg at the opening of Eataly: There are 20,000 restaurants in New York City, and I try to eat at every single one of them. ● Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen at GLAAD Summer Rooftop Party: wd-50, and in Brooklyn, Pacifico, the Mexican restaurant on Pacific St.

● Christina Ricci at the Whitney Art Party: I like Da Umberto and Il Buco for pasta, the Peking Duck House for duck. ● Leigh Lezark of Misshapes: Kenmare, they make really good gnocchi. I do like the brunch at the Tribeca Grand. ● Eva Amurri: Jumbo's Clown Room in L.A. is super fun. I also love to have a drink and get something to eat at Gjelina, which has amazing tuna crudo and really good vegetable sides and pizza.

● Maggie Gyllenhaal @ the Fresh Air Fund gala: Al di La and Il Buco: anything there! ● Maggie Rizer: At Nobu I get everything. I like the sea bass and the lettuce leaves, the tuna sashimi salad, the shishito peppers, and the Kobe beef. ● Brian Williams: I'm laughing because my wife and I go to the same two places all the time! There's a little French place on Lexington; there's a pasta place on 49th, Alfredo's, because it's right next to NBC.

● Becki Newton at the NBC Upfront Fall Preview: I love a lot of the Greek restaurants in New York, like Kefi on the Upper West Side. The lemon chicken there is really good and tastes like the one my Greek mother-in-law makes. ● J.J. Abrams: Street and Company, in Portland, Maine, has these amazing, skillet-cooked shallots and garlic-and-butter and white-wine scallops [with] linguini. It's unbeatable. ● Summer Glau: Mozza in L.A. I like everything there, all their pastas.

● Stanley Tucci at The Luxury Collection Destination Guide Launch with Assouline: I like to go to a lot of different places, but certainly Mario Batali's restaurants. The beef cheek ravioli at Babbo is so delicious and so incredible. Just about anything he cooks is okay with me. I always stay at the St. Regis, here in New York. ● Rosie Perez: I love Gino's in Bay Ridge. The arroz con gandule at Luz in Brooklyn is a favorite, and the roasted chicken is the best deal in town. Here in the city, Dok Suni's for Korean barbeque, at First Avenue and 7th Street.

● Sarah Palin @ the Time100 gala: It would be Double Musky in Girdwood, Alaska! ● Andy Samberg: Momofuku. ● Harvey Weinstein: I like Nobu downtown. ● Suzy Orman: Carmine's, either on 44th or on Broadway, uptown. My favorite dish is the chicken scarpariello, I love it! ● Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann: Katsuya!