The Shangri-La Toronto is slowly starting to flex its muscles as a major downtown attraction—and it's still only skeletons and scaffolding. The 5-star, 66 story hotel and residence tower, which straddles the Financial and Entertainment districts, it's already causing a stir amongst locals. Anticipation has been building on Urban Toronto's forum, where construction progress and rumormongering have been laboriously detailed by users. The latest to come out of the construction site (and perpetuated on Twitter): David Chang has plans to open a restaurant in the hotel, joining the property for its 2012 scheduled opening.

Mark Ruffalo: My favorite restaurant in New York is Le Cirque. AnnaLynne McCord, at the “Shutter Island” premiere: I live in L.A. I don’t go out that much because I don’t drink, so going out, kind of, becomes work, in a way. But, as far as restaurants, I love Chart House in Malibu for good seafood. And good Spanish food – Mexican food – Spanish Kitchen on La Cienega, one of my favorites. I, actually, really like Chili’s [laughs], for a little chain restaurant. Those are three I can think of right now. What’s good at Chili’s? Oh, my God! The queso. I go in, sometimes just get the chips ’n salsa to go, and go home, but the queso -- I love the chicken steak quesadillas, just, like, chain restaurant. I’m from Atlanta – that’s high-class dining when you’re in Atlanta, so! Fran Lebowitz: I would never tell. Then they wouldn’t be my favorites, anymore. Then everyone would be there. Do you think they would want to follow you? It’s not me. It’s like you tell anyone anything-- look what happened in New York. It got turned inside out. Anything any New Yorker knew, they tell someone like you, and then there’s a million people there from out of town.

Behold, awesomeness: New York's culinary Dread Pirate Ship Momofuku and its enfant terrible captain, the notorious David Chang, is hitting the road. Chang's blogging a book tour with his cookbook co-author (and my pick for the New York Times food critic position, eventually filled by Sam Sifton), one Mr. Peter Meehan. It reads somewhere between Hunter S. Thompson, Anthony Bourdain, and the first 20 pages of Bret Easton Ellis' Lunar Park, in which Ellis (the character) ends up being dragged out of one book tour appearance, screaming "THE JEW BOY'S COMING WITH ME!" I have high hopes for this kind of writing, and their first entry does not disappoint. It's as ridiculous, debaucherous, and mouthwatering as you'd expect it to be. Key parts:

A few weeks ago, this poster inspired me to write a post entitled "Whatever Happened to Brittany Murphy's Career?" This inspiration was fleeting since I soon realized I was writing about Brittany Murphy's career. Today, I'm forced to revisit this increasingly irrelevant actress because the trailer for a ghastly looking movie starring Murphy called The Ramen Girl has popped up online.

As if winning an Oscar and having an Apple wasn't enough, Gwyneth Paltrow is trying to steal our thunder by listing her favorite New York restaurants in her latest GOOP newsletter. That's what we do, Gwyneth! How would you like it if we started doing yoga? When she did it for L.A., we let it slide as a mid-life crisis/nervous breakdown, but now she strikes again. Problem is, she's not very good at it. After the jump, a list of Gwyneth's favorite NYC restaurants, followed by her vague reasons why. Luckily, you can click on each restaurant to find out what it's really about.

● Momofuku Milk Bar (East Village) - Momofuku empire expands with pastry shop. Yes, they have the pork buns. ● Vinegar Hill House (Brooklyn South) - Cobblestoned time capsule near the Navy Yard makes for more Brooklyn destination dining.

I was shocked to wake up this morning and discover that not everyone loves the Rusty Knot (yes, restaurant news trumps international headlines any day). Since opening in March, the faux-nautical bar has been a shipyard of celebrity cool (Jay-Z and LeBron James are frequenters) and drunken hipsters (because in New York, hipsters have money). My one experience there was during a party for David Schwimmer’s comedy Run Fatboy Run, where I shared cheese balls with Judah Friedlander, who was incredibly stoked about all the free (and delicious) hors d’oeuvres. But not everyone is keen on the Knot.