It's about time somebody launched a festival dedicated solely to the consumption of booze, with zero pretense of cultural distractions like movies or music. The first-ever Manhattan Cocktail Classic kicks off this weekend, with events like "The Agave Session: The Magical Elixirs of Mexico," and "Cocktail Kingdom Presents: A Practical Guide to Barware from Around the World." Beyond the seminars, which promise to have many tastings, there's a series called "Stories from Behind the Bar" where you can get up close and personal with bartending talent on their home turf.

Lately, dining out in Manhattan has been feeling a lot like dining in a high school cafeteria. The seats at the popular table are filled with everyone who is anyone, and unless you have Daddy’s Porsche or are cheer captain, you’ll never get to sit. Which is why it has been so difficult to round up my friends for a proper meal in this city. Suggest a reservation, and you’ll receive reservations. “What a headache,” one friend, a spunky PR princess purported. “It’s too expensive to eat anywhere these days, if you can even get a reservation at a good place ... it’s like a fucking aristocracy.” No doubt the economic downturn has affected many of my comrades' fun-funds, making the all-important New York dinner an endangered species. Our "industry" has peer-pressured us into thinking that the only bite worth eating is one we can barely afford, so how do you convince the industry folk that cheap eats can be chic eats?

Bill Gilroy is one of the industry’s real players. Known as a hardass no-nonsense operator at places like Nell's, Lucky Strike, and Match, he was one of those people always at the heart of well- run, successful places. His word has always been respected and good -- a rarity in a world know for characters who try to get away with anything. Today, Employees Only and the new Macao Trading Co. are predictably making waves, and Bill Gilroy is behind them bringing experience, savvy, and that good word. I caught up to Bill at the Pod Hotel. We sat in his Pod Cafe and enjoyed food from his son Devon, the executive chef.

When did Billy become Bill? I’ve always known you as Billy Gilroy.
If somebody asks my name, I say Bill.

Dagny Mendelsohn is the front woman representing the 11 total owners at Macao Trading Company. She hails from the other serious foodie city, San Francisco, once she set foot in New York, she learned the heart of the restaurant business from one of the best, Keith McNally. She embraced the underground hipster scene from being part of APT, as well as gaining an education from the fashionistas (a.k.a. Richie Rich). At Macau, she brings it all together under one roof with dinners for people like Perry Farrell, Mick Rock and Morimoto.

UPDATE: Joao has actually moved on from Le Royale -- see here for details on his new gig.

Upon his arrival in New York, Joao Daniel started working in restaurant kitchens hoping to become fluent in English, but he ended up picking up more Spanish than he anticipated. Like most newcomers, he eventually started hitting the club scene, and surprisingly, this was where he honed his language skills. His nightly activities quickly snowballed into a profession. Now the charming Brazilian has his weekly schedule consistently booked with hosting gigs on Monday nights at Le Royale,Wednesdays at 60 Thompson, Thursday through Saturday at Pink Elephant, and Sunday nights at The Eldridge. He's also in on the Saturday and Sunday pool parties at Hotel Gansevoort. Joao gives us the scoop on where we should be going out.

Few writers strike as much fear in the hearts of wayward starlets and errant politicians as Paula Froelich, who has been bludgeoning boldfaced names with her “Page Six” pen for almost nine years. But, when she arrives at Employees Only in Manhattan’s West Village one rainy morning in late April, the New York Post gossip columnist immediately dispels any concerns that the devil might, in fact, wear YSL. “I didn’t know if I should get too dressed up,” she says, smiling as she steps into her designer heels. A born storyteller, Froelich pouts and laughs for the camera while sharing anecdotes about celebrities and their silly scandals -- a culture she has immersed herself in since quitting her job at Dow Jones to work under “Page Six” editor Richard Johnson nearly a decade ago. This June, Simon & Schuster will release Mercury in Retrograde, Froelich’s debut novel about three women from very different backgrounds who share the same address. With wit and charm -- and at least one reference to real-life tabloid fodder -- Froelich taps into Candace Bushnell territory, creating a world where women love their Blahniks as much as the next Bradshaw. A few days after the photo shoot, we caught up with convivial social-vault to discuss the rag trade, the sweetest revenge, and the wrath of wronged front-page personalities.

Serge Becker is a partner in New York dining and nightlife staples like The Box, Joe's Pub, Café Select, and La Esquina. His stake in the nightlife industry began as art director at Area and continued with his involvement in some of the city’s most exclusive spots (MK and Bowery Bar). Currently, he's taking a break from nightlife and exercising his green thumb.

How did you start in this business?
I started as Eric Goode's art director at Area, doing art installations. There were six or seven of us that were the core group.

Damages star Rose Byrne claims to be more of a foodie than a bar-hopper, but when I asked her what her favorite New York restaurant is, she names Barrio Chino, the Lower East Side tequila bar. Why? "Fantastic margaritas ... and guacamole and chips," said the Australian native, in town to promote her upcoming role alongside Nicolas Cage in the apocalyptic thriller Knowing. "Also Freemans, but it's really hard to get a table."

Over a year ago, the first legal absinthe since before Prohibition made its way to New York. Now, its omnipresence -- whether of the variety that’s true to the original or not -- has inspired plenty of noteworthy concoctions. As to the supposed hallucinogenic properties of the liquor, those remain a hotly debated topic, but head to any of these spots and, at the very least, you can try and blame any unruly behavior on your legal drug use.

10. Bookmarks in the Library Hotel (Midtown East) - An absinthe cocktail named after famed author and absinthe-lover Oscar Wilde is great. Blitzes of Midtowners looking for their after-work alcohol fix? Not so much. With that in mind, head to Bookmarks on the later side for some cozy digs and a fireside Oscar Wilde.
9. Employees Only (West Village) - Party like it’s 1920 as you sip on your Martinez -- made with gin, maraschino liqueur, bianco vermouth, and dashes of absinthe bitters -- at the perpetually packed Prohibition era-inspired spot.
8. The Eldridge (Lower East Side) - Who needs Rose Armand de Brignac Champagne when you can have tableside absinthe service? All you need now is a way in and someone to foot the exorbitant bill.

Dushan Zaric, partner to Jason Kosmas in Employees Only and Macao Trading Company, on his interplanetary aspirations, love of some quality futbol, and the bad kind of mixology.

How would you describe yourself? I like to believe that I am a fully developed, grown-up professional bartender, keeper of the trade.

Where do you go out? I like Blue Ribbon on Sullivan Street in SoHo for cooking and serving with the heart for all these years. I visit Ali's Kebab Cafe in Astoria, because Ali is a genius and a true culinary giant. I eat anything he puts in front of me. Smith & Mills in TriBeCa for a humble reminder about what authentic New York places should be about.