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October 11, 2026 |
The ubiquity of culinarians who’ve been on TV, and therefore claim celebrity chef status, has certainly diluted the designation. That’s why Elise Taylor’s look at Thomas Straker, whose new Soho spot, Straker’s, officially opened last night, is so gripping: We’re left wondering if he’s a true throwback to the era of the fully famous, rock star chef, or just the Hot Topic version. “Thirty-six-year-old Thomas Straker talks like a degenerate, dresses like a degenerate, and acts like a degenerate,” Elise writes, before adding that “against all logic and odds, he is not a degenerate.” Straker is a superstar in London, but can he maintain a similar fame in the cutthroat dining market of New York City? Read her report and decide for yourself. While we’re on the topic of swaggering men, Chuck Lorre’s self-penned explanation of how Charlie Sheen’s troubles in the 2010s nearly took out his hit series, Two and a Half Men, is more than just a recounting. The excerpt from Lorre’s memoir, Sitcom, examines the incident with the wisdom of the present, well-removed from the tiger-blood-drenched drama of the time. The 73-year-old Lorre’s as straight a shooter as they come, and that’s a good thing. If his whole book is as textured as the portion we published this week, I can’t wait to read it cover-to-cover. |
EVE BATEYEDITOR |
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ChatGPT helped write Sophie’s suicide note. When VF asked about it, the OpenAI CEO gave an unequivocal answer—it was the wrong one. Read more |
NEW ESTABLISHMENT 2026 Meet the New Establishment 2026 By Vanity Fair Vanity Fair’s 2026 New Establishment list ranks the people shaping culture and power, including Bad Bunny, Elon Musk, Zohran Mamdani, Gavin Newsom, and more. Read more |
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STYLE The Story of Dolly Parton’s Long-Lost Wedding Dress, Found After Nearly 60 Years By Maddalena Gomez For decades, no one knew what became of the dress Dolly Parton wore when she married Carl Dean in 1966. In 2024, it was found in her husband’s trunk, looking very different from what we might imagine the Queen of Rhinestones would get married in. Read more |
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SOCIETY Keith McNally Absolutely Loathes Thomas Straker. Loathes. By Elise Taylor But wants to eat at his new SoHo restaurant “every other day for the next 40 years or until I die.” Straker, the foulmouthed, Daily Mail–provoking British chef, has made his way stateside. And he’s probably insane. But so is his food. Read more |
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BOOKS The True Story of Charlie Sheen’s Two and a Half Men–Tanking Meltdown Is Even Wilder Than You Think By Chuck Lorre In an excerpt from his memoir, Sitcom, serial TV creator Chuck Lorre breaks down the tiger-blood-soaked disaster—and how he and Sheen eventually patched things up. Read more |
