Kevin Sbraga

* Eating well to fight hunger is also the theme for a six-course dinner "Top Chef" Kevin Sbraga is putting together at his restaurant Sbraga (440 S. Broad St., 215-735-1913, Sbraga.com ) with a stellar lineup of local chefs May 14. Nicholas Elmi, Walter Abrams, Shola Olunloyo, Jonathan Adams and Dave Katz will join him in support of Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign. Tix are $150 each. * Food-truck operators stake their claim to be the city's best at the Philadelphia Vendy Awards' third-annual competition from 2 to 6 p.m. June 8. A limited number of early discount tix, $45, are available now at eventbrite.com . The event raises funds for the nonprofit Food Trust.

Head to Reading Terminal Market (12th and Arch streets) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. today as local celeb chefs Aaron McCargo Jr., Jennifer Carroll, Kevin Sbraga and Jack McDavid celebrate the launch of Philly.com/food. The new website will feature stories by Daily News and Inquirer food writers and reviewers, recipes, the region's best food bloggers, wine and beer news, how-to videos and more. Today's event, Thanks Giving in July, benefits Philabundance, MANNA and the Food Trust.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY on Wednesday to Philly-bred and -schooled actor Ana Ortiz. "Ugly Betty's" big sister Hilda (back in the day), eldest daughter of former City Councilman Angel Ortiz and proud mother of two turns 41 the day after tomorrow. And, in this birthday wisher's humble opinion, she couldn't do a more down-to-earth-yet-glamorous job of repping our fair burg. The stars say she'll feel younger than ever this year, thanks to a healthy lifestyle, excellent work ethic and all the love in her life.

Thomas Anastasi of the Anastasi Seafood family of South Philly's Italian Market has gone out to Montgomery County, opening the white-tablecloth Pescatore BYOB (134 Bala Ave., Bala Cynwyd, 610-660-9400). The Restaurant School-trained Anastasi, who previously owned Thomas in Moorestown, is keeping entrees on his Italian menu under $25; naturally, seafood predominates, and he makes his own ravioli, gnocchi, fettuccine, pappardelle, and tortellini. It's open for dinner Wednesdays through Mondays.

Four hot hometown chefs with national reputations - Camden-born Food Network personality Aaron McCargo, Jr.; Top Chef winner Kevin Sbraga, from Willingboro; Northeast Philly's Jennifer Carroll, chef de cuisine at 10 Arts; and Jack McDavid, owner of the Down Home Diner - will be on hand Thursday at Reading Terminal Market's Center Court to help launch Philadelphia Media Network's new food microsite, philly.com/Food. The site features all things food in the region, including the latest in restaurants happenings and offerings, locavore and health news, drinks and recipes, chefs and names turning heads, and works by local food charities and nonprofits.

Philly restaurants worth visiting, local chefs worth following - based on TV worth watching. 1. "Iron Chef" Jose Garces Philly's most televised chef won't be slowing down any time soon. But you can, at J.G. Domestic, his laid-back American joint in Cira Centre. 2929 Arch St., 215-222-2363, www.jgdomestic.com . 2. Good Dog Bar Locals love the cheese-stuffed burger. Guy Fieri of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" goes for the duck pot pie. 224 S. 15th St., 215-985-9600, www.gooddogbar.com . 3. Kevin Sbraga "Top Chef" season 7 winner wins again with his months-old rustic-chic bistro.

Broad Street could soon be called Avenue of the Culinary Arts if much-anticipated openings from such big names as Marc Vetri, Stephen Starr, Kevin Sbraga (our own Top Chef), and Tiffin's shiny new sibling, Tashan, live up to expectations. But the fresh dining action is pulsing far beyond that main artery, too, as one of the most torrid restaurant opening seasons ever unfolds from deep South Philly to the Main Line. From gastropubs and doughnut shrines to vegetarian pioneers and pizza prophets, from debuts for young talents to new locations for familiar names, the autumn curtain is lifting on a cast of culinary characters that should make us all hopeful for some good eating soon.

* Come Monday, the fryer will finally, uh, fry at long-awaited Federal Donuts (1219 S. 2nd St., 267-687-8258), Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook's ode to doughnuts and fried chicken. The mostly takeout place will have breakfast, lunch and dinner, 7 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. There's BODHi Coffee on tap, too. Flavors such as Chile-Lime sugared and Nutella-Tehina-Pomegranate glazed promise to bring new meaning to the sacred circle of fried dough. Chickens, sold half and whole, likewise get a flavor makeover inspired by Korean-style fried bird.

FILMMAKER M. Night Shyamalan , actor Penn Badgley of "Gossip Girl," actors Seth Green and Terrence Howard , and Boyz II Men singer Nate Morris were among celebrities who turned out Wednesday night at Hotel Palomar for a Virgin America airlines party celebrating its launch in Philadelphia. Virgin's chief, Sir Richard Branson , was also at the party and introduced DJ Jazzy Jeff , who spun as Mayor Nutter and wife Lisa danced it up on the floor.

* Eating well to fight hunger is also the theme for a six-course dinner "Top Chef" Kevin Sbraga is putting together at his restaurant Sbraga (440 S. Broad St., 215-735-1913, Sbraga.com ) with a stellar lineup of local chefs May 14. Nicholas Elmi, Walter Abrams, Shola Olunloyo, Jonathan Adams and Dave Katz will join him in support of Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign. Tix are $150 each. * Food-truck operators stake their claim to be the city's best at the Philadelphia Vendy Awards' third-annual competition from 2 to 6 p.m. June 8. A limited number of early discount tix, $45, are available now at eventbrite.com . The event raises funds for the nonprofit Food Trust.

BANANA bread. Gumbo. Hot browns. Shellfish. Rice. Citrus. No, this isn't a rundown of a culinarily gifted fraternity's refrigerator contents. It's just a few of the ingredients and dishes that have inspired intra-staff cooking duels at Sbraga, where chef-sanctioned battles keep the minds as sharp as the knives. Kevin Sbraga, who opened at Broad and Pine in late 2011, knows about creating on the fly. He won season seven of Bravo's "Top Chef" by adapting to every bizarre challenge thrown his way, from developing a plate inspired by the phrase "bring home the bacon" to crafting a dish that could be eaten by astronauts in zero gravity (seriously)

As dawn breaks over the city, the meat men pull up at restaurant back doors, dropping off steaks, ground beef, and other cuts. More of these trucks now bear a 201 or 646 area code on their doors. Pat LaFrieda and DeBragga & Spitler - New York-rooted butchers who enjoy cult followings among chefs who rave about their dry-aging - have recently begun nibbling at the wholesale-beef business in the region. Their appearance in Philadelphia has everything to do with the price of real estate in Lower Manhattan.

WASHINGTON - Philadelphia's capital culinary cred was on display here last week, when seven area chefs were named to the American Chef Corps, a new State Department program engaging the country's top toques to foster diplomacy among nations. Chef Joe Cicala of Le Virtú, who was thrilled to be tapped along with some of his "culinary heroes," believes this is an opportunity for him to serve his country with what he does best. Chef Jean-Marie Lacroix, the old-guard French master at the restaurant that still bears his name after his departure, considers it a chance to show the world how far American cuisine has evolved.

NBC 10'S "10! SHOW" comes to an end Friday after more than 10 years. Starting Monday, the 11 a.m. news will run until noon, wiping out the 11:30-to-noon show, station general manager Eric Lerner told his staff Wednesday. He cited the station's commitment to strengthening its newscasts for the switch. Four off-air "10! Show" staffers could lose their jobs, although they are being encouraged to apply for open jobs at the station, says an NBC10 spokeswoman. "The 10! Show" started with hosts Steve Levy and Sharon Reed . In 2004, meteorologist Bill Henley and musician Lauren Hart began broadcasting it live from the Loews Hotel in Center City.

FILMMAKER M. Night Shyamalan , actor Penn Badgley of "Gossip Girl," actors Seth Green and Terrence Howard , and Boyz II Men singer Nate Morris were among celebrities who turned out Wednesday night at Hotel Palomar for a Virgin America airlines party celebrating its launch in Philadelphia. Virgin's chief, Sir Richard Branson , was also at the party and introduced DJ Jazzy Jeff , who spun as Mayor Nutter and wife Lisa danced it up on the floor.

BRAVO CAMERAS have been following former "Top Chef" contestant and fan favorite Jennifer Carroll around town. Carroll, a Daily News "Sexy Single," was recently captured having a girls'-night dinner at Sbraga (Broad & Pine), which "Top Chef" winner Kevin Sbraga opened last year. We're told the Bravo crew is shooting a new series that follows a handful of "Top Chef" contestants as they try to open restaurants, which Carroll, who spent several years at 10 Arts by Eric Ripert at the Ritz-Carlton, is now working on. She's scouting locations for a spot called Concrete Blonde, which she has described as a play on her hard-edged personality and blond hair and also a tribute to the alternative-rock band by the same name.

Philly restaurants worth visiting, local chefs worth following - based on TV worth watching. 1. "Iron Chef" Jose Garces Philly's most televised chef won't be slowing down any time soon. But you can, at J.G. Domestic, his laid-back American joint in Cira Centre. 2929 Arch St., 215-222-2363, www.jgdomestic.com . 2. Good Dog Bar Locals love the cheese-stuffed burger. Guy Fieri of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" goes for the duck pot pie. 224 S. 15th St., 215-985-9600, www.gooddogbar.com . 3. Kevin Sbraga "Top Chef" season 7 winner wins again with his months-old rustic-chic bistro.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY on Wednesday to Philly-bred and -schooled actor Ana Ortiz. "Ugly Betty's" big sister Hilda (back in the day), eldest daughter of former City Councilman Angel Ortiz and proud mother of two turns 41 the day after tomorrow. And, in this birthday wisher's humble opinion, she couldn't do a more down-to-earth-yet-glamorous job of repping our fair burg. The stars say she'll feel younger than ever this year, thanks to a healthy lifestyle, excellent work ethic and all the love in her life.

SHANE VICTORINO was in Waynesville, Mo., yesterday, shooting an episode of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," along with Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz and Mets infielder Daniel Murphy . The Phillies outfielder tweeted yesterday about how excited he was to work with show host Ty Pennington . (The show, we must add, regularly makes Daily News Tattle columnist Howard Gensler cry.) Singer Jewel was also involved in yesterday's shoot at Waynesville High School.