Elaine's

The Rise of One of New York’s Most Legendary Restaurants

By: Amy Phillips Penn

Narrated by: Nicol Zanzarella, Johnathan McClain

A tribute to legendary restaurateur Elaine Kaufman and her renowned Manhattan creative melting pot.

Elaine's was a world-famous New York restaurant that became home to writers and celebrities. Owner Elaine Kaufman was known to be "New York feisty", controversial, often rude, always blunt, with the flare of Gertrude Stein and Dorothy Parker. Elaine was highly respected and frequently feared, and Elaine's the restaurant received the public's love and praise time and time again. Woody Allen held a regular table there, and Elaine's was even featured in Allen's Manhattan and Billy Joel's song "Big Shot".

Throughout the years Mick Jagger, John Lennon, and countless celebrities, politicians, socialites, private eyes, athletes, and artists and the biggest names in Hollywood became Elaine's regulars. Most emphatically Elaine's raison d'être was to nourish "starving writers" with encouragement, introductions to Pulitzer Prize winners, and free food and alcohol. These struggling authors responded to Elaine's support with profound gratitude.

Elaine passed away in 2010, forcing the restaurant manager to close shop shortly after. "There is no Elaine's without Elaine", she decreed. However, the memories remain and are recalled by a variety of Elaine's regulars in this moving, oftentimes amusing collection of personal essays.

©2015 Amy Phillips Penn (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

ELAINE'S " Where everyone knew her name"

Would you consider the audio edition of Elaine's to be better than the print version?

Not necessarily. The voices were very flat!

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's hard to say there were many.

Have you listened to any of Nicol Zanzarella and Johnathan McClain ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I think "CHEERS" already did, don't you?

Any additional comments?

WISH I COULD HAVE BEEN THERE TO MEET THAT WONDERFUL LADY!!!

A wonderful remembrance of a woman , place and time

Very well written and compiled. Nice to hear each person’s remembrance and how this place and woman affected their life.

It was awesome. sorry you missed it

Elaine's was THE place to go and to be. It is amazing to hear so many people's fond memories.

Good to Know

I like learning the reality of the settings of books I've read. Very good book.

Sit Down & Eat

Peek through the window into Elaine’s literary clubhouse in Manhattan’s Yorkville neighborhood, where you were nobody unless Elaine liked you. Read the book, you knucklehead.

Fun Stories

As told by many who were there, Elaine's sounds like a place anyone would have liked to have been to or opened. If you like the Moth and other story telling you'll love this!

New York History at it's best!

I really enjoyed this easy listen. There are individual stories volley'd between two narrators. Each story talks about the writer's personal experience with Elaine's and its famous namesake. The stories are quintessential contemporary New York. This listen made me long for the famous restaurant to be opened again.

ELAINE WAS ONE OF A KIND<br />

Utterly adore this book, and I wish Elaine had been my MOMA also!!!
Amy Phillips Penn brings forth the ambiance, the heat, & star studded qualities of this remarkably, unique character, Elaine, who can never be replaced.

“ His Local “

Amy Phillips Penn captures the essence of where my friend Fr. Pete could just hang out and Elaine could just be… NO politically correctness, just love, kindness and straight talk. Rest In Peace you two!

Elaine's Patrons; Hashtag Me Too

This is a 'manthology' of obsequies and anecdotes (previously published ) honouring Elaine Kaufman, proprietor of Elaine's, the trendy NY restaurant which opened in the sixties and closed in 2015.

I am grateful to this collection for eliminating all lingering regret about missed opportunities to dine at Elaine's.

As it happens, I've already enjoyed hundreds of meals in lesser known venues dodging the baleful stares of a hovering
bullying with zero impulse control. I had no choice but to stop dining at my Mom's.

And what a dreary book - each essay is the same as the last and the narrators - lovely readers both - were forced to affect amateurish accents .

Perhaps the editors hoped the stilted Brooklynese and Alabama drawls might distract us from the endless narrative sameness of these valedictions. Such optimism.

This book is a bummer. And we need fewer books on successful women who hate their own sex and behave badly.

Such a shame to discover that Elaine wore Prada...