Mark Bynum's Kobe and Pulled Pork Sliders

"Love Balls" from The Meatball Shop

Other chefs were less cruel and gave journalists a taste:

Kerry Heffernan of South Gate even brought his sous-chef-for-the-day:

The star chef of the evening, Michelle Bernstein was the last cuisinier to pose for photos, and then special guests joined the party. Here's Bernstein with fellow chef Mario Pagan:

The event's Emcee and Extra host AJ Calloway was next to arrive and hung around speaking to reporters and posing for photos for a long time as we waited for more guests to come.

New York Rangers centre Brad Richards also made an appearance and talked to the media about his game day diet and tennis allegiance to friend John Isner.

Nadal stopped for a few photos but passed through quickly without speaking to the media.

Tommy Haas was next on the carpet:

PTN was all ready to ask the Hamburg native whether he likes hamburgers, and, more importantly, about the condition of his oft-injured back when our external flash exploded its battery compartment onto Haas' feet while he was being interviewed by someone else. Haas didn't flinch.

The up-and-comer Bojana Jovanovski was next up, and seemed a little nervous to have so many cameras on her off the court.  

Tamira Paszek arrived in a beautiful crochet dress and appeared in great spirits after a recent run-in with an attacker. Paszek was bitten by a dog outside of a restaurant before leaving her home in Florida for New York. "I don't blame the dog," Paszek told PTN. She said that only a bruise remains as evidence of her wound.

Paszek has been very much in shape in recent months, translating into both improved match results and a great look off-court on Thursday's Red Carpet. Asked whether she used a special diet to shed the pounds, the Austrian chalked the transformation off to nature, "I was 16 when I started on the Tour," Paszek said, "and, you know, when a girl becomes a woman, there are changes. So, that's it."

Fernando Verdasco has also changed his appearance recently, but don't fret, his physique is intact. The Spaniard looked dapper with his shed locks.

Perhaps a model for Verdasco's haircut, Mikhail Youzhny came joined by his wife and long-time coach/father figure Boris Sobkin.

When Youzhny told another reporter he does not generally cook, PTN was forced to ask a potentially controversial question.

PTN: "You said you don't cook much, so, is [wife] Yulia a good cook?"
Youzhny: [very long pause... smiles] Yes [laughs]. But... I can cook something if I really need to. We are just not in situations where you need to cook that much.

Youzhny says he is not particular about food at all and does not have any favorite restaurants in New York. Let's hope his team has appreciation for food, considering the event they were attending.

Janko Tipsarevic came with beautiful wife Biljana, who, unlike Yulia Youzhnaya, did not bypass the Red Carpet and posed with her husband before letting Janko speak to the media about his love of sushi.

Marin Cilic, while his game has been regressing for many months, has matured into his looks and height and looked reserved, but his eyes lit up like a child's when PTN asked him what he thinks of New York, coming from a small town (Medjugorje on the border of Bosnia and Croatia).

"It's a big, big, big city," kept repeating Cilic, noting there are several times more people in New York, especially counting visitors like him, than in his entire country of Croatia. Every time he travels to New York, Cilic tells PTN, he discovers something new. The previous evening, Marin had attended a Broadway show for the first time, The Lion King. "It was spectacular," he said.

Gilles Simon is taking in New York as well, having gone for a stroll in Central Park with his son earlier in the day.

When Canadian player Heidi el Tabakh took the floor, no one knew her name but many assumed she was a starlet or model. "No, we were told she is a player," the event staff insisted.

James Blake replaced Andy Roddick, who was playing in Salem, as the key player guest at the event.

Another less known American, Michael Yani, who had won his first ATP Tour match and reached the semis at Newport this year, also attended.

With a prevalence of testosterone on the carpet, World No. 2 Vera Zvonareva's arrival was very welcome.

Zvonareva wore stylish red heels but could not recall the brand when a journalist asked. So, the Russian leaned against the free-standing backdrop on the carpet and looked at her shoe soles, risking pre-US Open injury to find out the sandals were made by White House Black Market.

Some late player arrivals escaping our lens included Mardy Fish, Victoria Azarenka, men's doubles legend Mark Woodforde, and Argentina's Horacio Zeballos. We also spotted Maria Sharapova's team, headed by coach Thomas Hogstedt and hitting partner and former Wimbledon Semifinalist Vladimir Voltchkov, Simon's coach Thierry Tulasne, and Caroline Wozniacki's brother Patrik.

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Photos by Mariya Konovalova