Grifters! Real estate! Travel! Celebrity profiles! From gossip items, to long-reads and roundups, this year Avenue Insiders were hooked on a wide range of topics. Take a look back (or catch up on) the 10 biggest stories of 2023. Can you guess what took the top spot?
10. Tom Ford is Snapping Up the Homes of ’70s Icons
Photo by BFAThis summer, the fashion designer added “Lasata” — the Bouvier summer residence where young Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Lee Radziwill spent childhood vacations — to his already growing portfolio of high-pedigree real estate. Read the full story.
9. Skye McAlpine Lays It All Out on the Table
Photo by Stephanie Howard, courtesy of Skye McAlpineBorn into a prominent British family, Skye McAlpine has found her own success as a cookery writer and widely read food blogger. She spoke to Louise Carpenter about her third book, a testament to love as well as recipes. Read the full story.
8. Mind-Altering Substances are the Chic New Trend in the Hamptons
Illustration by Fernando "Drawingzilla" AxelrudMicro-dosing tennis moms, THC gummy treats at country club clambakes, ketamine treatments on Main Street in Southampton: Nancy Kane discovers that it’s becoming more out-there out East than ever before. Read the full story.
7. Brian Cox is Just Getting Started
Photo by Ben CopeBrian Cox was arguably the finest character actor of his generation until Succession came along and made him a bonafide superstar. He spoke to Avenue about the fame game. Read the full story.
6. The Ultimate Guide to Sag Harbor
Photo by Gavin Zeigler/AlamySag Harbor is swiftly becoming the hottest town in the Hamptons. Avenue discovered what makes the onetime sleepy whaling port the place to be. Read the full story.
5. Why Boston is a Hot Spot for Chic Private Clubs
Photo by Jenna Peffley, courtesy of ’Quin HouseHow the ’Quin House and the Newbury Boston put the bling into Brahmin. Read the full story.
4. Meet the Family Preserving and Revitalizing Palm Beach Real Estate
Photo by Nick MeleTwo generations of the Frisbie family have joined forces to become titans of Palm Beach real estate. Avenue uncovered the group dynamics. Read the full story.
3. An Insider’s Guide to Bellport
Photo by Howie GujaKnown as the “Unhampton,” the tiny, charming village of Bellport is New York’s best-kept secret escape — which is just how south shore habitués like Isabella Rossellini, Amanda Burden, and Billy Porter want to keep it. Here’s what makes it so popular. Read the full story.
2. A Day in the Life of David Grutman: Miami Entrepreneur
Photo by Nick MeleAvenue tailed the espresso-chugging, Bentley-spinning, high-living hospitality titan David Grutman, the most well-connected man in Miami, if not America. Read the full story.
1. The Birkin Bag Scammer
In February, George Mickum was accused of selling fake Hermès bags to slews of scenesters he was (once) close pals with. Avenue then uncovered that he was also tricking his well-heeled gal pals into buying fake jewelry to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and had some shady deals in the Hamptons, too.
