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Just a few weeks ago, Kenny Gilbert became executive chef at PGA Resort & Spa, but he’s hardly a newcomer to these parts. Originally from the Cleveland lakeshore suburb of Euclid, he brought his Southern-influenced international style south more than a decade ago, exec cheffing at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club & Spa in Jupiter and then at BallenIsles Country Club in Palm Beach Gardens before running off to Telluride, Colo., for a few years.

The Ritz, of course, still likes to claim Kenny, and in fact, last winter at the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach in Manalapan, he was a star at the annual Food for the Poor fundraiser. His chosen dish: bison.

Of course, the Palm Beach heavens are filled with culinary stars. Before he left for a big gig in Miami and more recently Kenya, Hubert DesMarais put The Four Seasons on the map, a reputation continued by Darryl Moiles. Daniel Boulud makes frequent visits to his Café Boulud at The Brazilian Court in Palm Beach, while its sister hotel, The Omphoy, boasts Michelle Bernstein.

Tales of two cities: Last month, Lake Worth Mayor Rene Varela complained of drunken spending and pledged to cut $4.5 million from the city’s budget. Some of the oomph seems to be leaving downtown. Latest to go is Miami Subs at the corner of Lake and Dixie, and the raucous Ouzo Blue, open only a year and a half, shut down a few weeks ago, as did its sibling in Palm Beach Gardens. A greater loss is L’Anjou, its lace curtains drawn for good after more than three decades of French cuisine and a lasting memory as a backdrop in Body Heat.

Not all the losses are culinary. Those with a taste for things old, really old, will have to shop elsewhere now that Yesterday’s Antique Mall has shuttered. Mall owner Steve Gaffney said he was offered a new lease and higher rent, too. It hasn’t helped, he said, that eBay has become such a big player in the antique world.

Building owner Cimaglia Holdings LLC of Pompano Beach claims to have a new tenant, but has not said who it is.

So much for glum: Out on the beach, the city has asked REG Architects to design the renovation of the beachfront casino. When the original building went up in 1922, gambling was legal. A1A ran between the casino and the ocean and bathers took an underpass to the beach. A1A is farther west now, well off the dune line, on filled land, and the casinos are elsewhere, but architect Rick Gonzalez has done his best to reclaim the original design with colonnaded archways, towers and tiled roof.

Gonzalez comes with impressive credentials. Projects include the Harriet Himmel Theater in CityPlace, the 1916 Palm Beach County Courthouse restoration, the International Polo Club in Wellington and the new ballroom at The Mar-a-Lago Club.

The city believes it can come up with the $6.5 million for the project. Hope so. In 1921, the city signed a contract for $99,500, but by the time the casino, underpass and pier were done, the cost was $150,000.

While Lake Worth is smarting, down in Delray Beach, they’re playing it smart. According to the most recent count, says Marjorie Ferrer of the Downtown Development Authority, Delray has 102 restaurants in the downtown area, which could keep a body busy for quite some time. Tastemakers of Delray may help ease the load. It’s a two-day restaurant crawl (Aug. 13 and 14, 5-10 p.m.), with 24 of the town’s best offering menu tastings paired with wine, beer or cocktails. Examples: Anticuchos (marinated skirt steak skewers) at Cabana El Rey with a Santa Rita 120 Cabernet Sauvignon, Thai chicken in a traditional sweet red chili sauce paired with a Blackstone Pinot Grigio at Ziree or chocolate mousse with a Marcel Martin sparkling wine at Café de France.

To crawl, however, you’ll need a passport: $25, available at the participating restaurants above and Sundy House, Tryst, The Blue Fish, 32 East, Olio, Linda Bean’s Perfect Maine, Il Bacio, Taste Gastropub, Brule Bistro, City Oyster & Sushi Bar, Cugini Grille, Johnnie Brown’s, Paddy McGee’s Irish Pub, GOL! The Taste of Brazil, Crepes by the Sea, Cut 432, Lemongrass, J&J Seafood, Caffe Luna Rosa, Boheme Bistro and Boston’s on the Beach.

The passport also provides admission to after-parties and drink specials, plus special savings through Sept. 30 at participating restaurants. Proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society. For more info, call the DDA at (561) 243-1077.

Carl DeSantis, who made billions with Rexall Sundown vitamins, wants to pump some new life into some properties he owns. DeSantis owns all of the land on the north side of Atlantic Avenue from Northeast Sixth Avenue to Veterans Park along the Intracoastal. It’s only 8.5 acres, but in Atlantic Plaza II, DeSantis envisions a $325-million complex — 182,000 square feet of retail space, 106,000 square feet for offices and 197 residences.

To run the show, DeSantis’ CDS International Holdings has hired Bill Morris as vice president for development. Morris’ recent development credentials include Delray’s 217-unit Worthing Place and the 255-unit Palmetto Place in Boca Raton. This project may be his longest, with a phased-in five- to seven-year buildout. An abandoned gas station at the corner of Atlantic and Fifth already is gone and some other small buildings, including DeSantis’ former antique shop and art gallery, won’t be far behind. The biggest chunk, Atlantic Plaza, also will be razed, but DeSantis will see that all those tenants are relocated.

If you enjoy being green, drop by Crane’s BeachHouse in Delray Aug. 19 from 6-8:30 p.m. for the inaugural Green M&Ms Party. It’s a fundraiser for two of the greenest operations around: the Friends of the Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach and the Everglades-protecting Arthur R. Marshall Foundation. Lots of tree-huggers and swamp-sloggers — ah, the stories they can tell — plus a raffle, live music, hors d’oeuvres and a free drink. Donation is $25. Inquiries and reservations to garyschwei@aol.com.

Thom Smith is a freelance writer. He can be reached at thomsmith@ymail.com.