F&W Scoop - Mario Takes Over Times Square and Fight AIDS

Everyone I know is at this minute focused on Thanksgiving dinner—the exact proportions for the turkey brine, if this is the year to serve beer with the bird, etc. Me, I'm thinking ahead to the morning after Thanksgiving (and not because I've already finished my T-day prep cooking—that's the opposite of true). On Friday, November 28, at 10 a.m. at Military Island, the intersection of Broadway and 7th Avenue between 43rd and 44th Streets in Manhattan, Mario Batali and Starbucks will take over Times Square, making and passing out (RED) coffee for everyone who shows up. At approximately 10:30, you can have your picture taken in the (RED) photo booth to join the (RED) community, perhaps with one of Mario's helper elves, Helena Christensen and Mary Louise Parker. The event is hosted by—if you couldn't guess—(RED), which raises money through sales of red-colored iconic products, like iPods and Converse to fight AIDS in Africa; it marks the launch of the amazing partnership between Starbucks and (RED). For each holiday drink sold, Starbucks will make a five cent donation to (RED). (It will continue after the holidays, so keep on drinking the Eggnog Lattes in the New Year.) What's more, Starbucks in changing their signature green barista aprons to red to mark the deal. Word is that Mario—who's there helping to get the word out—will be wearing one of those red barista apron. Whether he'll have on matching clogs is another question.