Clinton's takeout order shows he's refined his taste buds in Big Apple

Former President Bill Clinton's taste in "takeout" food sure hasimproved since the 1990s, when he was practically the poster boy forBig Macs! En route out of town Tuesday, our former commander-in-chief had the Secret Service run by the super-pricey Il Mulino NewYork restaurant and pick up quite the feast for the flight home.

The ex-prez (and some lucky traveling companions) dined on classicBranzino, spaghettini Bolognese, papardelle with sausage andClinton's favorite -- Il Mulino's cheesecake.

YUMMY PROFITS: While on the subject of food, we should note thelocal restaurants making the most dough last year. According toindustry "bible," Restaurants and Institutions magazine, the city'stop five included Gibsons at No. 8 nationwide, grossing more than $19million in 2005, followed by Joe's Stone Crab (No. 30, $13.8million), Hugo's Frog Bar (No. 34, $13.5 million), Shaw's Crab House(No. 46, $12.3 million) and Harry Caray's (No. 61, $11.3 million).

The highest-ranking restaurant in Illinois was Bob Chinn's inWheeling, coming in at No. 7 and a whopping $19.7 million.

BRITNEY TV? I pray this isn't true, but Us Weekly reports BritneySpears' recent gig on "Will & Grace" led to a meeting between theparenting-challenged pop tart and Sean Hayes -- supposedly to discussideas for a proposed ensemble sitcom about teachers, possibly called"Detention."

No comment from spokesfolks for either Hayes or Spears.

NEVER TOO LATE: Nice to know 65-years-young Martin Sheen is goingfrom being president to becoming a college student -- for the firsttime. The departing President Bartlet on "The West Wing" plans tostudy literature, philosophy and possibly oceanography at theNational University of Ireland in Galway.

HOTEL HAPPENINGS: The Chicago Hilton & Towers has long been afavorite Chicago filming site. Recently cameras have rolled at theHilton for the "Prison Break" series and the ABC pilot "Enemies." Thenext movie likely to capture the Hilton on film will be John Cusack's"Grace Is Gone" feature, also starring Dianne Wiest and Casey Affleckand directed by James Strouse, who wrote the screenplay for "LonesomeJim," Affleck's current film.

"Grace Is Gone" is about a father (Cusack) with two youngdaughters who receives the devastating news his wife was killed inIraq. Before bringing himself to tell his children, he takes them ontheir dream vacation -- a cross-country trip to the fictitious DisneyWorld-esque "Enchanted Gardens" theme park in Florida.

- To toast the upcoming Empire Room tribute to Stanley Paul, thePalmer House Hilton has dedicated a big window display near itsMonroe Street entrance to Chicago's popular orchestra leader. Paul isthe recipient of the upcoming Essee and Irv Kupcinet Award, beingpresented May 4 by the Chicago Academy for the Arts.

FLYBY BIT: At the New York premiere party for "Three Penny Opera,"Cyndi Lauper clarified a widely reported tale to my Big Applecorrespondent Baird Jones.

A bird flying overhead at a Lauper concert last year supposedlymade an unwelcome "deposit" in the singer's mouth -- just as shethrew back her head to belt out a tune.

According to Lauper, the birdie did hit her lower lip, "but Icould not taste it. I just wiped it off and went on with myperformance. I actually considered it a good-luck sign." Whatever yousay, Cyndi!

e-mail: bzwecker@suntimes.com