Is Chris Benz Thinking Rackets For Resort?

Chris Benz may have thrown his after-party last night at Flatiron Ping-Pong palace SPiN, but the designer himself confessed to having no plans to pick up a paddle. Out in the main pong area, club co-owner Susan Sarandon was watching as players including 30 Rock star Judah Friedlander and Andre Royo of The Wire whizzed balls back and forth across tables, but in the back room, where Benz had set up camp for the night, the vibe was more mellow. “I’m a casual player,” Benz said. “Which is probably overstating it, actually. I grew up playing tennis, so my instinct with Ping-Pong is to whack the ball way over the end of the table. I’m not going to embarrass myself tonight.” Not that Benz wasn’t seizing design inspiration from his surroundings: One of the club’s founders, he said, had shown up with “a Ping-Pong paddle fanny pack-type thing,” which Benz agreed had serious accessory potential. “I’m thinking, Resort,” he deadpanned. “I could do a whole racket sport theme.” Game on.