Dan Gross: DUI charge for Rydell

LOWER MERION police have just charged

Bobby Rydell

with driving under the influence of alcohol last month when he crashed his 1969 Bentley into the wall of the Jai Yoga (727 Montgomery Ave.) studio in Narberth.

Police say that Rydell, 67, had a blood-alcohol-level of 0.17, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08, at the time.

The South Philly-raised crooner, born Robert Ridarelli, also took out a pole and some shrubbery before hitting the wall. After the incident, his wife, Linda Hoffman-Rydell, told us he had abruptly turned off Montgomery Avenue to avoid a car tailgating him. Rydell told 6 ABC's "Action News" that he had "a couple of drinks at lunch" that day.

Rydell, whose hits include "Volare," "Wildwood Days" and "Wild One,"was not arrested, but rather was mailed a charging summons and told to report to court Nov. 19. No one was injured, so we don't expect too severe a punishment should the singer be convicted of DUI.

Out and about

* Reese Witherspoon bought a bunch

of clothes Monday afternoon at Vagabond (37 N. 3rd) in Old City where she was very friendly to staff and also called her assistants and recommended they check out the boutique.

Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, and 11 crew members from the annoyingly untitled James L. Brooks film dined at Morimoto (723 Chestnut) Monday. The picture shot a few doors down at Union Trust (717 Chestnut). Witherspoon went for a glass of Kono sauvignon blanc and a house salad, and shared several fish and sushi offerings with Rudd, who sipped Soba beer. Guests buzzed about the celebs in the house, but left them alone. Witherspoon and Rudd were also seen late Saturday/early Sunday having drinks at Parc on Rittenhouse Square where Witherspoon sipped bourbon press while Rudd went for Scotch on the rocks. They stayed after closing time, leaving about 2:45 a.m.

_Upper Darby's Jamie Kennedy and Jennifer Love Hewitt were also at Parc, largely undetected, when the actor brought his girl to town over the Labor Day holiday weekend.

_Ricardo Antonio Chavira, who plays Carlos Solis on "Desperate Housewives," dined at Tavern 17 (220 S. 17th) Sunday night with members of the Wellness Community's CARE Campaign team. Monday morning Chavira, the campaign's national spokesman, appeared at the Rittenhouse Hotel at a CARE event celebrating breast-cancer caregivers, along with his sister Rebekah, a breast-cancer survivor. Chavira lunched at Parc Monday before leaving town.

* Actor Peter Dinklage was spotted walking his dog yesterday morning outside the Pita Pit (16th & Sansom). The "Station Agent" star, also known from "Nip/Tuck," was first spied in town strolling on Broad Street last week. We're not sure why he's here. Peter, we've dug your work since "Living in Oblivion." Get in touch, man. And while you're at it, update your contact info with the Screen Actors Guild. You're hard to find.

Negovan injured in cycle crash

Tom Negovan, a former CBS 3 reporter, was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident last week in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported. Negovan had spinal surgery after suffering two broken vertebrae and various cuts and bruises when he collided with a car. Negovan and wife Susanna expect him to be back on-air at Chicago's WGN-9 in a few weeks, but full recovery is months away. He plans to give up motorcycles for now.

10 Arts honored by the Chaine

10 Arts by Eric Ripert at the Ritz-Carlton was just awarded Event of the Year by the Philadelphia chapter of the Chaine, the oldest gastronomic association in the world, for hosting the group's gala last September. Meanwhile, 10 Arts chef de cuisine, Jennifer Carroll, a Somerton native, has been kicking it this season on Bravo's "Top Chef." Chef Ripert will be a guest on "The Martha Stewart Show" (2 p.m., NBC10) tomorrow, cooking vegetables with Martha and talking about his new book "A Return to Cooking." Philly-raised Dr. Andrew Weil is Martha's guest today.

Visit PhillyGossip.com for Dan's latest updates or follow PhillyGossip on Twitter. Have a tip? Call 215-854-5963, or e-mail grossd@phillynews.com. For recent columns, visit go.philly.com/dangross.