Greenpoint: We recently dined at popular (?) NoGre Mexican restaurant Papacitos. PROS: byob, casual outdoor seating. CONS: Fish in fish tacos not fried, and not even really seasoned; unsalted tortilla chips and no salt on the tables!; the world’s slowest service (over an hour passed between ordering/receiving); Meatloafer Ben’s burrito was an enormous quasi-marinara-esque–covered blob. SADNESS FACTOR: They were robbed last week, so maybe that’s why they sucked. In fairness, we’ll return someday to report on the (unconfirmed) $1.50 lunch tacos. Papacitos, 999 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY

Midtown: In Bryant Park news, the Harrison Ford (/McAdams/Keaton/Goldblum) comedy Morning Glory was filming this week around 43rd and 6th. We didn’t see any of the stars, but we noticed that Grace Plaza was renamed IBS Plaza for Monday’s filming. Coincidentally, the Trini-Pak cart on the north side of Grace/IBS Plaza has recently expanded their offerings. (pics of today’s Trini-Pak lunch TK)

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• We spotted this slim, bundled fellow and immediately took several covert subway photos, then realized he probably couldn’t see us anyway. GF/Meatloafing artiste Karolina notes the resemblance to Kenny.
• Winter movie recommendation: Låt den rätte komma in (Let the Right One In). This is a “serious” (not cheesy) vampire movie that we really enjoyed. It’s got kids, kid vampires, dreary blue-inflected vistas, and an amazing cat scene that’s not worth spoiling here. See if you can spot the vintage plastic Smurf collection. It’s only onscreen for a few seconds, but we appreciated the attention to detail. With Swedish subtitles. Currently playing at Angelika Film Center.
  
• For the record: Dumont Burger, you’re no longer our friend. I’m not paying $13 plus an extra dollar for cheese just to sit on a backless stool next to a drafty front door. Perhaps if your burger quality was more consistent, we’d reconsider. FU.
• Meatloafers: what are you bringing to the table this year? Still not sure? We dug up these holidayesque recipes from our archives: Susan’s Cornbread, Festive All-Seasons Punch.
• Winter fashion report: H&M offers its worst collection in years. (Continue reading for a photo)

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This weekend was a little rough. We rode the Cyclone again and hurt ourselves. Dinner with our good friends at DiFara did little to alleviate the pain.

Meatloafing: i had a bad difara experience
it was sad :/
Slice: wha happen?
Meatloafing: out of cheese
romano or whatever
crumbly
also used sage instead of basil
and the son who sux was working
son w/ really bad posture had night off
and daughter wasn’t there
dom and son got in a tiff
son stormed off, started sweeping
idk

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As cranes hover in the Williamsburg sky, prices at Dumont Burger have soared even higher. A regular burger now costs $13. What? Dumont Burger, get real. Hold your horses. The condos aren’t filled up yet, the economy is collapsing, and the neighborhood will always need an excellent, moderately priced burger. Don’t you already sell your burgers at a higher price at regular Dumont? And presumably an even higher price at Dressler? [We love both places. —Ed. ] And you guys just opened the takeout place next door. So I’m guessing you’re doing well, and I don’t see how jacking up the prices is really necessary. Respect the customer. But anyway, if you want to sell $13 burgers (formerly $11.50, I believe), allow us to make a few suggestions:

• Add a cup of finely shredded red-cabbage coleslaw to the plate
• Place one or two onion rings atop fries (or next to salad, if that option is chosen)
• Turn up the fucking heat in the winter so we aren’t forced to opt for takeout even thought we planned to eat there, and the drive to my house basically ruined the fries
• Buy some stools with backs
• Put lemon in your water without me having to ask

One of the few convenience stores in downtown Austin [Ben Lim]

Where to Eat: Cheese, Oysters, and (No)odles

Eating during SXSW is a bit tricky. Long lines and crowds can lead to a dinner of Cheez-Its, a granola bar, and a Frosty (mmmm). Fortunately, we arrived in Austin early to attend the interactive—and much less crowded—portion of the fest.

Our first meal was at the hotel TGI Friday’s, where the broccoli-cheddar soup and half a “club sandwich” (it’s served on an untoasted roll) with avocado met our needs. The soup had a robust cheesy flavor and the sandwich was mediocre ingredient-wise, but the combination really hit it. Grade: C+. Radisson Hotel & Suites, 111 E. Cesar Chavez St. → At Roux, a spacious “Cajun bistro” with memorably odd wall art, we sampled stuffed oysters, a peppercorn-crusted ribeye with fixins, and shrimp in brandy cream sauce—one of the best meals of the trip. (Read about the co–best meal in Part 2.) Grade: B. 214 E. 6th St. → The stark, empty, and depressing Mongolian Grille offered possibly the saddest, least appetizing collection of raw ingredients that has ever existed on a buffet line. The noodles, which they confiscated after realizing they weren’t supposed to be set out during lunch, were merely spaghetti and linguini. Around 20 different types of watered-down sauces—green curry, Asian blend, barely-white coconut milk, and so on—rounded out the selections. Grade: F.

Next: Bodegas Don’t Exist (a.k.a. Nodegas) & ATM Tips

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Meese? Cafe Zaiya, a Midtown lunch destination, sells a formidable array of cute desserts (not to mention cream puffs and fondant au chocolat at its a Beard Papa outpost). Our testers, Elizabeth and Karolina, tried a few of these: mango, raspberry, and chocolate mousse topped with assorted fruit and more chocolate. Here’s what they said. (more…)

Better than a random Midtown deli, worse than Burger Joint. It’s literally a good burger. Lunchboxr has the full report including my post-meal IM review. Here’s an excerpt:

Ben: mollie, please sum up your goodburger experience in a sentence or two.
Mollie: i was hoping for hand-cut fries. the meat itself was cooked as specified (medium-rare), but i had to remove the condiments and salt the patty.

[Lunchboxr]