A few weeks ago the price of a slice of pizza went up to a groundbreaking $5 at Di Fara, the Midwood pizzeria that's become something of a mecca for pizza nerds around the world. Today the Post ponders whether customers are ready to swallow the dollar increase, which owner Dom DeMarco insists is necessary because he imports all the ingredients from Italy and prices have gone up across the board. Brooklyn's Phyllis Turim groaned, "They must be out of their minds. It would have to be the best slice of pizza in the world." But many assert that, in fact, it is, and Slice blogger Adam Kuban declares, "If it were an everyday slice, no, $5 would be too much. But a lot of the people lining up at Di Fara are pizza tourists. It's like a vacation—you don't do it all the time, and you've already prepared yourself for the overcharge." Have you vacationed at Di Fara recently? Is it worth the expense or an overrated tourist trap? Charlie Fishbaum, who ordered a $25 pie from Di Fara the other day, has this to say: "Go somewhere else if you don't like it." more ›

Click on the film stills above for more details and reviews of this week's new releases and repertory screenings, which also include Drag Me to Hell, Departures, What Goes Up, Munyurangabo, Pressure Cooker, Call Center, The Breakfast Club, The Lost Boys, L’Enfant, and Rashomon. more ›

Greenwich Village residents have been complaining about rising crime in their neighborhood in the wake of two violent assaults during the past week, and now the Post reports that they're not just imagining things: NYPD data shows that incidents of violent crime reported to the 6th Precinct, which includes the Village, are up almost 43 percent so far this year, compared with the same period in 2008. (There have been 40 assaults in the area so far this year, up from 28.) And violent crime rates have soared throughout downtown, with the East Village and the Lower East Side also seeing a big spike in street crime. Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne blames the boom on the neighborhoods' nightlife, which attracts large numbers of revelers who become targets and predators after enough drinks. G. Simon Chafik, a female photographer who has lived in Manhattan for 15 years, tells the Post, "I've never seen it like this before—never, ever. I'm a big New Yorker. New York is one of the safest cities. [But] I'm beginning to question that." more ›

With the price of flour down so low that even PETA activists can afford to hurl the stuff at Lindsay Lohan, you might think bagel and pizza costs might drop a bit. But most pizzeria and bagel shop owners in NYC—who raised their prices earlier this year in response to skyrocketing flour cost—have not been passing the savings along to their customers. Vinny Camporeale, owner of the East Village pizzeria Vinny Vincenz, tells the Daily News, "Our rent goes up every year—customers aren't aware of that." Who knew!? Now Camporeale's "seriously thinking" about raising the price a third time this year, from $2.50 to $2.75. At least at Montague Street Bagels in Brooklyn Heights the bagel price has reverted to 90 cents, down from the summer price of $1. Assistant manager Preston Joseph declares, "It's the right thing to do. We're not con men." Hear that, Vinny, you rapacious pizza fleecer? more ›

A new study by the DOT [pdf] has revealed an unprecedented surge in the number of cyclists, increasing an estimated 35% in NYC between 2007 and 2008. In the past six years, cycling levels in the city have doubled, and Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan says the numbers prove the department is "well on the way toward our goal of doubling the number of bike commuters." In particular, the cyclist volume on the Williamsburg Bridge has quadrupled from 2000-2008 to 4,000 cyclists on a typical day. And the study shows that cyclists are riding earlier in the morning and later in the day than previously believed. To that end, DOT reps will be stationed on the Manhattan sides of both the Williamsburg and Brooklyn bridges from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. tonight handing out free bike lights, which cyclists are required by law to use. So race on over there, all you gonzo fixed-gear cyclists from that crazy video! more ›

Is the economic free fall already leading to higher crime and degentrifying neighborhoods, as previously speculated? Brooklyn's 88th precinct, which includes Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, is reporting that so far this year robberies have spiked 7.6 percent and burglaries are up 18.6 percent. And a cardboard box of bloody human remains discovered on fancy Washington Park isn't exactly putting residents at ease; one of them tells The Brooklyn Paper, “This hasn’t happened since the 1970s. Back then, I came out of my building one morning and found a body hanging from a lightpost." more ›

The cost of tuition at Columbia and NYU has passed the $50,000 mark; a year at NYU now costs $50,182, including room and board, up 5.9% from last year. And Columbia now sets you back $51,866, the Sun reports. But according to NYU professor Amy Ellen Schwartz, it's actually a sweet deal when you look at the big picture: "What is true about understanding the college market, is that the economics are very complicated. In the more expensive universities the actual value of the education spending is even more than tuition. If you ask me, is it worth $50,000? You probably get $100,000 worth of education at somewhere like Yale." What a pity she's stuck slumming it at NYU. more ›

No surprise here, but skyrocketing fuel costs have not spared farmers who sell produce at Greenmarkets, the AP finds. Upstate strawberry grower Franca Tantillo estimates that roughly half the money she earns at a Manhattan Greenmarket is spent on transportation costs. And it’s not just getting back and forth from the city that’s more expensive; fuel costs have driven up the price of fertilizers and animal feed, and plastic supplies for greenhouses cost more. As the costs are passed on to their urban customers, farmers like Elly Hushour, who sells goat cheese that she drives in from her farm in Pennsylvania, predict that "local soon will not be that important.” And maybe Union Square soon will not be that mobbed? more ›

The state-controlled price for a gallon of milk went up another 44 cents this morning, bringing the maximum amount that a retailer can charge to $4.37. But an investigation last month revealed that many retailers haven’t even heard of this law and charge whatever they want. The rising prices are due to high fuel costs, corn shortages and floods in the Midwest, according to WABC. And at $4.37 a gallon, inventors’ dreams for a milk-powered car are now cost-prohibitive. Time to switch to rat milk? more ›

The total annual cost (including room and board) of NYU has gone up 65% in the past decade and next year it will reach an all-time high of $50,182 – a 5.9% increase from last year. The Washington Square News notes that the university is cash poor, drawing 60 percent of its resources from tuition. In an attempt to soften the blow, NYU plans to increase need-based aid to "more than $150 million" total. more ›