Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

♦  The Observer picks its favorite pizza joints around town. [NYO]
♦  Andrew Carmellini has a new restaurant in the works, although he isn't sharing too many details. [GS]
♦  Trader Joe's may open a store on 72nd and Broadway next year. [GS]
♦  The meltdown is having an impact on the restaurant biz. Duh. [Time]
♦  The Times travel section spends 36 hours in NYC and offers up "plenty of reasons not to stay at home watching CNBC." [NYT]

• New York's Adam Platt spanks Alain Ducasse's new brasserie Benoit with a zero-star review. Some of his least favorite dishes? The lobster ravioli (a "viscous mess"), cassoulet (tastes like it was "preheated in a microwave"), and the steak tartare ("dressed with enough horseradish to choke a cow.") [NYM]
• The Times' Frank Bruni wasn't quite as unhappy, handing over a single star. Bruni found the baguettes "adorable" and the halibut "delicious," but couldn't excuse the place for bungling the "must-ace dish" of roasted chicken. [NYT]