It happens all the time: you’re watching a movie and a scene with food starts your salivary glands pumping. There are plenty of eatery choices around the world, but sometimes we pine for that perfect malt or spaghetti dinner we virtually experienced on the big screen the night before. It’s sad, really, because it’s movie food — no matter how hard you crave what you’re seeing, you just can’t get the same experience. Or can you? Here are 15 movie restaurants we’d love to try — real or not.

Katz’s Delicatessen – When Harry Met Sally

When Harry Met Sally is a classic best remembered for a scene in which the title characters are enjoying a lunch at Katz’s Deli in Manhattan. While arguing whether or not men know when a woman fakes orgasm, Sally, played by a young Meg Ryan, proves her point by faking one right at the table — fully clothed of course. Katz’s deli is a real place, and has been serving up mouth-watering sandwiches since 1888 and has seen the likes of US presidents and celebrities. We would like to have what she had.

Athenian Inn – Sleepless in Seattle

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The Athenian Inn was featured in a memorable scene in Sleepless in Seattle between characters Sam (Tom Hanks) and Jay (Rob Reiner). They share a heaping plate of clams while Jay advises Sam, a widower. The Athenian Inn is another restaurant that exists just as it does in the movie, waterfront view and all, as it has since 1909. If you’d like to stop by to sit in Tom Hank’s seat, the restaurant is located right at the heart of Seattle — in the famous Pike Place Market.

Mooby’s – Clerks II

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Featured in many a Kevin Smith movie, Mooby’s is a favorite imaginary fast-food restaurant shot at a shut-down Burger King in Buena Park, California. Granted, it’s not the cleanest, but the employees are good for a Star Wars vs Lord of the Rings trilogy-debate. And we can’t forget how awesome the hats are.

McDowell’s – Coming to America

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It’d be refreshing to come across a McDowell’s, with so many McDonald’s restaurants everywhere. Especially if you don’t like sesame seeds on your Big Mick buns. With awesome uniforms and Golden Arcs, how could you resist? Of course, McDowell’s is only a dream, and the Coming to America team had to get permission from McDonald’s before using the name. I can’t help but think it was win-win anyway. The building used for the McDowell’s set is now a Wendy’s, of all things, in Queens, New York.

Pig Burger – Better Off Dead

Impossible to forget is the awful burger joint that Lane, played by John Cusack, was forced to work in for the first half of Better Off Dead. The singing, dancing, and overall just plain awesome claymation hamburger made for one of the most memorable bits of 80’s film, and the restaurant itself served later in the film as the setting of some much-needed romance. As an act of homage, the owner of Pig Burger was none other than Porky from Porky’s. Unfortunately this one’s pure fiction.

The Frosty Palace – Grease

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The Frosty Palace was completely crafted on a sound stage – inside and out – but Grease immortalized the idea of a picture-perfect diner. Home of many a make-up and break-up in the film, we’d imagine the Frosty Palace would serve perfect malts amongst other tasty treats. It’d be a jump back to a simpler time with footsies and doo-wop, when a burger was a burger. We wonder if the namesakes of the Frosty Palace compete with the film-version, but that would mean a trip all the way out to Idaho.

Chotchkies – Office Space

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We all know those restaurants. The ones with the kitsch covering every inch of the walls and the employees. Although another imagined restaurant, Chotchkies from Office Space would make any of us crave some potato skins from TGI Fridays, since really, it’s the closest thing. You may leave disappointed though if you go in expecting the enthusiasm of Brian and his 37 pieces of flair.

Jack Rabbit Slim’s – Pulp Fiction

Jack Rabbit Slim’s from Pulp Fiction keeps us craving diner food. What makes this place special, though, would have to be the waitstaff resembling 1950s personalities like Buddy Holly and Marilyn Monroe, along with seating arrangements modeled after vintage cars. There have been copy cats of this movie diner, but none are the real thing. Miramax kingpin Harvey Weinstein wanted to build a chain of the diners, but Tarantino talked him down, which makes us sad, because that Five Dollar Shake sounds amazing.

White Castle – Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle

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White Castle is one of those restaurants that many people weren’t aware of before Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle – mainly because its only located in the Northeast and Midwest of the U.S. After the movie, it left us all craving the chain’s signature diminutive and delicious sliders like raging stoners. Yes, White Castle is real, and you can find one here. And if you’re not up for a roadtrip, your local supermarket may carry them in the frozen food section. Much of the South can get a near equivalent at Krystal’s, as well.

The Hitching Post – Sideways

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Sideways follows two friends through the Santa Barbara wine country over a weekend of women and food, despite the fact that they were supposed to be preparing for one of them to get married. The delights of The Hitching Post in Buellton, California feature old and new food traditions – ribs and chicken to ostrich and smoked duck breast. The movie filmed on location, and if you can’t get out to the Buellton Hitching Post, you can stop by the Casmalia location. Either way, you’re in for tasty fare and beautiful wine country to boot.

Cafe des Deux Moulins – Amelie

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Despite the whimsical nature of Amelie, the Cafe des Deux Moulins is real! Come for the food, stay for the atmosphere — the quaint cafe, with its 1950s decor, mustard ceiling, and lace curtains, has all been preserved. Even if you go to look for the unisex restroom, it’s there. The menu has pretty much remained the same as well, if you’re craving beef filets, calf liver, pig’s brains with lentils, or simply a hamburger with an egg on top or a green salad with warm goat cheese, this is your place. Cafe des Deux Moulins is a prime little spot in Paris, especially for the cult of Amelie.

Chez Quis – Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

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We should all take tips from Ferris Bueller when trying to get into the hottest restaurant in town. Pretend you’re the Sausage King of Chicago. It should work, really! Whether or not we wield any influence, we’d still want to hit up the posh Chez Quis for the high class service and to relive the moments of this classic film. Unfortunately, the inside of the restaurant was filmed in Los Angeles, and the exterior is now a remodeled house in Chicago.

Dancing Zorba’s – My Big Fat Greek Wedding

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It can be tough to find authentic Greek food, at least, depending on your location — but the Dancing Zorba brings it that much closer. Sadly, It’s all a ruse, as the interior was shot on a sound stage. My Big Fat Greek Wedding’s Dancing Zorba inspired a slew of namesake Greek restaurants to pop up all over the place, so by all means, hit them up if you’re still hankering for a bite.

Louis’ Restaurant – The Godfather

Louis’ Restaurant in The Godfather was indeed a real restaurant, with a different name, but if you’re looking to “mangia” you’re out of luck. The restaurant where Sollozzo and McClusky were gunned down was shot in the old Luna Restaurant. It’s no longer in business, but was located under the elevated White Plains Road IRT in the Belmont, more commonly known as Little Italy, New York.

The Bamboo Lounge – GoodFellas

Everyone loves a good mafia hangout, like The Bamboo Lounge in GoodFellas. What’s not to love, after all? A combination night club, casino, and flea market could do your wallet a lot of damage. The kitschy decor aside, Joe Pesci did his famous “Funny Guy” scene in this restaurant — why wouldn’t you want to sit where he sat? Well, you won’t exactly get to do so, as the location was flipped from the Hawaii Kai Restaurant to a stylish Japanese restaurant these days. No more South Seas vibe, but at least you can say you’ve visited. Doesn’t that amuse you?

The New York City facades were used for “Seinfeld” and “Sex and the City.” Additionally, the King Kong exhibit as well as the “Back to the Future” set were destroyed.

Tonight’s MTV Movie Awards will continue as planned, taking place at the Gibson Amphitheatre, which was unharmed in the Universal Studios fire.

1. Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Tilda Swinton, Liam Neeson, Ben Barnes.
2. Iron Man. Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard.
3. Jumper. Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Diane Lane.
4. Leatherheads. George Clooney, Renee Zellweger.
5. Semi-Pro. Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Andre Benjamin.
6. Wall-E.
7. Wanted. Angelina Jolie, James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman.
8. You Don’t Mess With the Zohan. Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, Mariah Carey.

Jessica Alba and The Eye, which also just opened, made it to second place – a bit surprising, considering the mixed reviews it has received. Even more surprising is that 27 Dresses is still in third place*. Eva Longoria Parker and Over Her Dead Body didn’t make it into the top ten. Juno with Ellen Page, Michael Cera and Jennifer Garner, moved back up this list.

1. [-] Hannah Montana/ Miley Cyrus: The Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour. Miley Cyrus.
2. [-] The Eye. Jessica Alba.
3. [3] 27 Dresses. Katherine
4. [6] Juno. Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman.
5. [1] Meet the Spartans. Sean Maguire, Carmen Electra.
6. [2] Rambo. Sylvester Stallone.
7. [7] The Bucket List. Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman.
8. [5] Untraceable. Diane Lane.
9. [4] Cloverfield. Lizzy Caplan.
10. [8] There Will Be Blood. Daniel Day-Lewis.

NOTE: Ranking is only based on the most recent weekend’s box office receipts, not cumulative receipts since a movie’s opening weekend.

Venture Beat has a list of about 19 video sharing websites, some of which you can make money from if you are a content creator. Check out the list.

Another possibility is to harness torrent sites tied to a payment system such as PayPal – a setup that I’ll try to discuss in the near future.

The WGA writers’ strike might be coming to an end, with the DGA contract agreement having broken the ice. There’s nothing definite yet, but negotiations are supposedly resuming. Please end this now!! I’m sick of reality shows. [CBS News]

Is the blackjack movie 21 is an example of how Hollywood takes a real story and “glamorizes” it? Top Socialite suggests it is, taking the two Asian main characters in the book and changing their race and even gender, casting Jim Sturgess and Kate Bosworth.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is offering an interesting new option for obscure DVD titles. Customers will order a title from a retailer, who then orders the exact quantity of discs using HP’s “manufacturing on demand” service. Sony is the first to sign up with HP for this service. No idea if you’ll have to pay a big premium for discs. [The Register]

Browsing through some older posts on io9, I just caught this tidbit: Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes are supposedly going to do a cameo on the new Star Trek movie. [io9]

1. [-] Meet the Spartans. Sean Maguire, Carmen Electra.
2. [-] Rambo. Sylvester Stallone.
3. [2] 27 Dresses. Katherine Heigl.
4. [1] Cloverfield. Lizzy Caplan.
5. [-] Untraceable. Diane Lane.
6. [4] Juno. Ellen Page, Michael Cera.
7. [3] The Bucket List. Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman.
8. [+] There Will Be Blood. Daniel Day-Lewis.
9. [5] National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets. Nicolas Cage.
10. [7] Mad Money. Diane Keaton, Katie Holmes, Queen Latifah, Ted Danson.

It was no big surprise that Cloverfield was number one the previous weekend and also no big surprise – to me – that it has dropped to #4 this weekend, despite all the over-inflated hype. I’ll have reviews of Cloverfield and Untraceable today and tomorrow, respectively. A review of Meet the Spartans, National Treasure, Juno, Bucket List and I Am Legend should follow later in the week.

Fans of Knight Rider and David Hasselhoff can look forward to a TV movie on Feb 17th. Hasselhoff is still in negotiations. [IMDB]

Jessica Simpson is understandable upset about an OK! mag article that claimed Tony Romo dumped her. So she’s siccing her lawyers on them. [US]

Danny Glover was convicted Thursday of trespassing in relation to a 2006 protest in Niagara Falls, Canada. [SF Gate]

Imagine having 20 minutes to come up with and shoot a 2.5 minute movie idea around three objects, and then having an hour to edit. That’s what several teams of aspiring filmmakers had to do in France recently, as part of a competition. [Reuters]

Pregnant Halle Berry has appeared a lot in public lately without boyfriend Gabriel Aubry. However, he’s still in the picture, even if they haven’t decide where to raise the baby-to-be. In fact, while Berry does not want to get married again, she is happily wearing a $10,000 commitment ring that Aubry gave her. [SFGate Daily Dish]

Cityrag has some photos of incredible tattoo likenesses of Jessica Alba, Christopher Walken and other celebs. Also see Worth1000 for some interesting pics of Tara Reid, Jessica Alba, Vin Diesel, Kylie Minogue, Jessica Biel, Colin Farrell and others with their bodies covered with tattoos, thanks to Photoshop or something like it.

Jaime Pressly, who has an 8-month old son, is in no hurry to get married to fiancee Eric Cubiche. That doesn’t mean she’s not happy. She just doesn’t want to “go through the rigamarole of throwing a big wedding.” [People].

Lionsgate and Marvel Studios now have an interim deal with the WGA. [Behind The Scenes TV]

BurnAware Free is free CD/DVD burning software for MS-Windows (98, NT, 2000, XP, Vista 32, Vista 64) that includes support for Blu-Ray and HD-DVD. [Download Squad]

Blatant T+A Dept: io9 has a collection of naked-babe pics from a couple of “Nerdcore” calendars that pay homage to various various video games or science fiction/ superhero movies. WARNING: VERY NSFW. [io9]