The great popcorn hunt for the best movie munchies

As the leaves change and the weather grows colder, many Columbia students will flock to the movies. But somehow, the thought of watching a movie in a theater is incomplete without sticky fingers and a buttery barrel of popcorn.

Where can students get the best popcorn without emptying their wallets? To answer this question, I sought out the theater that provides the best traditional, buttery, crunchy popcorn. With this in mind, the popcorn offerings at the International Film Center, at AMC Loews, the Landmark Sunshine Cinema, and the Lincoln Plaza Cinema were evaluated for freshness, buttery flavor, and hand-stickiness.

First on the menu was the Lincoln Plaza Cinema. Lincoln Plaza Cinema’s popcorn appears excruciatingly yellow in color. As expected, too much butter is added. Though some will prefer this flavor, freshness is still an issue, because the serving was stale and regrettably dry. Moviegoers here are far better off with the Cinema’s less conventional offerings, including cakes and cappuccinos.

Closer to campus, the Loews provides classic, mildly yellow movie theater popcorn with enough butter and salt to make for greasy fingers. The biggest turnoff was that much of the portion was un-popped. However, the Loews’ appeal is boosted by the theater’s frequent promotions providing free popcorn to moviegoers.

At the IFC in the Village, the popcorn is fresh and delivered in attractive, large white kernels. To a fan of greasy, buttery popcorn, it may be a bit disappointing that the Center boasts somewhat bland organic popcorn. While IFC’s choice is healthier, the lack of butter or artificial flavoring leaves the popcorn salty.

Though the plainly buttered popcorn at the Landmark is fairly standard, the theater surely deserves commendation for its creativity. Whereas the other theatres offer the passé choice between buttered and plain popcorn, the Landmark exceeds expectations by offering a broad range of toppings that add new flavors and spices to a choice snack food. The ability to diversify earns the Landmark top marks as it enables moviegoers to expand their popcorn preferences and test their taste buds.

The delightfully fulfilling combination of popcorn and the movies finds its roots in the Great Depression, when popcorn was an inexpensive luxury. Given that college students can always use a relatively cheap treat, popcorn has become a movie theater staple that is indelibly linked to the movie-watching experience. Over the years, the demand for popcorn has skyrocketed, and today, Americans gorge on 54 quarts of popcorn per person each year, according to the United States Popcorn Board.

While Loews provides the most appealing classic popcorn, the Landmark’s proved to be the most distinctive and appetizing. Moviegoers will surely enjoy a hand of popcorn with some hopefully just as appetizing movies.