PROFILE: Midtown Lunch’er “Alex”

Every Tuesday I turn over Midtown Lunch to a random Midtown worker, for their favorite places to eat lunch in Midtown. This week, it’s Alex- a Bank Analyst who’d rather be eating lunch in Japan (or St. Marks Place!)

Name: Alex

Age:
26

Occupation:
Analyst at a Bank

Where in Midtown do you Work?:
Lex. btw. 45+46th (but our office is moving to Park and 23rd at the end of the year)

Favorite Kind of Food:
  Meat or Veg with Rice (in this order- Japanese, Chinese, Carts, Indian, Mexican Burritos).

Least Favorite Kind of Food:
Anything with Cilantro

Favorite Place to Eat Lunch in Midtown:
  Bento boxes and rice balls at Cafe Zaiya.  (Although Oms/b has great looking rice balls, the Spicy Tuna rice ball at Zaiya is more tasty.)  Also, the Amish Market Proscuitto brick oven sandwich is a perfect blend of melted cheese, spinach and salty ham with a warm brick oven bun.  Finally, this sit down Japanese restaurant called Don-buri (Hamburg steak and all the different sets, light the fire in my stomach).  Plus you can have lunch there for less than $15 including tip.The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often:  Don-Buriya, however we end up eating at our desk most of the time and everyone has their own favorites… Sophie’s, Hale & Hearty, Metro, Amish Market, Hop Won & Chipotle.

Place you discovered on MidtownLunch.com:  Just Salad

If you could work anywhere (just because of the lunch) where would it be and why?  Tokyo (like the previous profiled lunch’er Justin), with all the choices at the food supermarkets in the huge department stores.  You would be amazed by all the choices of ramen, yakitori, bento, sushi, donburi, appetizers, etc.  In NYC, there is no one spot for me, but I do like the mixture of flavors in and around St. Marks Place. 

Anything you’d like to add?  Although I haven’t found a burrito place better than Anna’s Taqueria in Boston, Pampano Taqueria’s Alambre Burrito is the closest thing I have tasted because of the mix of meat, rice, beans, salad, melted cheese, guacamole and sour cream.  It’s the best combo to have in a burrito- unlike Chipotle (awaiting the backlash…) where cilantro rules the flavor of everything!

I think you are pretty safe from the Chipotle backlash on this site Alex.  MidtownLunch practically began with a week-long bashing of the new Chipotle that opened up underneath my building.  I’m still searching for a good burrito as well.

How you can be next week’s Profiled: Midtown Lunch’er- after the jump…

To be next week’s Profiled: Midtown Lunch’er, and share your favorites with the eating public… just email me at zach@midtownlunch.com

3 Comments

  • I agree with the Chipotle comment. I hate that place!

  • OHHH… call me dumb but that explains why I HATE Chipotle… my friends are always going on about it and I’m like meh. And I never eat everything… and it’s just not good. Thanks Alex for telling me the secret!

    PS ML- I tried Sophie’s Cuban in the Financial District today. I think I ordered wrong, it was good but I wasn’t blown away, and for $8.40 (incl. tax), I thought it was a bit expensive…

  • I personally like cheese melted in the wrap and adding the ingredients on top. It gives a little more flavor. As for the cilantro in the rice, they should have an option of having mexican rice instead of white rice and cilantro. The white rice makes it look like something similar to Rocket Wraps or Burritoville.

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