Midtown Lunch

It’sjust before Noon and the line is already starting to grow. About 50

people long but it’s moving fast…

The day has finally arrived!  I first posted a picture of the “Coming Soon” sign in October, and now, it’s six months later, and Midtown North is finally getting its branch of Sophie’s Cuban (56th St. btw. 5+6th)…

The official grand opening is on Thursday- but the “Celebration” is today (3/14) from 11am to 2pm.  They’ll be giving out a free lunch to everyone who comes in… a “sampling” of all their best dishes.  The seating area in the back will be open, and has about 20 tables (but I’d plan on taking it to go).  See you in line!!!  (Come back later today for live photo updates from the line…)

Every Tuesday I turn the site over to a Midtown Lunch’er for their recommendations of places to eat Lunch in Midtown. Today it’s my kindred spirit, and possibly the greatest profile of all time…  I don’t know if it’s the part about loving Corn Dogs, his quest to uncover information about a mysterious falafel cart, or the Chocolate Covered French Crueller he’s eyeing lovingly (my favorite kind of donut!)-  all I know is, this guy is awesome!  Meet Teen Wolf, a Comedy Central Graphic Designer with liquid lunch dreams…

Name: Teen Wolf

Age: 24

Occupation: Graphic Designer

Where in Midtown do you Work?: Comedy Central, 57th & Broadway

Favorite Kind of Food: Middle Eastern, Indian, Cheese, Avocado, Corn Dogs, Dark Chocolate, Astronaut Ice Cream.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Seafood, health food, Pax

Favorite Place to Eat Lunch in Midtown: I like to mix it up. Kati Roll, Daisy May BBQ cart, Taam Tov, Hallo Berlin cart, Empanada Mama (9th Ave. & 51st), Kashkaval (9th Ave. btw. 55th & 56th). They’re all excellent.

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: Crystal Cafe (57th btw. 7th+Bway). It’s right outside and has pretty decent, over-priced sandwiches. We try to be more adventurous though. Burrito Box and Wondee Siam II (Thai) (both on 9th Ave.) are favorites. For the past 2 months we’ve been trying to get to the bottom of the mysterious falafel cart (on Broadway and 61st) that always “runs out of falafel” by noon because “people eat falafel for breakfast”(???) We’re confused by his motive for lying about falafel availability. A true mystery.  

Place you discovered on MidtownLunch.com: Pretty much all of my favorite places… Kati Roll, Hallo Berlin , Burger Joint.

Dream job location for lunch purposes only, and why?: I’d love to work on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn Heights/Cobble Hill. There are so many amazing Middle Eastern restaurants. They also have Vietnamese sandwiches, Soul Food, British Food (fish & chips is about the only seafood I like). Ideally, this “Dream Job” would also allow me to drink during lunch.

Anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch readers?: I guess if anyone has any suggestions for good falafel in the 50’s, or on the west side of Midtown, let me know. And, in general, I’d like to put in a request for more coverage of the upper-west side of Midtown. You Rockefeller Center and Grand Central folk don’t know how good you’ve got it!

I’ve done some good coverage of the Upper West Side of Midtown!  And, I’ve got some more on the way… including free Cuban food tomorrow!.  Info about that, and my recommendation for best Falafel in Teen Wolf’s area after the jump… Read more »

When I write about a Midtown Lunch, it is supposed to be quick, easy, usually something different or interesting- and most of all cheap.  Burger Heaven is not really any of these things, but a little while back I found myself eating lunch there with my wife and a bunch of her co-workers.  I had never been there, but judging from the crowds it is pretty popular.  Apparently there are a lot of people in Midtown who find things like a waiter, a chair, and proximity to their office more important than price and value.  (These people all make more money than me.)

But, sometimes you have to sacrifice to have a fun lunch with friends, or a big group of co-workers…  and Burger Heaven is a perfect place for that.  Despite the price, there is something for everyone, and room for big parties, if you get there early enough.  They must be doing something right, because Burger Heaven has been around for 60 years, and now has 5 locations in Midtown.

The burgers are actually similarly priced to the other places in Midtown ($6.25) before you start adding stuff like cheese and french fries (and tax & tip), but I ignored all this in favor of the Patty Melt- my favorite kind of hamburger, and a stand out on any menu.  The Patty Melt is pretty basic when you think about it… it’s just a cheeseburger on rye bread with grilled onions- but difficult for many places to make, because you need rye bread, and a griddle- something that many of the new specialty burger places don’t have (Burger Joint, GoodBurger, etc.).  So for a good old fashioned Patty Melt, you need a place like Burger Heaven.

The Patty Melt, and +/- after the jump… Read more »

A new Mandler’s location (hopefully) opening next week March 19th on 8th Ave. btw. 39th & 40th.  Posted to the Midtown Lunch Flickr Photo Group by joshbousel

MIDTOWN LINKS:

• Two of the best PB&J’s are in Midtown [NYMag]
• More ABP’s closed in Midtown [Eater]
• Another fancy Greek place opens in Midtown [Restaurant Girl]
• Italian & Japanese together at last (?!?!)… in Midtown [TONY]

Next week on MidtownLunch…. free food at the new Sophie’s Cuban (56th btw. 5+6th) on Wednesday, free coffee at Starbucks on Thursday, and more!  Have a good weekend…

It’s the second Friday of Lent, which means tons of practicing Catholics will be searching for a fishy lunch today.  Here are my picks for the best Midtown Lunch’es good for lent…

Any of the fish options at El Rincon del Sabor (47th btw. 5+6th).  Ecuadorians know how to do Lent right, and there are tons of fish items on the Friday menu.  A seafood paella type rice dish, shrimp ceviche, whole fried fish and more.  You can’t go wrong… surprisingly I didn’t see any Fanesca, the Ecuadorian bean soup made during Lent.

The octopus salad at Margon (46th btw. 6+7th).  It’s hard to walk into a place like Margon and not order meat (with rice, beans & plantains).  Lucky this chunky ceviche makes it a little bit easier.

Oms/b (45th btw. Lex+3rd).  Rice balls topped with fish.  How can you beat it?

The fake shrimp at most Midtown buffets by the lb.  Sure it’s a scam (they’re not even actual seafood)…. but they are delicious!  Especially the ones at Cafe Duke (50th btw. 6+7th).

My favorite seafood option in Midtown (and more Lent suggestions), after the jump… Read more »

Earlier in the week Manhattan Users Guide posted their 5 best bowls of Ramen in the city… and it included two of my favorites (Menchanko Tei & Sapporo).  It was probably my inspiration for lunch on Monday & Tuesday (that and the disgustingly cold weather).  But apparently we’ve all been missing out on the real deal Midtown ramen steal…

The Ramen Special @ Chikubu (44th & Madison).  It’s $11.50 and only served on Friday & Saturday for lunch (with Japanese pickles and rice).  It’s a little bit more money then I’m used to spending at lunch, but for handpulled ramen in a pork stock that is supposedly simmered all week long, I’ll make an exception.  (Considering how authentic and expensive Chikubu is normally, one could argue it’s actually a deal!) Don’t be turned off by the line, I’ve been told it moves really quick…

More Ramen photos, courtesy of Midtown Lunch readers, after the jump… Read more »

I haven’t eaten at McDonald’s in a long long time, but man are they doing their best to get me back in there.  First the “Snacker”, which looks freakin’ awesome (a piece of fried chicken wrapped in a tortilla… come on!!!)- and now this…

All today (Thurday, March 8th) McDonald’s will be giving out free cups of coffee at all of their locations to anyone who asks for it.  I can’t turn down free stuff… so it may be hard not to make the most of my first visit to McDonald’s in years.  How do you think a Snacker will taste with a cup of coffee???

To find a McDonalds near your office go here

I fully admit that I am not a food expert.  I’ve never been to culinary school, my palate isn’t particularly advanced and I probably have no business writing about any kind of food (even if it is crappy carts and dives in Midtown).  But if there is one thing I could be considered an expert on, it’s Chinese Buffets.  I am a huge fan of the All of You Can Eat Chinese food buffet (emphasis on the huge).  The concept of all-you-can-eat is brilliant on its own, but once you throw in one of my all time favorite foods (Chinese), you’ve got one of the greatest inventions of all time.

In fact, it is a personal goal of mine to eat at a Chinese buffet in every state in the country.  Here are the states I’ve tackled so far:

• California
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Louisiana
• Massachusetts
• New Mexico
• New York (Just recently… and the inspiration for this post.)
• Nevada (Obviously)
• Pennsylvania
• Texas (A great buffet just outside of Houston that had fried frogs legs.  Delicious!)
• Tennessee (Terrible.  My wife will never let me live that one down.)

It’s clearly a work in progress, but I take my work very seriously.  I really love Chinese Buffets.  And it is not just the fact that you get to stuff your face (something I enjoy doing very much).  It’s also the no waiting (you start eating right after you sit down), the variety (it’s the spice of life!) and of course, the competition.  That’s right…  the competition.  You vs. the Buffet.  The price is really just a dare.  A sign that says “All-U-Can-Eat for $14.50”, might as well just say “I dare you to eat more than $14.50 worth of food.  Signed – The Buffet.”

Basically, your goal from the moment you walk into the buffet should be “Win the Game”.  And the game is to eat so much food that the restaurant loses money.  You want to eat so much that when they see you come back the next time, they get scared.  You want them to worry that if you eat at their buffet too often, they might have to close it down.  But before you can learn how to beat your enemy, you must KNOW your enemy.

The three kinds of Chinese buffets, PLUS my tips to winning the game (and more buffet porn)- after the jump… Read more »

It’s frickin freezing outside… so everyone has got permission to be lazy and eat under their building or right outside. For me that means Yummy Sushi under Rock Ctr. I don’t really like the sushi but acommenter suggested the Udon. Should work for today…