Office Lunch Club: Fantastic Fast Food Fridays

At the beginning of the year, a bunch of my co-workers decided it would be fun to form a lunch club.  Its purpose… to enjoy lunch, with your friends from work, under the constraints of a theme!  Very exciting.  I’m all for anything that gets people going to lunch more often, so I thought it would be fun to profile some of these lunch clubs on the site (I know there’s alot of you out there!)…

Name:  Fantastic Fast Food Fridays

Workplace: Sirius Satellite Radio (49th & 6th)

Established:  January 2008  

Members: Approx. 10-12

Frequency: Once a week, on Fridays

Credo: The purpose of Fantastic Fast Food Fridays is to get together for lunch at the end of the week and have fun going somewhere different. We mostly all try to eat healthy during the week (except for Zach, obviously), so this is the one cheat meal where we can enjoy a little greasy food. We also enjoy discussing our meal… the highs and low points, and of course- what may “happen” as a result of our decision to eat at this establishment (think Taco Bell or White Castle). We have a strict rule of only “fast food”, which means you have to walk in and give your order at a counter, and it must be a chain (deli’s don’t count). The big coup is finding the fast food combo stores (i.e KFC/Taco Bell/Pizza Hut under one roof) because then everyone can choose a different place if they want.

Places Visited: Wendy’s, Burger King, Arby’s (RIP), White Castle (8th Ave. btw. 36+37th), Taco Bell (3rd Ave. btw. 44+45th or 8th Ave. btw. 36+37th), KFC, Nathan’s, Roy Rogers

Places we Plan on Visiting: McDonalds, Popeye’s Chicken and Biscuits, Chick-fil-A (there is supposedly one on the NYU campus), Goodburger, Subway

I attended the trip to White Castle (yes, there is one in Midtown on 8th Ave. btw. 35+36th).  Some fast food porn, after the jump…

One of the great things about a lunch club is that one of your co-workers will almost always order something you would never dream of getting.  Clam strips at White Castle!  That’s just nutty.  From the taste, it doesn’t seem like there are actual clams inside the breading… and quite frankly, since they come from White Castle, that may be a good thing. 

I’m all for mini hamburgers, but White Castle has got a lot of other fun stuff on their menu too.  Although, can anybody explain to me why on earth you would order a regular chicken sandwich (seen above)…

…when you could get the same chicken sandwich- in ring form!?!?  Amazing.

Have you own Lunch Club?  Share it by emailing me at zach@midtownlunch.com.  And please, no “Finer Things Clubs“… we only like people who celebrate lunch.

18 Comments

  • I’ve heard about this NYU Chick-Fil-A, and have to say I was very excited at first. However, in my years since I’ve moved from the South, I’ve discovered that these Chick-Fil-A express type places are not even a quarter as good as the full-fledged locations. So, while I can’t speak for this NYU location, I will warn those who don’t find it amazing to give it another chance somewhere else. B/c Chick-Fil-A is pure fast food heaven. :)

  • That’s what I like to see, people who are not averse to getting fast food. Rock on!

  • Chick-Fil-A is located in Weinstein upstairs dining hall (on University Place between Waverly Place and 8th Street (across from Washington Mews). But I’d trade it for a White Castle burger anyday.

  • Unless you’re an NYU student or know someone who is, your chances of getting the best chicken sandwich this side of the Mason Dixon is shot.

  • I’ve walked into the Weinstein dining hall (confidently like I belong), and have never had any problems getting my Chick-Fil-A. I’m not affiliated with NYU. It’s not as good as a real stand-alone Chick-Fil-A location, but it’s better than nothing.

  • Oh? I’ve heard from ’round and ’round that you need a meal plan card specifically to purchase food from the NYu food courts. AKA Cash not accepted.

    On the real though if you have gone in and paid for cash i;d like to know, because that’s whats for dinner if thats the case.

  • Why so much difficulty with the English language?

  • DDR, dis is how we rolls on teh internets now

  • Init tho.Dat guiy tipin izz wel shaymful.

    ‘Av a wel cooool twodays lik almost every dude n dudette

  • I’ve totally been to the NYU Chick-Fil-A and indulged in its chickeny goodness…and paid with cash. I will not admit anymore than that for fear of prosecution.

  • If you are traveling around the country and can’t find a Chick-Fil-A, don’t fret. McDonald’s (yes McDonald’s I am not kidding) has introduced their “Southern Style Chicken Sandwich” which tastes so much like a Chick-Fil-A that they could get sued…. no joke. I had one in Michigan 3 weeks ago and could NOT believe my tastebuds. It is the best item they serve (as the rest of it is still garbage)…..

  • Is the southern chicken sandwich that much different from the regular chicken sandwich at MacDonald’s? The latter is awful. Haven’t been in years.

  • I think we just got a taste of how Rudy actually sounds when he talks.

  • As you can imagine, there’s not a lot going on lunchwise out in Long Island City, so my department has been doing a lunch club (called with great creativity “LunchClub”) for the past four years or so.

    It’s mostly people pitching in for ingredients and me cooking something to bring in… but lately we’ve been doing themed potlucks, which has been an awesome way to learn about my coworkers’ takes on food.

  • I organize one of these at work! We’ve had four of them so far and they’re all themed. The last one was called “Hot & Melty.” Here’s some pics.

  • The Chik fil A in NYU Weinstein Hall is just a small heat lamped area…it cannot compare to the one’s you get down south. I can’t say it’s not a good fix when you’re feining, but I was highly disappointed that they didn’t serve their Sweet Tea….It made me sad…very very sad…

  • Speaking of weird things on the menu – the White Castle “Surf N’ Turf” (executed properly) is the most delicioulsy disturbing piece of fast foodery that you will ever put in your mouth. Don’t knock it til you try it, haters.

    However, being that there is a huge quality margin from one White Castle to the next, I reccomend testdriving a burger before going in for the big guns. If the burger sucks, stay the hell away from the Surf N Turf.

  • My friends and I also have a Friday lunch club, but our theme is probably worse than fast-food — it’s Times Square Tourist Traps. Places we’ve visited include: Red Lobster Times Square, Ruby Tuesdays Times Square, Olive Garden Times Square, Mars 2120, Brooklyn Diner Times Square.

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