The Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge
Alright… so the time has come. I know it seems coincidental that this would happen so close to the Walgreens sandwich dare, but this idea was actually inspired more by the amazing entries for the Murray’s Salami Sandwich Challenge. The sandwich ideas you came up with were ten times better than most of the boring sandwich offerings in Midtown. And that’s when it dawned on me. We CAN do better! That’s right. In these economically trying times, lunchers are demanding more for their money, and I think it is time for the restaurants of Midtown to step up to the plate with something inspiring. The days of coasting on turkey and swiss is over! So here is what I’m proposing:
A challenge… to every single restaurant in Midtown to come up with a new sandwich. A bold sandwich. A sandwich that pushes the boundaries of what human beings were meant to ingest. And you shall call it the “Midtown Lunch Special”. Add this special sandwich to your menu (temporarily or permanently) and we will post about it on Midtown Lunch. That’s it. You get free publicity, and more business… we get better sandwiches. Easy enough, right?
Ideas, how you the Midtown Lunch’er can help make this dream a reality, and all your other questions are answered after the jump…
What are the rules? Easy. Create a sandwich. Call it the “Midtown Lunch Special”. Add it to your menu. Charge under $10 for it (the less the better, obviously.) Email me at zach@midtownlunch.com to let me know. And then I will try the sandwich and post it on Midtown Lunch. You can offer the sandwich one day a week, or every day. For one month, or for 16 years. Whatever you want. Obviously, the better the sandwich is, the more interest it will generate. But that being said, EVERY sandwich will get posted about as long as the rules above are followed.
What should this special sandwich be made up of? Well, if you need inspiration, you can look to the winner of the 2008 Readers’ poll choice for best sandwiches: Sophie’s Cuban & Tina’s Restaurant. Their fried pork and plantain sandwich is a stroke of genius, and exactly what we’re looking for. Bold. New. Unhealthy. Wrong (but oh so right.) The kind of sandwich that makes you say “You’re joking, right?” Burgers are ok as well… as long as there is bread of some kind, with stuff piled inside it. Burgers, hot dogs, whatever. Just make it good.
Why am I doing this? Well, this is pretty obvious. In almost three years of doing this site I’ve never done any promotion, so I figured what better way to get the Midtown Lunch name out there by forcing Midtown Lunch spots to up their sandwich game for the Midtown Lunchers themselves! In other words, I’m a fat man, who likes to eat gross sandwiches. I’m bored with the sandwiches in Midtown, and what better way to fix that problem with a sandwich challenge. You know things are bad when readers are begging me to eat a processed sandwich from Walgreens. We can do better! For example, can’t we get a brisket sandwich with gravy and onion rings on top? This shouldn’t be hard. (Blarney Stone I’m looking at you.) Goodburger… bring back your fried egg and hash brown topped hamburger! (Why did you let it go away in the first place?) And what about a Rutgers style “grease truck” sandwich in Midtown? Is there no Italian restaurant willing to put chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, and french fries on a roll and serve it smothered in cheese and sauce? Got any other ideas? Put them in the comments. We can do this people!
Can any restaurant enter? Yes! And this is the beauty of the thing. There are a lot of sit down restaurants and standard Midtown delis that get ignored by Midtown Lunch’ers because they are either too expensive or uninspired. So- ignored restaurants… here is your chance! Want to get recognized by the Midtown Lunch Readers? Make an awesome sandwich, call it the “Midtown Lunch Special” and charge less than $10 for it (ideally a lot less)… and you will get posted about on Midtown Lunch. I’m looking at you Cafe Metro, Pax, Europa, and Pret. Here’s your chance to offer something truly spectacular. Lunch spots that are already well known by the Midtown Lunch crowd? Reinvigorate your fans by adding a new and exciting sandwich to your menu. If you build it, we will come.
What can I the Midtown Lunch reader do? Here’s the thing… I can’t do this on my own. Most delis and restaurants probably don’t read Midtown Lunch, so if you can, I need your help. Have an amazing sandwich idea for the deli at the bottom of your building? Let them know about the challenge. Have a cousin who owns a Midtown Lunch spot? Let them know about the challenge. Want to effect positive change at the places you eat lunch at…. print out this post, and LET THEM KNOW ABOUT THE CHALLENGE. If we all band together, think about the delicious sandwich possibilities that are in store for us. I even made up a sign that places can print out and use to promote their sandwich [PDF]. If the restaurant has any questions, they can email me at zach@midtownlunch.com
So there it is. Free publicity for restaurants. Free publicity for Midtown Lunch. Awesome sandwiches for everybody!!! It’s win, win, win. So what are you waiting for.
Restaurants of Midtown, you have your marching orders. Who will answer the challenge?!?!
Here are the sandwich that have been introduced so far:
- Spicy Mexican Cheesesteak, El Rey Del Sabor Car (60th and 3rd)
- Duck Pastrami Reuben, FreeFoods NYC (2 Locations)
- Thanksgiving Dip, Certe (55th btw. 5+6th) **This Sandwich is Now Only Offered on Thursdays**
- Kofta & Chicken Pita, 100% Halal & Healthy (NW Corner of 55th & Park)
- Pernil with a Twist, Sophie’s Cuban (Multiple Locations)
- Jerk Chicken & Vegetarian Special Sandwich, Jamaican Dutchy Cart (51st & 7th)
- Fried Calamari Sandwich, Lazzara’s Pizza (38th btw. 7+8th)
- Beef Brisket Wrap, Cucino & Co (45th btw. Mad+Park) **This Sandwich is No Longer Being Offered**
- Polpetini (Meatball Sandwich), Naples 45 (45th btw. Mad+Park)
- Burger 46, Biryani Cart (46th & 6th)
- “The Bayou”, Certe (55th btw. 5+6th)
- “The Taj”, Crisp, (3rd Ave. btw. 43+44th)
- Pork tenderloin sandwich w/ carmelized apples and battered onions. Manchester Pub (2nd Ave. btw. 48+49th)
- Vietnamese Meatball Sandwich, Boi Sandwich (3rd Ave. btw. 44+45th)
- Eggplant Parm/Meatballs on Garlic Bread, Papa Perrone’s Truck (55th btw. Park+Mad)
- The Primavera, Certe (55th btw. 5+6th) **This Sandwich is Now Only Offered on Fridays**
- Steak & Egg Burger, Good Burger (Multiple Locations)
- Rutgers Grease Truck Special, Papa Perrone’s Truck (55th btw. Park+Mad)
And more to come…
Posted: 11:30 am, January 28th, 2009 under Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge, Sandwiches.
75 Comments | RSS comments feed for this post
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75 Comments
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@Tom – That’s awesome! I almost walked by the Dutchy yesterday to suggest that very thing to them… it would be pretty damn tasty. Maybe throw some fried plantains in there…
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Someone make a:
pastrami, cottage cheese on banana bread sandwich! -
I make that sandwich at home, except it’s not on a coco bread. It’s so good.
This post is awesome. I hope you get some good contenders.
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English Bacon(canadian will do, tuh)Toulouse sausage and a runny fried egg on very thick cut white bread toasted.*
I used to wander about there on sunday mornings looking for this sarnie nirvana…but never found it.
*Must be served with very hot sweet tea.
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Forgot the Black Pudding!
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Hing Won could start making a sauteed udon w/ pork sandwich, not sure what they would use for the bread though.
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Instead of grilled cheese with tomato and bacon, I want a grilled lardo with tomato and bacon/pancetta/prosciutto (or all of the above).
Maybe Kwik meal can make a garbage plate. Grilled pita, topped with rice, lamb, chicken, falafel, grilled hot dog, white sauce, jalapeno sauce and green hot sauce… of course, it would probably cost $18 but a man can hope
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chicken, steak and lamb cheesesteak?
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If we’re going for Grease truck style food. Someone bring out the Falafel, French Fries, Mozzarella Sticks, Lettuce Tomato Sammie that they do.
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I was actually wondering if anyone has even ventured to Milant lately… and I had the brisket on rye yesterday at Blarney’s… That thing was dry as hell and had no taste. Needs tons of condiments and extras to make that sandwich tasty… That chicken finger and moss stick sandwich sounds amazing… perhaps on toasted garlic bread instead of a roll?
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Maybe a General Tso’s hero to celebrate the Chinese New Year… ummm… breaded chicken cutlet with swiss and fried salami… Pulled buffalo wing meat sandwich with blue cheese, lettuce, tomatoe, celery, and carrots… Roasted pork, ham, salami, bacon, wiht some garlic mojo on garlic bread, pressed…
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For the veggies: Fried zuccini, onion rings and mozz sticks with spicy totato sauce on toasted garlic bread… seriously I can easily be a fat vegetarian LOL!
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#4. Roast beef, smoked gouda, horseradish, lettuce, tomato on on a twisted roll.
Panera does a moderate version of it and its okay for chain food, but the above was much better. Problem is that I cannot for the life of me remember where I used to order it from.
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I wish I had a sandwich shop so that I can enter this challenge.
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@Ben – Maybe we can finally get Moshe’s Falafel to put their french fries *into* the falafel. (They have always refused for some unknown reason)
@ Lou – Yes yes yes! Or a general tso’s philly cheesesteak:
http://www.seriouseats.com/2008/02/serious-sandwiches-general-tsos-philly-cheese.html
@ Mamacita- That would be a veggie sandwich I would totally eat!
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Bulgogi sandwich with kimchi, cochu jiang (red sauce), over easy egg (make sure that yolk is runny, yo). No bread–just two patties of grilled rice, so that the outside is crispy, like the rice in dol sat bi bim bap, and it holds together. I’m gonna tell this to the bulgogi lady, and she’ll represent.
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For some reason I keep envisioning a dumpling sandwich.
We need some restaurants to get in on this STAT… -
roast pork or crispy pork (the chicharron type), scallions, hoisin sauce on the fluffy, white taco-shaped bread used for peking duck. perhaps some sriracha if you’re feeling extra crazy.
please.
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To riff on Chow’s idea – I want a hamburger but instead of buns I want two potato croquettes or mashed potato cakes. Skip the ketchup and add gravy. Make it like a shepard’s pie sandwich.
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@ Mamacita
Those are the reasons I am a fat vegetarian.
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FAT CAT! FAT CAT! FAT CAT! With some Fat Coco and Fat Sam to boot!!!! They used to call it the fat ass or fat bitch down at Rutgers, but now they have other names (I was down there a month ago and brought a couple fats back with me)! 2 burgers, fries, lettuce, tomato, cheesesteak, russian dressing, chicken fingers, mozaarella sticks, and gyro meat–all in one bun!!!! I would hit that up at least once a month!
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Goats, less than a tenner,mate!
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Take one Walgreens turkey and cheese sandwich, remove turkey and cheese and place inside the Walgreens cheesegurger “Bulkie”, microwave until melted and apply whatever condiments you like…..I’m looking at you Zach!
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Obviously I meant to type CheeseBurger above, but considering the quality of the Bulkie, cheeseGurger may be appropriate after all.
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FatCat… YUM!! Or look to hoagie haven in princeton, NJ for inspiration.
Here are some examples:
Sanchez (Chicken Cutlet, American Cheese, Mozzarella Sticks & Fries w/Sanchez Sauce)
Bloch (Chicken Parm w/Bacon & Eggs)
Phat Lady (Cheesesteak w/Mozzarella Sticks & Fries)
Big Cat (4 Bacon Cheeseburgers w/4 Eggs) -
Zach, it has to be UNDER $10, before or after tax???
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Holly shit, thank god there’s not a hoagie haven in my nabe. For my own health. Don’t look Zach, don’t LOOK!!
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@ Rudy–trust me, nothing at the greasetrucks is more than 10 bucks….the sandwich I created may need to squeeze by at 9.85, but I assure you it would not be more than 10….if anything, maybe we only use 1 burger patty to be safe…
Of course, midtown’s actual lunch prices would dictate a normal fat cat be around 10 bucks, if not more, so perhaps you are right with my wishful thinking….but you must admit, it would be a heavenly treat, only matched by a heavenly dessert like Friendly’s Reeses Pieces Sundae—-damn midtown for the lack of Friendly’s!!! Now I want one!
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this is a great idea. the 100% Halal & Healthy Food on 55 b/t park and mad should do up a spicy greek chicken sandwich (loosely based on the greek chicken salad).
some indian joint should start doing some sandwiches based on chicken tikka and tikka masala…throw that shite on some garlic nan bread with all those side green, brown and red sauces and some onions…enough with the all-you-can-eat buffets.
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*Shyte.
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Inspired, Zach! Well done! I can’t wait to see (and taste) the entries!
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W&D – Indus Express makes those sandwiches
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@mamacita. I thought you suggested chicken, steak and lamb cheesecake.
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Zach, this makes up for the Walgreens sandwich. Although, I can easily go to Walgreen’s, tell them about this and have them name a sandwich a “Midtown Special”. Would you eat it then?
Also, I’m all for a chicken finger, mozzarella stick, parmagina, and tomato sauce “Fat Kid Chicken Parm.”
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Who’s going to make a sub-$10 Luther burger?
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Jill,
That doesn’t sound half bad. A savory cheesecake with all the meats, with riccota and mozz as the base and a sourdough pie crust. Then a dollop of sour cream on top and a drizzle of hot sauce. -
Lowjangles: How about one of those 7-11 hotdog shaped hamburgers with a couple of krispy kremes threaded onto it?
I’ll support the pulled buffalo chicken sandwich, fries, onion strings on a grilled buttered hotdog roll covered in blue cheese dressing , and a tiny sacrificial bit of shaved celery
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a slice of cheddar/pepperoni pizza on toasted pumpernickel, with garlic butter, garnished with a fried egg, gets my vote
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Basically lets just steal anything in the Princeton/Rutgers area and re-hash it here.
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How about Doc Chuck’s reco?
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1. Creamed chip beef hero!
http://www.roadfood.com/photos/9457.jpg
2. Grilled ham, tomato and cheese on scrapple.
3. Olive oil gelato ice cream sandwich (come on, Dessert Truck).
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Chip Beef makes a good point here. dessert sandwiches can totally steal the cheap angle.
My rec: a espresso mocha ice cream between vanilla waffle wafers and all coated in DARK chocolate
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Ben and Jerry’s Rum & Raisin….. and Liv.
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@Dougiec: Yes, someone needs to call Beantown and just have them print “Midtown Lunch Special” on the packaging. Or since the sandwich is clearly assembled by some automated process, maybe a computer hacker could do it without getting Beantown’s permission.
@Zach: You might be selling yourself short. If someone sees something called “Midtown Lunch Special,” they would have no reason to think it has anything to do with a website, so you’re shortchanging yourself on publicity. On the other hand, props to you for self-promoting in an honorable fashion.
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Do you think it should be midtown lunch.com special?
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“This Sammich was brought to you by some bad tempered fuckers on the tin’ternet”
I like it.
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more like.. “this sammich was brought to you by the cheap-o’s on midtownlunch dot com”
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I actually just wondered to myself.. .what about a sandwich of all the great ethnic foods from this site combined? So perhaps some General Tso (Chinese), mozzarella sticks (Italian), fried plantain (Spanish/Jamiacan), hot sauce from the 53rd and 6th guys, guacamole (Mexican), falafel (Mid Eastern), served on Olympic Pitas giant laffa bread… Actually sounds gross but Zach did say it wasnt meant to be healthy…
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A Hallo Berlin special: Wiener Schnitzel topped with an egg and Jager-sauce (a mushroom sauce), then topped again with currywurst, bratwurst, potato salad, sliced meatballs, and cabbage, and served in an extra-large crusty roll. Ideally there’d be a coupon for a shot of schnapps from one of the non-cart locations.
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i’m LOVING the grease trucks shout out! i live about 20 minutes from rutgers and have been eating at the grease trucks since high school. if a store makes a good combo, we will have to do a comparison…
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Hot open-faced chicken salad sandwich on challah french toast. Topped with melted swiss.
@ AL@1PP – Mitch Hedberg approves
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You are a genius Zach. What a great idea!
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Two suggestions from another fat vegetarian:
1. The other night I was wondering what to do with some leftover homemade waffles. I ended up using two to make a sandwich with a (vegetarian–would be just as good, of course, with real fried chicken) fried chicken cutlet topped with a drizzle of honey. Needless to say, it was amazing, and reminded me of eating chicken nuggets dipped in honey (do they still give you tubs at that with nuggets at McDonalds?) as a kid.
2. To play on Mamacita’s garlic bread idea, maybe cheese raviolis with marinara sauce, and maybe some broccoli rabe, on garlic bread.
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grilled corn beef reuben on pretzel bread. It’s not all that inventive, but oh so delicious.
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@FrankieTony – You know… there is a pretty kick ass pretzel bread sandwich at Burke in the Box in Bloomingdales. Turkey, bacon and cheese. It’s around $10, and I’m kind of ashamed to admit that I’ve eaten in Bloomingdales… but whatever. It’s freakin’ good.
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How about a chicken cutlet sandwich between 2 waffles with thousand island dressing, swiss cheese and peppers?? Zach, I believe you have written about chicken and waffles before…
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Savory potato hot dog bun french toast with halo berlin brat, curry sauce, frizzled onions and shredded red cababge.
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grilled cheese filled with sharp cheddar, thick cut fried bacon, and grilled onions. Battered and deep fried. Topped with country gravy.
Eat that!
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I think calling it the “Midtownlunch.com Sandwich” might help with the cross-publicity.
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how about a bacon cheeseburger between krispy kreme donuts?
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St. Louis diners have a plate called “the slinger” It involves eggs, hash browns, toast and breakfast meat, all of which is covered in chili. I think it would be delicious in sandwich form. Also, if you got country sausage gravy instead of chili, it was called a “Toby”
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someone, just bring a good tasting banh mi deal to midtown. 2 for $10 would be great.
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I could use an amazing breakfast burrito. Chorizo, eggs, garlic, onions, hash browns or tader tots, chili beans, sour cream, guac and salsa. All wrapped up in a big white tortilla. Doesn’t that sound awesome!?!?!
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@jill
that’s the luther burger inane commented on…
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Since I was reared in Jersey, I want the NJ diner classic, cheese fries and gravy, reinvented in sandwich form. I want a grilled cheese sandwich, stuffed with french fries, and dipped (French dip style) in gravy.
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First time posting. I couldn’t resist anymore after reading your blog for some time now.
Back in Stony Brook, my friends and I would drive out a little further east to Se-Port Deli and get a “Gasm”
Toasted Garlic Baguette, Breaded Chicken, Bacon, Mozzarella, Coleslaw, and Russian Dressing. The closest I’ve gotten to something like that was some pre-cooked mash up from Cherry Hill (beast?).
Maybe they can omit the garlic to spare our coworkers.
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or we can just slap a piece of that bacon-cheese roll on some pound cake and call it a day.
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[...] fast, interesting and good” food for under $10 in Midtown, has put forth the following sandwich challenge to all restaurants and food carts in Midtown: “Come up with a new sandwich. A bold [...]
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Today I noticed that Sophie’s has a new ‘Special’ sandwich called the ‘Pernil with a Kick’. It is almost the same as the infamous Fried Pork w/plantain sandwich but uses the roast pork (pernil) and they add their green sauce. The pernil is more moist than the fried pork version and the green sauce does have a nice kick. It was good. Very good.
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[...] Not on the permanent menu yet, but still being offered indefinitely is Gamal’s entry in the Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge – the $5 Gino Sandwich. W&D helped Gamal with this sandwich creation that people so far [...]
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Update on the Biryani Sandwich Cart: While they’re still offering the Burger 46 on their regular menu, they have added a Veggie Burger to the menu as the new Midtown Lunch Sandwich. I believe it is called “The Bistro Burger,” if I saw it correctly.
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[...] been begging for it ever since the Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge began, and word is the Papa Perrone Truck (on 55th btw. Mad+Park) is stepping up to the plate [...]
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[...] 8th Ave) quietly makes an incredible sandwich. It’s not even on the menu, but thanks to the Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge, it’s the daily special pretty much every day. Thank god for that, it would be a cruel world [...]
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[...] Well, what was also sort of causing a little buzz, granted only in the midtown lunch world, was Midtown Lunch’s Sandwich Challenge. Sort of a competition, the idea was for midtown lunch spots to come up with a sandwich under $10 [...]
Jamaican Dutchy should start doing some sort of jerk chicken and coco bread sandwich.