Midtown Lunch

This comment popped up on our post about the new location of FreeFoods NYC, and as hard as this is going to be to believe, I don’t think it’s a shill:

“I went there yesterday.  I was so busy that I didn’t have time to post.  The food was FANTASTIC!!  Everything was fresh and delicious.  They really know how to use flavors.  I picked from the by-the-pound section.  I had duck breast with some tasty sides, shrimp wrapped in bacon, some brown rice type thing with mushrooms, and filet mignon over some humus type sauce on toast.  I cannot begin to tell you how delicious all of these were besides the shrimp.  The shrimp was average.  The Filet and the rice were absolutely spectacular!”

Then things get ridiculous…

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According to this article, Citigroup employees just have to say the word “Citigroup” to the cashier and their lunch is covered at the Cafe Metro on Lexington and 46th. The author questions whether or not a company that is being bailed out by the Government should be buying lunches for its employees. I’m more interested to know if we could get free lunch by pretending we work for Citigroup.

The blog Rameniac has released their list of the best ramen from coast to coast, and 3 of the top 10 ramens in New York City are Midtown Lunches: Sapporo (6), Men Kui Tei (8), and Menchanko-Tei (10). While the site has some nostalgic words of kindness for Sapporo, they are less than enthusiastic about Men Kui Tei and Menchanko-Tei, which, despite being the lowest on the list, was voted best Ramen in the Midtown Lunch Readers’ poll. I guess there is no accounting for taste… [via Serious Eats: New York]

Just so you don’t think that major chains are recession proof… after 13 years the Ben & Jerry’s on 8th Ave and 43rd St. has closed! It may not be a huge deal today, but the reverberations will be felt throughout Midtown West come the next “free ice cream day” (it’s one of only two real B&J’s locations in Midtown). Thankfully we still have the one in the Rock Center Concourse.

The teary letter is after the jump…

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Every Tuesday I turn over the site to a different Midtown Lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Midtown. This week, it’s Richard a Marketing dude who boldly admits that he doesn’t like potatoes that have been cubed and deep fried.

Name: Richard

Age: 25

Occupation: Marketing Analyst for SeamlessWeb (and amateur food critic for EatRichly.com)

Where in Midtown do you Work?: 37th and Madison

Favorite Kind of Food: Soba noodles, soft tacos (I only say “soft” because I used to think that hard tacos with ground beef were the only type of Mexican food), pappardelle with any meat ragout, anything over rice

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Home fries (how are these served with every omelette?)

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: One paneer and one meat (chicken/beef) roll at Kati Roll Company (on 39th btw. 5+6th); Norvegian or Siciliano sandwich with one macaron of the day at Macaron Cafe (36th btw. B’way+7th); Chilorio, Pescado, and Alambre tacos with the warm, salty chips from Pampano Taqueria (3rd Ave. btw. 49+50th); Set A with Lobster Salad and a rotating cast of characters at OMS/b.

“Go-To” Lunch Place You and Your Coworkers Eat at Too Often? Lucky Deli Asian Kobe (on 37th btw. Mad+5th): This spot serves mediocre, yet expensive, wraps, sandwiches, and salads. And no one has ever dared to try anything “Asian” there. But it is directly across the street from the office. Mondello (on 37th btw. Mad+5th): They actually have a pretty good New York slice (and apparently a decent chicken parm?), but it’s really only a spot to go when feeling lazy, cheap, or pressed for time. Au Bon Pain: This place nearly ruined my college experience and now it forces me to uncomfortably refuse lunch outings twice a week.

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Times Square Alliance, the ogranization known most notably for putting on the annual ‘Taste of Times Square‘, is promoting a month-long “Taste Bud Stimulus Package” where local restaurants offer discounts until the end of January. Just like the Taste of Times Square, the list of restaurants run the gamut from expensive, to crappy, to touristy, to expensive touristy crap (Applebee’s anybody?).  And a few of the deals you can get at any time (i.e. the $10 beer and burger deal at House of Brews).  But there were a couple that caught my eye… like 15% off at Empanada Joe’s (I still haven’t completely given up on that place), and there is a special $10 lunch menu at the just out of bounds Bourbon Street Grill on 46th btw. 8+9th (what can I say? I am a sucker for New Orleans.)

I headed over there yesterday to check out their muffuletta.

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Photo courtesy of cchen

The day of reckoning has arrived, and we finally get to see (officially) who won the Throwdown between Bobby Flay and the Dessert Truck last October. The episode airs on Wednesday night (1/14) at 9pm EST on the Food Network, and here is the description (courtesy of my Time Warner Cable Guide): “Chocolate Bread Pudding: Bobby surprises two entrepreneur chefs that sell five star desserts out of a truck.”

Sadly the Dessert Truck is on hiatus until the end of January, so you may want to just DVR the show and wait until they come back to watch it.  There is nothing worse than having a serious cravings for something that you can’t have.

Related:
Dessert Truck to Throwdown With Bobby Flay? [ML]
An Inside Look at The Dessert Truck Throwdown with Bobby Flay [SENY]

According to a tipster, and confirmed on their website, World famous (?) BBQ chain Famous Dave’s Legendary Pit Bar-B-Que is opening their first Manhattan branch right smack dab in the middle of Midtown Lunch central (on 47th btw. 6+7th). I would be down with some good BBQ in these parts (right now, the Daisy May’s BBQ cart on 50th btw. 6+7th is about all I can fully get behind) but considering how many touristy, big box BBQ joints we already have in Midtown (Dallas BBQ, Virgil’s, & Spanky’s) this may not be the answer to our prayers.

I don’t have anything against BBQ chains (if Corky’s opened a NYC branch, I’d probably pass out from excitement), and I’ve never been to a Famous Dave’s, which apparently has locations all over the U.S., but the background info doesn’t seem reassuring: it was founded in Minnesota (huh?) about 15 years ago by the same guy who helped found the “Rainforest Cafe“. Sweet!

There is a menu posted on their website, but there aren’t any prices, so I’m not sure if this place is even going to fall under the Midtown Lunch price range. I’m not holding my breath. Have you been to a Famous Dave’s? Let us know in the comments if we should be excited…

A interior taken-through-the-cracks-of-the-plywood photo is after the jump (if such a thing excites you).

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