Midtown Lunch

Here are a few items that have nothing to do with Midtown Lunch, but they happened in Midtown, and are kind of interesting: Lost City reports that Frankie & Johnny’s on 46th Street have renegotiated their lease, and won’t be forced to close at the end of the month… the former Grayz space on 54th St. reopens as Atria today… a former waiter has filed a class action lawsuit again sushi chain Haru… yesterday Frank Bruni reviewed the upscale healthy restaurant Rouge Tomate on 60th Street… and Bobby Van’s Steakhouse on 46th & Park has set up a scotch approval matrix in their window.

I may be in the minority, but I happen to like the banh mi at Boi to Go (on 2nd Ave. btw. 42+43rd), and their newly opened Boi Sandwich (on 3rd Ave. btw. 44+45th).  But even I’ll admit, it’s only good for Midtown.  Put their $8 Vietnamese sandwich in Chinatown and I probably wouldn’t even give it a second look. So dreaming of something a little better, I decided earlier in the week to venture just outside the Midtown Lunch boundaries to try Baoguette, Chef Michale Huynh’s new take-out Banh Mi counter on Lexington btw 25+26th Street. It replaced a closed down Blimpie (unlike our three closed Blimpies which remain empty) and I have to say, if you work in the southern part of Midtown- the choice between waking 8 blocks north to Boi Sandwich, or 10 blocks south to Baoguette is no choice at all.

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So I’m still waiting in the hopes that Danku (the Dutch/Indonesian fast food place on 57th btw. 5+6th) will see the writing on the wall, and make improvements before I give them the old +/-, but it appears as if the situation is getting bleaker and bleaker by the day.  The good news is, they finally got the mac-n-cheese croquettes on the menu.  The bad news is, they finally got the mac-n-cheese krokets on the menu.  Lunch’er Adam checks in with this report:

“So it’s the new year and Danku finally has mac-n-cheese krokets. Unfortunately they are as “mac-n-cheesy” as the beef krokets are “beefy”, which means they are just a mushy glop of something that tastes like mac-n-cheese. My artificially high expectations for the “dutch-indonesian fast food” has let me down as the food is made with the same TLC as the site’s predecessor (McD’s). I can’t rationalize the krokets as anything better than bar-food, and adding in a dressed-up salad for the “combo” doesn’t make them any more special.”

More from Adam, plus the Village Voice weighs in- after the jump…

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It looks like TONY jumped the gun a bit in reporting the opening of Schnipper’s Quality Kitchen in the New York Times Building (on 41st & 8th).  The owner tells me they hope to open at the end of next week, or early the week after.  The official website says “Another great quick-service restaurant from the founders of Hale & Hearty Soups” so I’m still holding out that their menu- which includes fish tacos and sloppy joes(!!!)- will be in the Midtown Lunch price range.

Related:
Hale & Hearty is Bringing Fish Tacos and More to the NYT Building

I’m usually pretty good about ignoring the bad PR emails, but this one was so off base, I had to post it:

“Rhino Entertainment Presents Totally Fit, Spice Girl Mel B’s First-Ever Workout Video on February 3rd! The three-DVD set features fitness workouts and nutrition tips and is available now exclusively on www.Totallyfit.com and at retail nationwide on February 3rd! I have DVDs for review and giveaway and other assets (cover art, photos, and press release) below. Let me know if you are interested in featuring Totally Fit on Midtown Lunch.”

Really? Seriously? Have you even read this website? I don’t do exercise… or nutrition tips- and if I can help it, neither will the readers of this site!

Of course, here I am posting about it- which is exactly what they want you to do… but I’m too smart for them! As loyal readers of this site, I’m going to ask you to pretend that you never saw this, and make a point of *not* purchasing Mel B’s first-ever workout video.

What’s that? You weren’t planning on it anyway. Oh… well that’s good.

I never got the chance to try the Halal Bakery & Pizza on 8th Ave. & 36th Street, and it looks like I never will. Sent to the ML Inbox, and confirmed by the photo above: “Halal Pizza and Bakery is gone. It looks like it was ransacked. When I first started work in the area it was the go-to lunch alternative, a steal at $1.00/slice. When they raised the prices to $1.50 over a year ago I boycotted the location; however, over time it became a good deal once again and recently reconciled with the corner shop. And now it’s gone. It’s like we’ve lost a friend.” Apparently they were known for their doughnuts as well, which makes me even more bummed I never checked it out. According to a different tipster, the super dingy looking Noodles 36 around the corner (btw. 8+9th) is closed as well.

In fact, when I showed up this afternoon I discovered that all the places on that block are closed and being gutted, along with the newsstand just north of the pizzeria/bakery on 8th Ave. Thankfully the construction stops there, sparing the Dunkin Donuts/Taco Bell/White Castle next door. Hopefully whatever monstrosity they are putting in there is some good food- and not another bank or crappy chain.

As is customary here on Midtown Lunch, I turn the site over to you at the end of the year to vote for your favorite Midtown Lunches. So… you voted… and here are the results, along with my picks. Some are expected… some are surprises… and a couple were downright shocking. Here are the results of the 2008 Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll:

Best Fast Food Hamburger: Burger Joint

Five Guys put on a good show this year, but it wasn’t enough to unseat the consensus best burger in Midtown: Burger Joint at the Parker Meridien (on 56th btw. 6+7th).  There’s been a lot of talk about City Burger in recent days, but not nearly enough people have tried it for them to have had a legitimate chance… maybe next year.  And while I admit Burger Joint and City Burger are making the best quality burger in Midtown, the free toppings and fresh cut fries make Five Guys tops in my book. Editor’s Pick: Five Guys (poll link)

Best Korean Fast Food: Woorijip

There is plenty of Korean food in Midtown if you work too far away from 32nd street, and want your fix. But if you’ve got time, and you want the best- 32nd Street btw. B’way+6th is the place to be, and Woorijip is far and away the best Midtown Lunch’ish option on the block. The readers have spoken, and I have to agree. Editor’s Pick: Woorijip (poll link)

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Last August Muhammed Rahman, the cart operator who famously used to cook at the Russian Tea Room, left Midtown for a new pizza and pasta venture on the Upper West Side; entrusting his famous Kiwk Meal cart (on 45th and 6th) to helpers.  Well, this week Muhammed made his triumphant return- opening a new cart called “Quick Delight” on 45th Street and 3rd Avenue. This is the third cart in the Kwik Meal empire, replacing Kwik Meal 2 which used to park on 5th Ave. until it was stolen a few months ago from the garage where it was parked.  Kwik Gourmet, the second cart, is still parked on 47th & Park Avenue.

This is huge news, and the tips poured in yesterday from excited Kwik Meal fans on the East side who have always had to walk West for a taste of Rahman’s famous lamb pita… but even more exciting is the news that Quick Delight will have two menu items not available at either of the other two carts.

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It took them long enough, but A Hamburger Today finally weighed in on City Burger’s $10.95 black label burger, and it reads more like a manifesto than a review. The gist of it? It’s not an “expensive burger as much as a cheap steak. In these times of economic austerity don’t be surprised if you see Wall Street executives, their expense accounts suspended, lining up at City Burger to satisfy the cravings that they used to sate at expensive wood-paneled steakhouses. For the steak lover, particularly those on a budget, this is the best burger in the city right now.”

Related:
Original City Burger Better Than Black Label? Combo Comes Down By $1
Your First Real Look at City Burger’s Black Label Burger

I know I preach about always getting out of the office for lunch, but how could I ignore this link Lunch’er Adam forwarded to me. If you can make a sandwich from meat purchased at Murray’s Salami, and sushi at your desk from ingredients purchased at Yagura, why not make a chocolate cake in a coffee mug using your company’s microwave?!?