PROFILE: Midtown Lunch’er “Adam”

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 Adam, an IT Manager who loves to eat spicy Indian food (when he’s not commenting on Midtown Lunch.)

Name: Adam

Age: 35

Occupation: IT Manager (who doesn’t have a food blog!)

Where in Midtown do you Work?: A French Investment Bank (on 57th St.)

Favorite Kind of Food: Anything spicy, particularly Indian. My favorite “Americanized” Indian restaurant is India Passage in Bay Ridge but my overall favorite is Dakshin in Stamford because of the more interesting menu (I heard they have NYC restaurants, but I’ve only been to their other restaurant in
White Plains, Coromandel). The Midtown Indian restaurants are quite fine: Bay Leaf, Utsav, Jewel of India, Baluchi, and especially Minar (on 46th btw. 6+7th) for a cheap lunch. I’m just as fond of Middle Eastern Kebabs, Shawarma, Falafel, etc (Turkish, Persian, Afghani, and Israeli are what I’ve tried and liked). On the home front, American BBQ (dry rub, not sauced), a grilled rib-eye or roast prime rib with creamed spinach, good pub food (burgers, wings, shepherd’s pie (turnip topped), fish-n-chips), any slow roasted meats, and seafood (shellfish, mollusks, white flesh fish (salmon is the fishiest I can tolerate, and that’s a recent phenomenon). Americanized Chinese food is a staple at home. Growing up in an Italian-American home, I’m partial to home-cooked Italian food and almost never enjoy eating at Italian restaurants (save for osso bucco, sometimes). In general I like most European cuisine (though I could take or leave French food). If I’m going out to dinner, my go-to restaurant is Ipanema (on Brasil Row, 46th Street) and I’m either having the Bife Portugesa (Steak in garlic-wine sauce topped with a fried egg), Vatapa (Bahian Fish Stew), or Carne de Porco Alentejana (Pork and Clam Stew).

Least Favorite Kind of Food: I don’t like Japanese food. I’ve tried it many times and I’m never happy with it. (Let the flames begin!).

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: The famous cart on 53rd & 6th (my go-to now that they have kofta), Carnegie John’s on 56th & 7th (the idea of rib-eye from a cart was scary at first but I’m hooked), El Rey del Sabor (two locations), Bay Leaf for the buffet, the sombrero cart (on 50th btw. 6+7th) , Biryani Cart for Kati Rolls (on 46th & 6th), Certe on 55th btw. 5+6th (the only upscale lunch shop I’ll ever eat from), the cuban place on 56th (Tina’s?) is a new favorite (though it doesn’t top Manhattan Heroes on 26th and 7th if that’s still there).

“Go-To” Lunch Place You and Your Coworkers Eat at Too Often? The bank I work for still buys us lunch from Mangia and Cucina, so I often try to save a few bucks by going with the paid lunch option. An exciting day is when they have something other than chicken on the menu.

Place(s) you discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch? Too many to name. The highlights for me are El Rey del Sabor, Biryani Cart, Papa Perrone (on 55th btw. Mad+Park), and the Jamaican Dutchy (on 51st and 7th). My office is moving from 57th to 50th and 6th, so I’m looking forward to the places on 46th and 48th that I have yet to try (Hing Won, and the Fried Fish from Aunt Kim’s). Once I move I’ll be sure to research your site for these gems.

If you could work anywhere (just because of the lunch) where would it be and why? I’m already there. Why stick to one really good thing in some remote city when NYC has it all.

Is there anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch readers? Not really. They scare me.

Nice. See what you guys have done? As always if you’d like to be next week’s Profiled: Midtown Lunch’er (or know somebody you’d like to nominate), email me at zach@midtownlunch.com.

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