PROFILE: Midtown Lunch’er “Alexi”
Every Tuesday I turn over the site to a different Midtown Lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Midtown. I think it’s pretty well established that I am not exactly the healthiest eater when it comes to lunching, but I am well aware that occasionally some of you like to eat healthy. Every once in awhile a brave healthy eater will step to the plate and recommend some places for those Midtown Lunchers looking for a less gut busting lunch. This week it’s Alexi, a health and wellness coach that doesn’t like Chinese food (stick a dagger in my heart!) but likes rice balls.
Name: Alexi
Age: 28
Occupation: Health & Wellness Coach (plus I have a blog), but my day job is Office Manager/Receptionist
Where in Midtown do you Work?: Zelnickmedia – office is near Bryant Park
Favorite Kind of Food: I love creative food that is healthy and made from whole foods but doesn’t compromise taste. Basically, anything fresh and full of flavor – from Ethiopian to sushi.
Least Favorite Kind of Food: Not a fan of Chinese, or anything fried
Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: The dolce vita hummus salad bowl from Crisp, with whole wheat pita – SO tasty. Rice balls from Oms/B (on 45th btw. Lex+3rd) are really good. I also love picking at Free Foods‘ food bar, and their fresh shakes are juices are great. When I need a major boost I get the Curious George with cacao nibs, banana, coconut and espresso. You can’t lose. And the raw vegan macaroons are to die for. If I’m feeling uninspired I’ll hit up Dishes for a salad (but recently I was elbowed in the chaos of a lunchtime mass so I think I’ll take a break).
“Go-To” Lunch Place You and Your Coworkers Eat at Too Often? My go to place is Free Foods; downstairs, quick, healthy and I like what they’re bringing to Midtown – they’re a little unexpected, I think.
Place(s) you discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch? I don’t search around too often because honestly, I like to bring my lunch to work. However I did discover Cafe Zaiya (41st btw. Mad+5th), which has wonderfully cheap rice balls.
If you could work anywhere (just because of the lunch) where would it be and why? I know it may sounds cliche, but: Italy. I spent some time living over there after college and I had never seen that sort of love of food before. I still dream about the fresh burrata.
Is there anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch readers? I’d love to hear about more restaurants and eateries that focus on fresh, whole foods! I think it’s important to focus on quality versus quantity. SO many places are all about stretching your dollar – which is great – but sometimes you have to stop and think of what that meal consists of and where it came from. After all, you want something that’s going to get you through the afternoon without a 3pm sugar binge!
But I like my 3pm sugar binge. And prefer not to think of where my food came from! (Especially when I’m eating from a street vendor.) And let’s not even talk about my love of Chinese food. Anyway… it’s good to have different viewpoints on the site… and FreeFoods is still open (and always crowded) so there are clearly plenty of people who share your opinion. Anybody have any healthy recommendations for Alexi and the silent minority of Midtown Lunch’ers looking for this kind of food? Put them in the comments.
And as always if anybody would like to be next week’s Profiled: Midtown Lunch’er (or know somebody you’d like to nominate), email me at zach@midtownlunch.com.
Posted by Zach Brooks at 11:45 am, September 29th, 2009 under PROFILE: Midtown Lunch'er.
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63 Comments
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Also, MikeNYC, this is a forum for street eaters, and all of the relevant forms of expression that term suggests. This is not a place for people who feel unfulfilled if they can’t get a table at the Waverly Inn or who think lettuce on toast points is a meal. This is an outlet for those who enjoy and are totally comfortable dashing down the street cramming a myriad of wild and unpronounceable ethnic foods down our gaping maws, who will travel to another borough when we receive a hot tip about a new food cart that’s set up shop in the far reaches of the city. It’s not a place for people who are afraid of food, who are unwilling to give in to the pure pleasure of eating things that may not be that good for you, but is some damn fine eating nonetheless. If you come onto a site like this and make yourself sound ignorant by slamming an entire genre of food (I mean really, suggesting that among a population of 1.3 billion not one of them is able to make non-Americanized Chinese food is an absurdity if there ever was one) and then crowing about the delights of raw vegan macaroons, then all you can do is brace yourself and take the consequences. Nothing says you can’t like raw vegan macaroons. But balance it with crap that’s bad for you every now and then, for God’s sake!
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I thought it was common knowledge…at least in NY metro area..that when someone says “I hate Chinese food” people automatically know they mean that joint on the corner where you buy your pork fried rice. That is the extent of Chinese food knowledge for most Americans. Its not meant to be slamming a whole ethnicity. ” I dont like Chinese food” has been a common phrase growing up here. And by no means is it meant to be racist or ignorant..at least to me.
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It’s not ignorant and it’s not dismissive, etc. Most cuisines use some ingredients very often. All it takes is disliking some of those key ingredients and viola!
Example: I dislike (most) Chinese food. But I really, really despise Indian food. I’ve yet to smell an Indian dish that didn’t make me feel sick.
Primarily, I hate, hate, hate, and sickened, repulsed and get a headache from curry.
Inevitably, the next thing every well intentioned foodie who wants to foist their own tastes on me and discount my own says, is “There’s lots of things that don’t have curry!” So off to the Indian restaurant I go. And equally inevitably is this:
1. I’m swimming in the disgusting smells of a hundred other curry dishes around me.
2. It’s so prevalent in Indian kitchens, and I’m so sensitive to it, that I can taste it in non-curry dishes. And I get sickened and repulsed.
and
3. Whatever non curry dish is presented to me repulses me also.
So, what, I’m not supposed to say “I hate Indian food” when every experience I have with it sickens me? Because there’s maybe some nice Indian sweet or pastry that I might like, suddenly I can’t say I don’t like Indian? That’s insane and simply not the way conversational english works. We generalize in agreed upon ways, because you need to to convey generalized ideas.
Let me ask you something: Suppose I said “I love Chinese food” would a bunch sceptics pop up and say “No way you can love a WHOLE CONTINENTs worth of food. That’s ignorant! You mean you eat the Szchechaun shit rolls? You haven’t tried them? How can you say you LOVE all that food, when you never even tried ALL OF IT?”
No. You NEVER hear that. NEVER. But it’s EXACTLY the same thing. Only it’s somehow a measure of how open-minded and cool a foodie is if they love it all, including the Szchechuan shit rolls.
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Wellerfan = Bingo!
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As one who generally can’t walk by an indian restaurant without gagging, I empathize with those who generally avoid certain genres of food. As you all know, I tend to not enjoy Indian food generally, and yes, I’ve tried a host of different dishes. I also despise Cilantro and anything it ruins, and the one time I had ethiopian was likely my last. But I must admit, there may be a type of curry I recently encountered that I do enjoy–but my cart man won’t tell me if it is curry and what type! I will also add that I ordered a bottle of ghost chili sauce, which I believe is Indian in origin to an extent, so I do admit there are exceptions to generalizations. I am sure that if Alexi had steamed broccoli with some light soy, it would be fine for her, and it would count as “chinese food” in my book….
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So, I guess it goes without saying that no: I have not been to China and that yes: my perception of Chinese food is based on the buffets and local take-out joints. Honestly, I did not mean to offend anyone- I love food and I’ll eat MOST anything (including meat, as I am an omnivore) but on a day-to-day basis I like to stick to healthier options. But that’s just me!
I am planning a trip to Hong Kong soon, so perhaps my opinion on the cuisine will change. In the meantime, I stand by my healthy preferences, even if I’m teased for enjoying my quinoa lunches.
Oh- and no offense taken. I suppose you have to expect a little feedback on these sorts of things…
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MIKENYC–stop channelling my indian food aversion!
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“…you are what you eat…” Look at her smooth skin!
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50 comments and no “likes eating rice balls” joke?
I know there are some of us holding back….
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Did anyone already point out that she says ” I love … anything fresh and full of flavor – from Ethiopian to sushi,” then, “Not a fan of Chinese”? Do you get it now?
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Alexi, meet some friends who are either Chinese or tight with the culture and go to Flushing to try some authentic dishes. Let them know what sort of thing you are looking for while over in China that you can at least fall back on instead of taking wild shots at a menu you might not understand. For instance, there’s a dish that’s steamed tofu with shrimps and julienned scallions in a light soy sauce. And there are different ways to cook chicken so that it’s not so heavy. Anyway, enjoy your trip and do your research.
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I think the issue is that she admitted that she does not eat lunch out, and it looks to some – including myself – that she is only here to promote her own website. I would guess that she never read ML before today. If someone admits that they rarely eat lunch out, and when they do, appear to be averse to the kind of food generally discussed here, then of course people will feel that she is not authentic.
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I agree w/mghu777. Research. Research. Research. That’s what the internet is for also. There are a lot of great healthy Chinese dishes that exist and there are places in NYC that serve them. That’s the great thing about living here. Even in your local Chinese American joint you can alter your meal to be much healthier.
I mean, I grew up on solely knowing Americanized Chinese food also, but when I started working in Manhattan I began to discover that not all Chinese food has to be General Tsao’s chicken and egg rolls and that the food differs greatly from region to region. This is why I don’t consider that to be an excuse. Especially when now all you have to do is go to google.com and type in ‘Healthy Chinese Food’ and get a shitload of information at your fingertips.
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Who would’ve thunk something as simple as the proper use of a commment box on a blog would’ve eluded so many?
I’m glad I invested in ChapStick.
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Cosilicious is correct. As of this post, see time-stamp, her profile is 3 hours old.
I’m shilled out.
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Pretty sure she got this many responses cuz shes attractive and not cuz anyone gives a sh*t if she likes chinese food or not.
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I don’t like Chinese food.
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I wonder if she’s fan of the Lyte Funky Ones (LFO) song, “Summer Girls”?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1dfEf1qOt4
Apparently, chinese food makes them sick.
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LWL – Please die a horrible death. Thanks.
I don’t think anyone deserved to experience that song, or that video.
Speaking of Chinese food: Dumplings are awesome and grub street has a big dumpling extravaganza.
http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2009/09/ming_tsai_picks_his_favorite_downtown_dumpling.html
Wherein we also learn that Rickshaw dumplings are on Tyra. How nice. MSNBC, Tyra, where else will we now see this unqualified and should have been disqualifed Vendy Finalist pop up?
Looks like those Vendy shenanigans are paying off for connected insider Anita Lo. As expected.