Midtown Lunch

It takes a special kind of iron stomach to be able to appreciate the gut busting powers of a Chinese steam table take-out lunch. Many people are into Ying Du (on 38th btw. 7+8th), but I think they’ve not been the same since they changed their name from 38th St restaurant and bakery and then had to stop cutting roast meats to order (and apparently portions are getting smaller as well.) Even though they do pile on the food, and the price is ridiculous, I still try to find the next hidden treasure of steam table goodness. So when my former roommate told me about Fuji Restaurant and Bakery, I got intrigued about the possibility of another good option for cheap and filling Chinese food.

Fuji Bakery is pretty versatile when it comes to their offerings. They offer things like take-out dim sum, baked goods, standard Chinese take-out dishes, and the steam table option. I’ve seen lots of people order things off of the menu, especially the Chinese folks who order in Cantonese/Mandarin. Otherwise everyone else is there for the options available on the steam table. For three things and rice, it’s $5.50. I picked roast pork, string beans, and pork chops. The roast pork unfortunately doesn’t meet the standards set by Ying Du. The pork chop was disappointing in that the outside wasn’t crispy at all. The string beans however, really hit the spot with the strong garlic flavor. But what’s awesome about this place is really not the steam table stuff…

The best part about Fuji Bakery is that you can get shumai for lunch! They serve take-out dim sum for breakfast and if you head there early enough for lunch, you could catch some of the remaining stock of dim sum. In the mornings they’ll have shrimp with rice noodles, but around lunch usually only beef is available. When I went, I was able to score an order of shumai. It’s four for $2, so I’m guessing they’re not putting heritage pork in these suckers. The shumai also don’t seem to contain shrimp (unless it’s included as shrimp paste), so it’s not even the best shumai. But… it’s shumai in Midtown for two dollars! How could you not?!

Another good thing about Fuji Bakery is that the baked goods is in supply from morning to late afternoon. It’s not like 38th street where you have to go early in the morning or late in the afternoon for the widest selection. They have one display case for things like bo lo bao (pineapple buns), roast pork buns, and coconut buns. Then they have another display case with little cakes. I snapped a picture of the coconut bun but didn’t eat it on the spot. These things are actually much better if you take it back to your office and nuke it for a little bit (30sec to 1min). Makes it warm and delicious, probably enough so that Tina Fey would wanna stick her imaginary phallus into it.

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• Steam table food… mmmmm…
• Did someone say dim sum in Midtown?
• The baked goods selection is pretty good

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• You call that shumai?
• I’m more of a refined Chinese food person, no steam tables please.
• The steam table food isn’t nearly as good as Ying Du

Fuji Bakery and Restaurant, 224 W 35th St (btw 7+8th Ave), 212-629-7588