Midtown Lunch

Every Tuesday we 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 Justin, a teriyaki loving sports guy who is very angry he didn’t win the free Glaze for a year contest.

Name: Justin

Age: 24

Occupation: I do a bunch of shit for a sports hospitality company. I blog occasionally too.

Where in Midtown do you Work?: 34th and 8th ave. aka The Netherworlds of Midtown Manhattan aka this neighborhood fucking sucks.

Favorite Kind of Food: An Oreo milkshake or a peanutbutter and chocolate milkshake and a quality teriyaki chicken rice bowl. Sadly I can never find the two together. I either get a solid milkshake and American food or a good ‘yaki bowl and some green tea mochi bullshit they mix with bubble tea. It’s shit like that, that makes me wonder if there is a God.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: I guess vegetarian spots. Or anything over $10 for lunch. I’m a pretty cheap guy.

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: Shorty’s (on 9th btw. 41+42nd) is damn good. I enjoy any meal that shuts down at least two vessels in my heart. Schnipper’s (on 41st and 8th) has one my favorite shakes in NYC, even though it kills me to shell out $7 for it. I also hit 2 Bros up more than I’m willing to admit.

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While the rest of us were relaxing (or partying) over the New Years holiday, the folks at Bann Next Door were keeping themselves busy. Their projects included a make-over of their dining room, which was previously designed as primarily a take-out and delivery operation. Over the past month, they’ve expanded the seating area and turned the space into a legit sit-down restaurant (don’t worry, take-out and delivery is still available). Additionally, they’ve added three new items onto their menu, a seafood noodle soup, stir fried egg noodles, and Korean inspired sliders. Since I’ve been an effusive admirer of their tacos, checking out their new menu items was a no-brainer.

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When Feast NY told us about the new sandwiches at ‘Wichcraft last week, I immediately knew that’s where I was going to head for lunch. ‘Wichcraft is one of my standbys when in a lunch pickle, and any news of sandwich changes needs to be investigated immediately. Also, I have an equal amount of love for pork loin and kale (aka the best vegetable ever.) Apparently they did their pricing with us in mind because, after tax, the sandwich comes in at $9.99.

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When Prince Deli (formerly on 3rd btw 43rd+44th) closed in late 2008, we were pretty upset to lose their cheap and tasty falafel.  (Their 99 Cent pizza?  Not so much.) Well, good news for cheap falafel fans… we just got word that Prince Grill, a new spot set to open on the NW corner of 45th and 2nd, is actually from the owners of the Prince Deli. And the falafel will be back! As for the 99¢ pizza? With all the new places that have opened up in the past two years, they’re going to need to step up their game .

I’ve been intrigued by the Desi Food Truck’s endearingly quirky Bollywood influenced flourish and the owner’s infectious enthusiasm for quite some time. Now that the Desi Food truck has been parked in my home turf (50th between 6th & 7th) with reliable regularity for lunch, I decided to check out the kati rolls that Clay seemed to really enjoy over the summer. With my chicken kati roll ($4.50) order placed, the Desi Food Truck staffer, ever the consummate salesman, steered me towards the haleem chicken. “We’re the only restaurant that has authentic haleem chicken”, he promised, “it’s very rare but it is delicious”. Post-liminary research and googling brought up only two other restaurants in Midtown that seem to serve haleem, and a handful of restaurants in Jackson Heights and Elmurst, Queens. I selected a small cup ($4) and whisked my Indian variation of a soup and sandwich back to the office.

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Confession time: I haven’t stepped inside a Metro in over 5 years, so long ago that I was working on the West Side. There’s a certain smell that emanates from their stores that turns me off. Then the other day, they managed to pique my interest in an advertisement for their “Sandwich of the Month,” Chicken Tikka Masala. Yes, I’ve probably passed this sign once a day this entire month and am only now noticing it. I’m a fan of DIY Chicken Tikka Masala sandwiches, and wondering if I would be a fan of this. If you’ve tried it, let me know if it’s good enough to break my Metro exile.

If you thought 2011 was going to be the year that the food truck fad start to cool off, guess again.  We’re all still eagerly awaiting the Kimchi Taco Truck (will this week be the week!?!), the Big D Grub Truck was spotted downtown on Friday and we’re hearing that yet another brand new truck will attempt to make its debut in Midtown today tomorrow.  Meet “Feed Your Hole”, a which claims to be doing street food “The Old New York Way”.  That means hot dogs and burgers on bread from Arthur Avenue topped with a whole mess of condiments that they make from scratch- including hot sauce, mustard, ketchup, relish, and peppers that they pickle themselves.  They’ll also have fresh cut french fries (which they will gladly put on top of a burger or hot dog) along with cheese and chili.  Oh, and there is also a peanut butter and bacon topped burger (called “The Nut Burger”, natch.)

Check out the entire menu, after the jump…

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