Tabata Ramen Photo courtesy of Fork in the Road
Posted by The ML Team at 3:00 pm, September 21st, 2012 under Midtown Links.
f you like to eat, chances are you like to drink (read: a lot of you are freakin’ lushes), so I thought maybe it was time to introduce a happy hour column to the site. Every week, our Happy Hour Correspondent posts about a different bar in Midtown that fits the Midtown Lunch mentality: unhealthy food, not lame (unless it’s lame in a cool way), and most importantly… cheap.
I had been eyeing O’Casey’s (41st btw. 5th and Madison) for a while. I had seen it several times near Yagura et al., and I noticed it had been around for a while (since 1974). As as an Irish Pub lover, I was intrigued. Then an O’Casey’s corner touter drew me in with their sign, and I asked if they had happy hour specials. “I’m sure they do” was the reply. I’m usually wary of those super-bored-looking human sign holders; it just shows how dependent the restaurant is on tourists. But Joy Curry does it, where prices aren’t bad and I (and several other Lunch’ers) think the food is good. So I let O’Casey’s have the benefit of the doubt and invited a group of coworkers to for after work bevvies since it’s right around the corner from our office.
Posted by jenjfen at 1:45 pm, September 21st, 2012 under Midtown Happy Hour.
An intrepid ML reader tipped us off about Cafe Metro on 36th and Broadway doing $1 off pasta on Fridays. It’s easy to turn up one’s nose at generic delis so high it achieves escape velocity, but who knows if it’s a must-do? Hell, the tipster noted it was amazing quantity for what you pay. Five toppings for $7.70? Maybe we’re missing something. Maybe it’s worth checking out. And I was feeling extra confident after Chris H’s positive review of the new Taste of Asia sandwiches. Worst comes to worst, it’ll just end up being a public service to confirm that it’s still Cafe Metro.
Posted by MJP at 11:30 am, September 21st, 2012 under Cafe Metro.
Every Friday we go south of the ML boundaries in search of a delicious lunch. Sometimes it’s Murray Hill south or the Flatiron District, sometimes Gramercy and everything in between- but we just like to call it Flatiron Lunch.
With so many options in Curry Hill, everyone has their favorite or, really, favorites. Favorite dosas. Favorite buffet to stay and eat. Favorite thali set. Favorite kathi roll. Favorite take out. Favorite all-round (mine is still Bhatti). With such a high density of Indian restaurants in a couple blocks, it is totally reasonable to have a different favorite in every category in just Curry Hill. Curry Express has always been my favorite for buffet-style take-out. It strikes me as a little bit cheaper and more laid back than Curry In A Hurry.
Posted by Sarah Zilinski at 9:00 am, September 21st, 2012 under Flatiron Lunch.
Notch your belts, take your Pepto, and gird your loins, people. Stating numbers that should surprise absolutely nobody at all, Shake Shack has posted their calorie counts in their restaurants. Attributed to opening their 15th nationwide restaurant, the chain has reached a numerical threshold requiring them to do so thanks to NYC law. The counts have been available online since April 2011, surely being visited frequently by health-conscious mobile device users within Shake Shack’s legendary long lines.
So lets talk hard numbers…
Posted by MJP at 3:15 pm, September 20th, 2012 under Shake Shack.
After a rough time of it yesterday, Mac Truck returned to Midtown today, parking on 45th, just east of Fifth Avenue. Midtown Lunch’er hungry was on the scene and has been commenting on the buffalo mac n cheese (today’s special) in the comments from yesterday’s post. Anyone else check it out yet? Join the conversation in yesterday’s comments!
Posted by Rachel Goldner at 2:04 pm, September 20th, 2012 under Mac Truck.
Here we stand at Checkpoint Charlie, the literal and physical border between the great antagonists. For too long has their mutual anger stewed across this otherwise bucolic stretch of earth. Here we stand at a time none thought possible: the end of hostilities. The de-escalation of forces. The boys are going back home from their long, lonely watches, each side waiting for the other to perform the unthinkable. The threat of mutually assured destruction is seen by many now as a thing of the past. The Churchillian forboding state is now lifted. Ladies and gentlemen: the Cold War of pizza has come to an official end, not with a bang but a whimper – or a handshake. 2 Bros and Pizza King, next door to each other on 6th Ave just shy of 38th, have ended the 75-cent slice by mutual agreement which some suspect constitutes illegal price-fixing. While consumers may bemoan not having that extra quarter in their pockets, who knows what kind of damage this price drop has done to the pizza ecosystem? Now that the dust has settled, we can see if the damage has persisted back into the new $1 order.
Posted by MJP at 11:30 am, September 20th, 2012 under $1 Slice O Rama.
I’ve been talking up Troy Turkish Grill for a while now in comments on Profiled Lunchers and on the forums, but it’s been high time that it gets the proper ML treatment. Despite them being out of bounds (40th and 9th) I’ve ordered from them in the past, and I’ve been really impressed by their gyro in terms of flavor, quality, and quantity (even though it pains me that a Turkish restaurant doesn’t call a Turkish dish by its Turkish name – doner kebab, people!) Having been to some pretty awesome Middle Eastern restaurants from all over the Islamic world in South Paterson, NJ (not really worth the schlep from Manhattan but good stuff for us Garden Staters) there’s always been decent variations on doner kebab/gyro/etc. Some are crispier, some are juicier, some are forgettable. It’s been a while since my last order, though – does Troy hold its own or is it all Greek to us?
Posted by MJP at 9:00 am, September 20th, 2012 under Troy Turkish Grill.
Do you wonder what the ML contributors do when they’re not eating lunch in Midtown? (We’re actually pretty easy to stalk – Especially if you were at the Vendys!)
Pouring Prosecco for the Kelvin Slushies at The Vendy Awards last weekend. Photo by Brownie.
Rachel had vegan twinkies fron Cinnamon Snail at the Vendys, Blondie is excited for the Village Voice Brooklyn Pour beer festival, Brownie wrote about Kelvin’s boozy slushies they demoed at the Vendys, Brian had his favorite hot dog to date at Dominick’s in Queens and I at my way through…wait for it… The Vendys!
Elsewhere in the ML universe… Andrea gets a first look at the cheap fried chicken downtown at Dirty Bird, Jamie checked out the tortas at Mole Poblano in Philadelphia’s Italian Market and Zach explores the Pakistani options at Zam Zam Market in Los Angeles.
Posted by ultraclay at 3:30 pm, September 19th, 2012 under Contributor Stalking.
So, this just happened. Thanks to everyone who nominated their favorite vendors! Results will be posted in the next week or two…
Posted by Zach Brooks at 2:30 pm, September 19th, 2012 under At Lunch Now, Street Meat Palooza.
