Midtown Lunch

Last month, Flatiron Lunch reporter Sarah tried a new family-run Lebanese truck called Toum. As I read her review, I couldn’t wait for the truck to start making stops in Midtown, because the menu reflected many familiar foods from my childhood. Yep, as I’ve mentioned before, I grew up in Japan, but what you don’t know is that while there I enjoyed not only Japanese food, but also my grandmother’s amazing middle eastern recipes. The truth is always stranger than fiction. Anyway, Toum’s menu, plus the fact that the truck is family-run, gave me high hopes for authentic recipes in some way reminiscent of those days making Syrian food in Japan.
Read more »

With the crispness of impending autumn and the spices of street meat hanging in the air, thousands upon thousands gathered — along with 24 very special food trucks, carts and vendors — to spend their Saturday on Governor’s Island stuffing their faces celebrating the crown affair of the season: The 2012 Vendy Awards. After yet another tumultuous and passionate year on the food streets, the folks at the Street Vendor Project take a day to gather and celebrate the cream of the crop. It is always a delicious affair, and one that ends with awards for the top dogs. To hell with the poetic lead-up, we’re talking about the Vendys. Let’s let the vendors and the food speak for themselves.

Read more »

Kwik Meal’s pita cheesesteak. Photo courtesy of SENY

• Margon’s steak sandwich and Kwik Meal’s cheesesteak are 2 of NYC 25 best beef sandwiches [SENY]
• A look at ‘wichcraft’s Bryant Park ice cream kiosk [Ramen & Friends]
• Another look at Guy’s American Kitchen and Bar [Gothamist]
• The new Murray Hill location of Pie Face will give out free stuff all next week [Fork in the Road]
• I was featured on Storyboard this week for Food is the New Rock… [Tumblr]
• … and this week’s podcast guest is The Amateur Gourmet Adam Roberts [FitnR]

And finally, who’s coming to the Vendy Awards this weekend?!  If you want to get in early, avoid the lines, and hang out with me, Blondie & Brownie, Brian Hoffman, Kate Krader from Food & Wine, and Ed Levine from Serious Eats, today is the last day to score your VIP tickets. They’ve also released a limited number of tickets that will be available at the door, for all you super procrastinators.  See you tomorrow!

If 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.

A few weeks ago I was cajoled into watching a theater show, one of my least favorite activities ever (think: boredom marries claustrophobia). And even though it’s already been reviewed by Mamacita in 2008, Smith’s Bar (44th and 8th) was the closest bar to the theatre we were headed to, and a great pit stop to slam back as many beers as possible between the end of work and the opening of curtains.

I had noticed Smith’s half-lit neon sign on some of my lunchtime excursions, and I thought it looked like a really cool place. In fact, it’s been around since the 50s, and although it has changed ownership in the past decade, it was still more appealing to me than any other bar in the immediate vicinity… mainly because of its facade. And the happy hour specials looked okay. From 12-7 they serve $3.75 domestic light bottles, $4.00 Amstel and Sam Adams Light, and $4.00 wells and SoCo (Southern Comfort) shots. The Long Hammer IPA I ordered was $5.50.

Read more »

Well, this is disappointing. On a recent trip to the 47th street Katsuhama, I ordered my favorite oyakodon but noticed a tragedy on the menu. $11. Plus tax. No longer a Midtown lunch? Sigh. (Just in case you’re looking at the website, the menus there don’t appear to reflect the change.)

Katsuhama, 11 E. 47th St. (btw. Mad+5th), 212-758-5909

I’ve eaten at Cafe Metro exactly three times. Once out of requirement – our admin had ordered a large number of sandwiches for a power lunch working session. Once out of desperation – a need for a greasy breakfast sandwich to fight a nasty Friday morning hangover. And most recently, out of curiosity – based on a helpful tip from John K who let us know that Cafe Metro was now selling “Num Pang style” sandwiches. Funnily enough, at 41st and Lex, the Num Pang and Cafe Metro are about 100 ft apart.

Love ’em or hate ’em, I’ll give Cafe Metro some credit for at least trying to switch things up a bit and earn some distinction over all of the other generic delis. You may recall the chicken tikka masala sandwich that received mixed reviews, and now they’re continuing with the Asian inspired theme, as enlightened or mis-guided as that may be.
Read more »

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.

Sometimes as Flatiron Lunch’ers, we feel like the forgotten child and no more so than during Street Meat Palooza (SMP). The nominations for the annual competition (Edition #5!), which will take place sometime in the coming weeks, are strictly limited to the normal Midtown boundaries. That didn’t stop a reader from writing to lament the restriction and wishing to nominate a cart in the Flatiron District. So in advance of the upcoming chow-down, I checked out this “nominated” cart on the southwest corner of 28th and Broadway. I am all for filling the comments field with other Flatiron “nominees”.

The first thing I noticed on approaching this corner was that there is no cart on the southwest corner of 28th and Broadway. After confirming the location on my email and with scaffolding on the southwest corner, I decided perhaps the cart, called City Halal, on the northwest corner was possibly my target. I asked the vendor if he always at this spot, and he confirmed. Of course, a shadow of doubt that I hadn’t found the right cart hung over my entire meal.

Read more »

Looks like Midtown ramen mainstay Sapporo has gotten another menu facelift (you may remember the last one was in 2010). Spotting the yellow and white “New Sapporo” posters adorning the windows this week, I grabbed the new takeout menu on my way back to the office from lunch. The new menu, which you can check out after the jump, takes an axe to the old ramen offerings and adds new — and some rather odd — dishes. Oh, and make sure you check the prices on your Sapporo favorites, as they might have changed as well.
Read more »