Midtown Lunch

Thanks to Niko from Dessert Buzz for forwarding along this early photo from Melt, the new gelato and crepe cafe (on 2nd Ave. btw. 55+56th) that’s attempting to break a world record by giving out free gelato until 7pm tonight.  Apparently as of 12:10 there still was no line… but I’m guessing the scene isn’t quite as serene right now. Or maybe rainy day = perfect day for freebies! If you end up braving the lines (and the rain) feel free to post updates in the comments so other lunch’ers know if it’s worth it. (According to Niko it’s “easily competitive with Grom or Il laboratorio Del Gelato.”)

Update: “20 people on line right now at 1:22 p.m. — that is about 5—7 minutes says Gino the manager…”

I don’t know if any amount of money could get me to willingly enter the NBC Experience store inside 30 Rock, but froyo fans will be excited for this news. Red Mango has opened inside the small cafe on the second floor. So now you have two options for your Midtown Red Mango fix. Walk to the location on 8th Ave and 45th, or fight your way through hordes of tourists waiting in line for the NBC Studio Tour. Good luck and Godspeed. (Thanks to Lunch’er Lila for the tip.)

As suspected, the Trini Paki Boys Cart (on 43rd and 6th) was not selling pigeon today, but pigeon peas- as part of a chicken "pelau" introduced yesterday. The dish is a traditional Trinidadian rice dish that they plan on having every Tuesday and Wednesday. Full report coming soon. (Oh, and btw… tomorrow is goat biriyani day at the cart. Maybe not as exciting as pigeon, but it’ll have to do.)

It turns out the Trini Paki Boys cart (on 43rd and 6th) is not serving their biriyani every single day. This week it’s been a bit more sporadic. Luckily tomorrow is Thursday and you can always count on the biriyani on Thursdays…

Related:
The Hidden Delicious Mysteries of the Trini-Paki Boys Cart
Trini Paki Boys Cart May Serve Biryani Every Day This Week

Despite all the vitriol from ML commenters, it looks like the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck has found their audience. They’re on 45th btw 6+7th today, and completely mobbed.

Speaking of hipster trucks, I’m hearing the Van Leeuwen Ice Cream Truck is in Midtown today parked on 52nd and Park. Enjoy!

In what should be no surprise to anybody, the line at 11:40am is already stretching down the block for the Kogi BBQ truck’s first forray into NYC. For $4 you get a kimchi quesadilla from Kogi, along with the Dessert Truck’s famous chocolate mousse with peanut butter center. All proceeds benefit Citymeals-on-wheels, and there are only 200 servings. Line count right now… 65 and growing- and the truck doesn’t open until noon!

Keep checking back right here for live updates from the scene!

11:47 AM BLOCKBUSTER: Lee Anne Wong from season one of Top Chef is on hand to help dish out the food. Why you might ask? Because she is now the executive chef of east coast operations of Kogi BBQ and will be in charge of the first Kogi BBQ truck in New York.

Live updates after the jump!

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A brand new sweets truck just hit Midtown, and is giving away free samples for the next couple of hours on 55th btw 5+6th. . They’re not selling anything just yet, but their menu includes croissants, cookies, cake, muffins, and quiche. They’re affiliated with One Girl Cookies in Brooklyn, and will carry some of their items, plus a host of homemade recipes. Plus about 20% of the stuff will be baked right on the truck.

They hope to be in this spot every single day (but you know how that goes.) More details to come when they launch their website and twitter (of course) in the next couple of days (and I’ll post a photo of the menu here once I get home.). They’re still testing eveything out right now (this is their very first day) but if you want a free sample, now is the time. Freeloaders engage.

Check out a photo of the menu after the jump…

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The fact that free waffles ends at 1pm did not discourage these people still lined up at 12:55pm. And their patience was rewarded… everyone on line at 1pm gets a free waffle! Nicely done W&D. You could have been dicks and cut it off at 1, but you didn’t. Much appreciated…

Oh… and the new addition to the dinges menu: Speculoos, a spread made from ground up biscoff cookies (the ones you get on airplanes.)  Consistency of peanut butter, but tastes like gingerbread. Amazing!

12:40pm and It’s organized chaos at the new Baja Fresh, where people are reporting wait times of 15-25 minutes (5 to 10 mins to order, and another 15 waiting for food.) Not bad, but the people are still pouring in, and I overheard the manager saying that the kitchen just started falling behind. In other words, I’m guessing we’ll be hearing of some 30-40+ wait times very soon. I’ve waited over three years for this… I guess I can wait another day or two. Were you there? Let us know how it was in the comments.

They were more prepared this week, but the NYC Cravings Taiwanese Fried Chicken Truck ran out of fried chicken at 1:45pm today (an hour longer than last Monday, the first day they parked on 45th btw 6+7th). You can still catch them Tuesdays on 24th and Park, but Thursdays and Fridays are up in the air- as is the question of when they’ll start serving pork chops!!! (I just made that up by the way… They have no pork chop plans, it’s just wishful thinking on my part.)

Related:
NYC Cravings Brings Taiwanese Fried Chicken Awesomeness to the Mobile Food Scene