Midtown Lunch » Cheese Steak

Shorty’s Looking to Expand to the East Side

Zach Brooks — Wed, 06 May 2009 15:00:11 +0000

Eater has it that Shorty’s, the Philly inspired cheesesteak shop on 9th Ave. btw. 41+42nd, is looking to expand “with a special focus on Murray Hill.” This is the spot that used to be an official Tony Luke’s franchise, who announced a few months ago that they too are looking at expanding into NYC by next year.

NYC Tony Lukes To Be “100% Company Owned”

Zach Brooks — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 21:00:56 +0000

Serious Eats: New York gets the answer to the question I posed about Tony Luke’s supposed return to NYC: “The chain is looking at a few spots in New York and should be open by 2010. ‘Those stores will likely be 100 percent company-owned so we don’t run into the creative differences we did at the Tony Luke’s-now-Shorty’s location.’” Nice! [Serious Eats: New York]

Is Tony Luke’s Returning to New York City?

Zach Brooks — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:00:13 +0000

Tony Luke’s, the famous Philly based cheesesteak/pork sandwich purveyor, used to have a “location” on 9th Ave. btw. 40+41st- before the franchisee got sick of paying the fees and changed the name to Shorty’s (they still serve practically the same menu.) Well, according to the official Tony Luke’s website there is another location “to be announced” in NYC. It’s not clear whether it will be another “franchise” situation, or if it will the real deal- but either way, may I humbly suggest they return to the Midtown area? Even a half decent Tony Luke’s is probably better than most of the Philly cheesesteak (and roast pork with broccoli rabe!) options we’ve got. [via Serious Eats Comments]

Photo courtesy of Josh Bousel

Philly Native Calls Carl’s Best Cheesesteak in NYC

Zach Brooks — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:46:31 +0000

Grub Street took Philadelphia native and cheesesteak lover Joey Campanaro (Little Owl) on a tour of Manhattan’s cheesesteak purveyors, and when the dust cleared Carl’s Steaks (with a location on 3rd Ave. and 34th St. ) was victorious. More surprising than the Carl’s victory was the fact that Shorty’s came in 5th out of 7 places. Shorty’s, which is located on 9th Ave. btw. 41+42nd used to be an outpost of the famed “Tony Luke’s” in Philly until they got sick of paying the royalties for the name. You would think they would have learned a thing or two about making a cheesesteak in that time (although in fairness, ML commenters have said that their pork sandwiches with broccoli rabe are where it’s at.) Also included in the list, Philly Slim’s (on 9th Ave. and 53rd) and 99 Miles to Philly (52nd & 2nd)

Philly-Cheesesteak-Palooza: Finding the Best Steak & Cheese in NYC

Zach Brooks — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 13:28:07 +0000

I guess the best philly cheesesteak is not in Midtown, if you believe this exhaustive head to head cheesesteak battle royale done by Jason Santa Maria. Wogies Bar & Grill in the West Village came out on top, with 99 Miles to Philly (2nd Ave. & 52nd St.), Carl’s Steaks (3rd btw. 34+35th), Shorty’s (9th Ave. btw. 41+42nd), and Philly Slim’s (9th Ave. btw. 52+53rd) coming in 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively. Each have outposts in the outer reaches of Midtown but it isn’t entirely clear if he visited the Midtown locations (except in the case of Shorty’s-formerly Tony Luke’s- which only has one NYC location.) Either way he goes on to say that “all three of our top scorers rank on par with some of the best cheesesteaks I’ve had in Philly and I can confidently recommend any of them for a good time.” [via Serious Eats: New York]

99 Miles to Philly Opening Today in Midtown East

Zach Brooks — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:20:54 +0000

A Lunch’er alerted me yesterday to the news that 99 Miles to Philly is opening a new location today on 52nd and Second. (Though he failed to mention that it’s replacing Zip Burger, which had been closed for rennovations.) 2nd Ave. is out of bounds for most Midtown Lunch’ers, but philly cheese steak fans on the east side should be prety excited hear this news. I’m sure for many of you, it will be worth the extra walk- especially for those who consider it better than Carl’s. It opens at 11:30 today, so Early adopters, let us know how it is. Update: Confirmed Open.

How To Defuse (or Diffuse) A Steak & Cheese Grease Bomb

Zach Brooks — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:43:32 +0000

A heavenly match has been created on 3rd Avenue btw. 34+35th Streets. What better way to counteract the effects of a Carl’s cheesesteak grease bomb than with Red Mango. Yes, I admit it- I like Red Mango. (Pinkberry can screw off, though.) You may say the secret ingredient is Cap’n Crunch. (Trust me, it’s freaking good.) And it has been proven in a study that yogurt cultures, mixed with peanut butter cereal, will help aid in the digestion of red meat and cheese. You can’t argue with science.*

* Not proven by any actual scientific study.

Magdy’s Philly Cheese Steak Cart

Zach Brooks — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 14:17:55 +0000

Park Ave. is quickly becoming the cart/truck capitol of Midtown. Between Jiannetto’s, Pranzo, The Steak Truck, three Indian Carts, and a number of chicken and rice carts with long lines, you pretty much have everything you could ever want (if only the 2nd Daisy May’s cart would return). Yesterday, on a recommendation from a Midtown Lunch’er, I headed to Park Ave. to partake in a steak & cheese from a cart.

Now, here is the big disclaimer. If you have ever been to Philadelphia, and had a philly cheesesteak, then you are aware of what a “real” cheesesteak is. If you have ever lived in New England, you have disputed the Philadelphia claim to having the best steak & cheese (after all, provolone is far superior cheez whiz, right?). Maybe you have even been to the Tony Luke’s (now Shorty’s) on 9th Ave., and feel like you have had a decent cheesesteak here in New York City. Steak & Cheese from a cart in Midtown is not going to live up to any of those standards. It costs $4. It’s from a cart. That being said, the steak & cheese I had yesterday from Magdy’s on Park & 46th was pretty damn tasty.

Continue reading after the jump…The sign on the Magdy’s cart reads “The Original Philly Cheese Steak” in big letters, “and A Variety of Hero Sandwiches” in smaller. But the grill tells a different story, where 75% is taken up by chicken, another popular item at the cart. The menu has a few choices, and a few different prices, but the lady who took my order, and collected my money admitted to me that it changes every day- and even she wasn’t sure exactly what is supposed to be charged. If you want chicken or a cheesesteak sub, it’s going to be $4, maybe $4.50. Make it a double, or mixed between the two, it’s going to be $5 or $6.

Quite a few people were ordering the chicken ahead of me, so I was forced to pull a late audible. I went with the mixed, so I could try both- but instead of letting them mix the chicken and steak together, I asked that he separate the meat on either half of the sub roll. The guy seemed a little confused at first, but he ended up doing it- and I have to say, it was pretty strong move. And only $5.

The chicken half was just ok. Chunks of good white meat chicken, covered in lettuce, tomato and an average white sauce (extra might have been helpful), and not a trace of a Middle Eastern spice (which may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what you like). I should have trusted the sign, because the real star was clearly the steak and cheese. Thinly sliced and covered in grilled onions and slices of American cheese, it was really tasty, making me wish I had just gone with a double steak & cheese.

Is this a heaping pile of quality steak? For $4, of course it isn’t. But there is something delicious that happens when you take thinly sliced deli meat style steak, top it with grilled onions and processed american cheese and put it in a roll. Charge only $4-6 for it, and you’ve got a winner.

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

It’s pretty damn cheap

It’s tastiness cannot be denied

I love fake cheese on top of fake meat!!!

I’m a fat man, who loves to eat meat off of carts.

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

The meat is really low grade

Philly Cheese Steaks don’t have slices of kraft, they have cheeze whiz- and it’s the only way to eat them

I prefer my cheese steaks with real cheese (like some nice provolone!)

Magdy’s Philly Cheese Steak Cart, NE Corner of 46th & Park