Midtown Lunch

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.

If you have spent any time lunching in Union Square or if you have been keeping up with “The Best of New York/Cheap Eats” (Falafel Edition), you probably know about Rainbow, and you have probably already tried their falafel. The large number of press clippings taped in the door are a clear indication that they are well known for it. But I encourage you to take a second look, as they have an even more brilliant item lurking on their menu…Shawafel!

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Here’s a bit of Flatiron Lunch news before we lay this week’s review on you…

Openings: So the good news is Eataly is opening a lunch-only spot on Monday, April 30. Ready to hear more? Sorry, bad news. Pranzo will cost $25 for a two to three-course prix fixe meal. Since it is part of La Scuola, lunch includes cooking demos, so if Educational Development is part of your lunch budget, you should be fine. To apologize for getting your hopes up, I am here to remind you that Eataly has several ML-budget friendly options: here and here.

Closings: Ultra Clay sent me a tip that Sirtaj Indian, a place he reviewed, has closed. While we are never happy to see an Indian restaurant in Flatiron close, we can only hope this will lead to an even better Indian restaurant. Stay tuned…

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.

Since it seems like every other Profiled ML’er says they wish they worked in Chinatown for the lunch, this post is for those people. On the other hand, Di Di Dumpling is not as good as some in Chinatown… a sad reminder that we work in Midtown and not Chinatown. Then again, Di Di is on a corner with a cluster of Asian restaurants (KalBQ and Coco Fresh) so maybe we can  just pretend.

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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.

What is it about Korean food that has us obsessed? I am not complaining, but have you seen the Midtown Lunch archives on Korean food?? Seriously. I am guilty, and since K-town Proper is technically in the ML boundaries by a block (just one block!), I think it is only fair that we have our own Korean restaurants in the Flatiron District (not that we can’t and don’t walk that extra block to partake in the joys of K-town.) A few weeks ago, as I walked the northern most Flatiron boundaries, I spotted a small place hiding under scaffolding and went in to investigate further. It was dinner-time, and every table was filled with young, hip Koreans. I asked to see a lunch menu and didn’t see a single item over the ML budget, which isn’t surprising for K-town, but was for such a design-y, trendy spot.

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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.

I realize that I am going to take some flack for this one, but yes, that is a Holiday Inn sign peaking out in the corner of the above photo, and yes, Contorno’s is an Italian restaurant in a Holiday Inn lobby. It’s always fun when we are able to bring you a restaurant in a non-traditional, almost hidden location (in my book, nothing will top El Sabroso), and Contorno’s not only qualifies as an unexpected and worthwhile lunch destination, but also brings better-than-average Italian food to the table at ML prices.

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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.

When you pass a place called Big Booty Bread Co., you should ask yourself, “Self, how can I not go in?” When I passed Big Booty Bread Co., I asked myself that same question and had no good answer, so I had to go check it out. [Insert obligatory Sir Mix-A-Lot joke here]

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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.

This week, I had the enormous pleasure of meeting my predecessor, the King of the Flatiron, Ultraclay! And what did we do to celebrate our momentous meeting? We ate! Clay suggested a truck parked on the corner of 18th and 6th Avenue called Brother’s Express. He had been before and had always wanted to share it with you all, but moved to greener pastures to the north before he had the chance.

With several previous cancellations on both our parts, and Clay being snagged in the office at the last minute (yes, we actually do work in addition to contributing to ML), we almost didn’t make it. But thank goodness we did, because ever since I had walked by last week (after getting sandwiches at Boqueria), I had been eager to try it.

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Great news for Midtown fans of No 7 Sub, who don’t have time to make it all the way down to the Ace Hotel during lunchtime (aka most of us.) Starting this week they’ve expanded their delivery radius all the way up to 45th street, 3rd ave to 8th ave. And they’ve added a few new sandwiches, like a cana de cabra cheese sub with broccoli sauce, pickled red onions, and fried chickpeas and a pork & shrimp chorizo sub with pickled rhubarb, sweet potatos, and cilantro. The only bad news? Delivery is only available after the lunch rush, from 2pm to 7pm Monday through Friday. So it’s really just available for a late lunch or early dinner. Ordering is available over the phone or through Delivery.com

Related:
Flatiron Lunch: No. 7 Sub in the Ace Hotel Gets the ML Looksee

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.

If you haven’t noticed, I am a little bit on a kick looking for sit-down restaurants that unexpectedly have ML budget friendly lunch options. (If you have noticed and don’t like it, I can tell you now that it ends next week!) I think I enjoy the feeling of triumph knowing that I got a great lunch for a fraction of what I would pay to eat there for dinner. My latest find is Boqueria – the well-loved and upscale Spanish Tapas Restaurant with outposts in Flatiron and SoHo. And no, this is not a post about a lunch of two small tapas plates. That would just be too sad.

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