Midtown Lunch

Now that the Super Bowl is out of the way, you’re probably sick and tired of fried chicken wings. Here at Midtown Lunch, we never get tired of fried chicken, especially when it’s covered in a sweet and spicy sauce. Many of you probably had traditional buffalo wings for the big game, but Korean fried chicken is not like Southern fried chicken or buffalo wings. The texture contrast and sauces make Korean fried chicken a different beast. A beast that I like eating. When I heard about Bon Chon opening up on 38th, I was really ecstatic until I heard about the 2 hour wait… After waiting for the dust to settle and giving Bon Chon time to figure out a better system, I decided to go check out their famous Korean fried chicken.

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I was pretty freakin’ bummed when Arang (on 32nd btw. B’way+5th) closed down their Korean/Japanese all you can eat lunch buffet. They reopened for lunch a few months ago (sans buffet), and Ultrayclay is reporting that their lunch specials are not only good, but most are under $10.

I like Pro Hot Korean (on 56th btw. 5+6th), but I was still pretty excited to hear in the forums that a new Korean place had opened on the same block. It’s called “Chom Chom”, but sadly it’s “modern” Korean food (which is code for “expensive”).  Even the lunch specials are all $14 and up.  You can splurge if you want… but I’ll probably just stick to my old dolsot bi bim bap standby.  (Unless, of course, they start offering a $10 lunch special!)

I don’t know what you guys think, but I’m pretty psyched to finally have a NYT reviewer that eats like us. In 5 years as the restaurant critic of the New York Times Frank Bruni and Midtown Lunch crossed paths just once (his 2 star review of Szechuan Gourmet.) But in less than three months Sam Sifton (who is quickly becoming my favorite food reviewer of all time) has doubled that output- first with his one star review of Le Relais de Venise L’entrecote, and today with his one star review of Madangsui- a great Korean BBQ place on 35th btw. 5+6th. Getting real Korean BBQ (where your meat gets grilled on the table right in front of you) is too expensive for Midtown Lunch’ing purposes, but if you’ve always wondered where the best place to get it in our neck of the woods is Sifton says Madangsui.

Photo courtesy of meltingnoise

All that talk about dumplings yesterday has put me in the mood for… well… dumplings. A quick look in the comments proves that there are no truly spectacular dumplings in Midtown. No one place here stands out as the best. (For that you have to head to Chinatown or to the outer bouroughs.) But there are some decent options, like the gyoza at one of the Japanese ramen spots (like Men Kui Tei, or Sapporo), wontons in chili oil from Szechuan Gourmet or Wu Liang Ye, or the new dim sum bar at Yushi. And of course there is the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck, which has its fans (to go along with some very vocal detractors.)

For Korean dumplings (or mandoo) there is the well known “Mandoo Bar” on 32nd btw. B’way+5th . But the other day I read something in the forums about a new mandoo bar in Cafe Charlie, an otherwise generic Midtown deli on 41st btw. Mad+5th. Clearly an investigation was in order.

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Earlier this week I reported that the generic deli named Cafe Du Monde was forced to change their name to Cafe Amande.  But the far more exciting news about the place came via email from Lunch’er Amanda:

Did you know Cafe Du Monde Cafe Amande on 37th between 5th and 6th has Korean food in the back? Bibimbap to rival that of Koreatown. Comes with miso soup and extra chili sauce (make sure you ask if they don’t give it to you because they almost always do). No sides but I usually just take some kimchee from the pay per pound buffet (it’s homemade by one of the cashier ladies!)

Korean food from a generic deli? Homemade kimchee? I’m in.

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I was planning on eating at the newly opened Lan Sheng yesterday (on 39th btw. B’way+6th), but found myself drawn instead into Madeline’s- the very good catering company/lunch spot on the same block that I wrote about last April.  I won’t lie, a specials sign touting a steak sandwich probably wouldn’t have registered a reaction;  but a “Korean BBQ Steak Sandwich” and I’m in. (What can I say, it’s not just Asian soups I’m addicted to.  It’s Asian everything.)

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With baby and the wife in tow (she got the day off today!), I headed down to Koreatown for a leisurely today.  Normally I am a $10 and under kind of a guy, but I think if you have to work on a holiday you should be allowed a little bit of a splurge.  So, with that new rule guiding me I decided to hit up Gahm Mi Oak- one of the nicer (and more unique) Korean food options on 32nd btw. B’way+5th Ave.  The menu is pretty small, and almost everything on it is over $10, but if you’re looking for something completely offal- this is your place.  Gelatin of cow knee? A soup made with ox bones?  Raw oysters and pork belly?  It all sounded great to me… but I was there for one thing and one thing only.  Soon dae! (Korean blood sausage.)  Ever since I had Woorijip’s version, I’ve been craving a solid hot version from a restaurant- and all the Midtown Lunch commenters seem to agree, Gahm Mi Oak’s is the best in K-Town.

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It’s been exactly a month since Mantao Chinese Sandwiches opened up on 53rd btw. 2+3rd.  I never got a chance to go to Province Chinese Canteen, its original Tribeca incarnation, but I had always heard good enough things that their move to Midtown got me pretty excited.  Plus, I like Chinese food… and I like sandwiches.  What could possibly be bad about this place?

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Photo courtesy of Food in Mouth

Danny from Food in Mouth hit up Shilla (on 32nd btw. 5+B’way) last week, and was nice enough to report back. They are still running their lunch special, where $6 gets you a different soup or stew each day- plus a ton of banchan (the little dishes you get at the beginning of a Korean meal.) For take out they charge you $1 more. Here’s the daily lineup:

Mon – Kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew)
Tues – Sul lu Tang (beef knuckle soup)
Wed – Dwenjang jjigae (Korean bean paste stew)
Thur – Soon doo boo jjigae (spicy soft tofu soup)
Fri – Haejang guk (tradition Korean beef soup)

Danny went on Thursday, and got the Soon doo boo. You can check out his report here>>

Related:
Choong Moo Ro Introduces new $3 Lunch Special
Shilla Offers $5 May Lunch Special… If You Can Read Korean