Midtown Lunch

Thanks to Lunch’er Hengde for sending along this report about a new Jamaican truck that popped up recently called “Sunrise Grill”:

My coworkers spotted this last week when I was away and we tried it today. It’s hard not to see – they have an electric moving sign that displays everything from a smiling sunglass-clad sun to the various menu offerings. They park on 37th between Broadway and 6th, 2 spaces in front of the Ecuadorian Truck. We tried the oxtail and the curry goat, and both were freakin fantastic.

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Das Racist, the New York rap outfit responsible for “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell”, likes to be taken to eat soup dumplings, but had this to say to Eater about street meat: “I don’t fuck with street meat anymore but when I was a teenager we’d drive in from Queens to get some chicken and rice or hit up 53rd and 6th after a long night out.” No more street meat!? Clearly we need to take these guys to XPL, Little Morocco, or Kwik Meal and get them back on the wagon. [Eater via Food is the New Rock]

Not exactly sure how Cinco de Mayo went from “commemoration of Mexico’s victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla” to “excuse to drink massive amounts of alcohol and act like an idiot”, but it’s an annual tradition here on ML to use the holiday as an excuse to eat Mexican food (not that we need any excuse!)  So in honor of it being May 5th, we decided to post a round up of all our contributor’s favorite Mexican dishes…

Chris H: The Torta de Pollo at Tehuitzingo Deli and Grocery

When I think Mexican food, I think bold, pure flavors, and I think value for money.  Nothing captures those principles like the *Torta de Pollo* at Tehuitzingo, which is simply *¡Que rico! – *a nearly perfect balance of boldly seasoned chicken, assertive spice, crusty bread, and that lovely creamy queso blanco to mellow and bind all the components.  And at $6, it’s more enough food for the average luncher, although heartier eaters could add one of their excellent tacos and still remain under $10.  Yes, it’s a hike to 10th Avenue, but it’s a journey worth making.*  *And for the lazy/time pressed office worker?  They deliver as far east as 6th Ave.  695 10th Ave(between 47th St & 48th St); 212-397-5956

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When I first heard that the mini-chain restaurant Crisp was launching a falafel truck, I was dismayed and thoroughly unexcited. First off, I think of food trucks and carts as a great way to start a business when you don’t have the funds and capital to open a restaurant. When chain restaurants get in on the action, this completely defeats the purpose. God help us if we see a Chipotle or McDonald’s truck roaming the streets soon. And secondly, why would I want to eat this generic falafel when I have options like Taim and Kwik Meal on the streets?

In all fairness, I’ve only walked by Crisp and have never actually been inside, partly because I assumed it wasn’t much more innovative or delicious as the likes of Europa Cafe or PAX. Then I discovered Zach’s review from a while back and I truly learned what happens when you assume. It’s not the first time I’ve made an ass of myself.

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If you follow Momofuku Milkbar on Twitter, it does sort of seem like the original bakery in the East Village gets all the fun. They’re bigger (and they just expanded!) so they can carry more items. Perhaps the biggest rub (at least for me) was that the East Village soft serve menu rotates while the midtown location has been serving the same cereal milk and salty pistachio since they launched. This week however, that’s all about to change. According to Eater “the soft serve flavors will rotate at all of the Milk Bars at the same time, once every three months” and according to @momomilkbar they now have blackberry/kaffir lime soft serve. Can’t wait to try it out. Early adopters, let us know what you think in the comments.

Ma Peche and Milk Bar, 15 W. 56th St. btw 5th+6th Ave, 212-555-1212

The other week, we got a peek inside the newly opened Qi Thai restaurant (43rd St & 8th Ave), and I recently dropped by for lunch. Given the location, just a stone’s throw from Times Square, I came with the most modest of expectations. Those expectations were, for the most part, met and exceeded by this fledgling restaurant, which serves fairly priced, moderate-to-good food in a startlingly gorgeous dining room.
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This week’s Twitter Tracker has been abuzz with news of W&D’s new speculoos ice cream. Seeing as Blondie and I were among the original proponents of ice cream dinges back in the day, I had to go check this out.

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I don’t know what it is about burgers this week but out of nowhere I noticed this sign up announcing a new burger shop coming to 36th Street, just off of 6th Avenue. It’s in an old salon space next to a pizza shop. There’s no real hint as to what type of burger shop this will be, but we’ll keep our eyes and ears peeled.

Eater’s burger week has gotten me pretty excited (though, admittedly, that doesn’t take much effort when burgers are involved.) The list of participating restaurants is decidedly fancy and pricey for the cheapos we champion here at Midtown Lunch, but when I read that Ma Peche would be joining in on the burger fun, I wasn’t going to let a couple extra bucks stop me.

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City Room noticed this amazing sign posted on 43rd Street and 6th Ave, and went so far as to interview the two different coffee cart vendors. The best part of the whole thing? They’re owned by the same guy, and serve the same bagels! Only in Midtown. [via @samsifton]