Midtown Lunch

One of the best parts about the Midtown Lunch Challenge is how many street vendors are getting in on the act.  There was El Rey Del Sabor’s spicy Mexican cheesesteak, I hear rumors that the Jamaican Dutchy is introducing two sandwiches today, the Biryani Cart has something in the works, and there is this… from the 100% Healthy and Halal Cart on the NW corner of 55th and Park.  You may remember this cart for making one of the few salads I will actually eat in Midtown, and now with the help of Wined and Dined, he’s created a special sandwich just for us.

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This has been an awesome week for Midtown lovers of Korean fried chicken… this was just posted to the comments, and confirmed by a phone call: “BonChon (the Korean fried chicken place on 5th Ave. just south of 32nd Street) actually IS open for lunch now. I just got some takeout there around 12:45 about 2 weeks ago.” For as long as they have been open, the Koreatown location of Bon Chon didn’t open until 4pm- but apparently a few months ago they started opening at noon. Between this, and the Kyochon news, my Korean fried chicken loving head is about to explode. I know where I’m eating lunch tomorrow…

Bon Chon, 314 5th Ave 2nd Floor (btw. 31+32nd), New York, NY 10001, 212-221-2222

Ok, well maybe that is a bit of an overstatement… but between this, the duck sandwich at FreeFoods, and the Mexican Cheesesteak from the El Rey del Sabor cart– this Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge thing is turning out to be the best thing I’ve ever done for… well… for myself.  Seriously.  I can’t believe how well this is going, and after trying Certe’s “Thanksgiving Dip” (on 55th btw. 5+6th), I am ready to declare this challenge thing a complete success- even if not another sandwich gets made.

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I have always lamented the fact that all the Korean fried chicken places in Midtown are only open for dinner… which makes this news that much more exciting!  Kyochon, the Korean fried chicken chain with U.S. branches in Flushing and L.A., is replacing the Brooklyn Bagel Cafe on 32nd and 5th in Koreatown.  Called the “granddaddy of the Korean fried-chicken scene” Kyochon features fried chicken flavored with soy sauce, garlic, and ton of spices… oh, and there are spicy version available. And of course, the most important thing… it’s open for lunch!  No word on when it will open, but it can’t be soon enough.

Thanks to Liz Matsumoto of norecipes.com for sending in the photo!

Kyochon, 319 5th Ave, New York, NY 10016

Last October it was just a rumor, but today it is confirmed! Baja Fresh will be opening its first Manhattan location in the old Zen Burger space on Lexington btw. 45+46th. Is Baja Fresh the best Mexican food of all time? Definitely not. I don’t know if East coast Baja Fresh is even as good as the ones on the West Coast (I’ve heard they’re not.) But I do know this… when I lived in L.A. the baja chicken burrito from Baja Fresh was my goto lunch (it alternated with the orange chicken and lo mein combo from Panda Express.) So, a Midtown Baha Fresh means I will never have to even consider eating at Chipotle again.

Now if we can only get a Panda Express, Chick Fil A, In N Out Burger, and El Pollo Loco to follow suit- we’ll be golden!

We could go back and forth about whether or not FreeFoods NYC is a true Midtown Lunch (it’s not), or whether or not I should even be eating at a place like this (I shouldn’t).  But the simple fact is this.  They made a new sandwich, put it on their menu, called it “The Midtown Lunch Special”, and charged under $10 for it (if you don’t include the tax).  So, according to the rules set forth in my Midtown Lunch sandwich challenge, I am obligated to go and eat the sandwich and post about it.  I never said I had to like it… just eat it, and post about it. 

Standing in FreeFoods, I could feel my anger rising.  I mean, this place is really expensive.  Sure, most of it is organic, they use the best ingredients, and it is one of the few places in Midtown where a vegetarian, vegan, or raw foods enthusiast can get a decent lunch.  But I don’t fall into any of those categories, and my category (cheap fatso) is clearly not intended audience.  The sandwiches are all $11 and up (except for the ML special), the by the lb. buffet is $395 a pound (or so it seems), and their non coffee drinks are $3 at their cheapest and $8 at their most expensive.  In other words, if you want more than just a sandwich, you’re not getting out of here for less than $15. 

There is only one problem.  The “Midtown Lunch Special Sandwich”, a duck pastrami reuben, is really freakin’ good.

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Apparently Moshe’s Falafel (on 46th and 6th) has another truck parked in Union Square, but according to Ed Levine it doesn’t hold a candle to the other falafel options in the area (Maoz, Rainbow, and Pita Joe). If they expand the competition to other areas, Midtown Lunch would totaly get behind Olympica Pita (on 38th btw. 5+6th) and the Azuri Cafe (on 51st btw. 9+10th).

Oh baby… you know how excited I get about food on conveyor belts, and Blondie and Brownie have just posted about this place in Saks Fifth Avenue with a conveyor belt full of desserts. I can’t imagine myself stepping into Saks Fifth Avenue for a $4 brownie, but in my wildest dreams I could imagine being situated on one end of that conveyor belt with my mouth open (ala Homer Simpson in hell being forcefed doughnuts by Satan.)

Photo courtesy of Lunch’er Tom

And so it has officially begun… I went to El Rey Del Sabor (the Mexican cart on 60th and 3rd Ave.) or Monday for the first official payoff of the Midtown Lunch Sandwich Challenge.  It’s called the “Alambre” on the sign advertising this new $6.50 sandwich- but I prefer to think of it as a “spicy Mexican cheesesteak.”  You may remember reading about this off-the-menu treat a few months back, when they served it to me as a plate lunch.  Thankfully they took my suggestion a turned it into a full fledged sandwich… and just in time to introduce it as their entry in the sandwich challenge.

Check it out after the jump…

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A few weeks ago I posted a grievance sent in from a reader who wanted to complain about the salad at Flavors– a generic deli in the hallway beneath the Fox News building which may or may not be owned by Cafe Metro. Since then, it appears as if they have changed their policy… “Redemption song for flavors. I’m quite positive that the folks at flavors have read this grievance! I just got back from flavors and the salad was huge! not just mine but everyone around me as well. i think they’ve stepped up a notch because the salads taste great but now they are at a size worth its semi overpriced tag!”

Another luncher was quick to rebuke this shill enthusiastically delivered news by dropping a bit of science on me…

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