Fall is upon us. The days are getting shorter, the weather is getting nippier, and suddenly lunch time has gone from merely a break in the day, to a necessary means of warming and comforting ourselves. It seems that many Midtown lunchers agree that soups are the perfect cold weather comfort food, and I wholeheartedly concur. And what’s more comforting and familiar than a bowl of hearty chicken soup?

When it comes to chicken soup, Margon (on 46th btw. 6+7th) has a fine version, which can be paired with their famous Cuban sandwiches, for the ML friendly price of only $9. For this price, I’ve always considered this combination to be one of the best soup and sandwich combos in Midtown. Find out why after the jump.

The bulk of Margon’s buzz centers around the aforementioned Cuban sandwich, as well as their extended steam tables offerings of roast chicken, pepper steak, oxtails and pernil. I wouldn’t dare to presume that Margon’s Cuban sandwich is the best in the city, though I’ve no qualms with making this sandwich part of my weekly lunch rotation. Like any good Cuban sandwich, theirs is a hearty fistful of ham, salami, gooey melted cheese, creamy mayo and the zing of mustard and a pickle, encased in an ever so slightly crispy roll.

While Margon’s Cuban sandwich has been extensively profiled, their chicken soup seems to have slipped under the radar. It’s time to change that.

The chicken soup has a viscous broth, always with a light sheen of oil enshrouding crude bits of bone-on dark meat chicken and chunky nubs of potato and yucca. The rich chicken broth is bolstered by the starch from the yucca, and is pungent with garlic and fragrant with coriander, parsley, and annatto. Some may find the bone-in chicken to be disagreeable, however, half the fun and the flavor comes from winnowing the tender morsels of chicken straight off the bone. In short, this is a powerful soup that will stick to your ribs and warm your soul.

Despite my huge appetite, I often struggle to finish this entire combination of food, though it’s simply too good to let any go to waste. At $9, Margon’s soup and sandwich combo is certainly fit for a King, a Dictator, or any Midtown Luncher that craves a good bowl of hot soup and a filling sandwich.

Margon, 136 W. 46th St. (btw. 6+7th), 212-354-5013

It’s been forever since I’ve been to Utsav, the fancy all you can eat Indian buffet on 46th Street btw. 6+7th. So when I was told by a friend over at Epicurious that they were now serving Biriyani for take out, I was pretty excited!  I’ve never tried their buffet (it’s too expensive!) but their take out food, which is available daily just inside the front door, is good (especially for those of you who prefer spending a little extra on slightly fancier Indian food.)

The guy behind the bar at Utsav told me that they’ve always had biriyani to go (and that might be true… like I said, it’s been awhile.)  But either way, it was the first time for me.  $8 gets you a decent amount of biriyani (the tray is deeper than it seems) and it had a ton of chicken.  Nice flavor, good kick, and definitely a bit more refined than the version at the Biriyani Cart (which is a couple hundred feet away on 46th and 6th).  For the price, I’ll probably still stick with the Biriyani Cart (I’m a cheap bastard, and you know I love ‘em!), but if you’re looking for something a bit more authentic, less greasy, and more refined, Utsav’s biriyani would make a great addition to yoru lunchtime rotation.

Utsav, 1185 Ave. of the Americas (btw. 6+7th Ave., btw. 46+47th St., 212-575-2525

Related:
$20 Fancy Indian Buffet Food, For Under $10 at Utsav

Photo by nycblondieandbrownie

As you knew from our post on Tuesday, Wednesday was a big day on 45th btw. 6+7th. The newly launched Rickshaw Dumpling Truck and the Treats Truck were parked next to each other in what Eater dubbed “Food Truck Row.”  There was even a halal cart and ice cream truck thrown in for good measure.  But don’t get too excited for a repeat.  While The Treats Truck is planning on being back in the spot today from 12:30 to 2:30 (they alternate with the Waffles and Dinges Truck), the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck is parking Downtown (on Pearl St. right next to the plaza for all of our Downtown Lunch readers.)

No word on whether they will try parking together again next Wednesday, but it isn’t completely smooth sailing.  The same ice cream truck guy that hassled Kim in the Treats Truck when she first started parking on the block, is now hassling Kenny in the Dumpling Truck.  Hopefully with the weather getting cold, the ice cream trucks will be leaving soon anyway…

When the Caribbean Spice Cart popped up at the end of April on 46th Street btw. 6+7th it had a pretty tall order: to operate a cart selling Caribbean food just 5 blocks away from the Jamaican Dutchy- what I consider to be one of the best carts in Midtown. Sprung from the ashes of Caribbean Spice, a Hell’s Kitchen restaurant that had closed down at the beginning of the year, early reports from the cart were mixed. The first meal I had there was decent, but not great, and Danny from in Mouth reported that the oxtails were just mediocre. Now, with actual signage (when they first started it was just a cart with a piece of poster board) the cart is finally hitting their stride, and while it’s pretty clear they’re not going to unseat the Dutchy, there are two items on the menu that set them apart.

While the Dutchy and Caribbean Spice carts cover most of the same bases (oxtails, jerk chicken, various curries, ackee and salt fish, and escovitch) the one thing C.S. has that the J.D. doesn’t is roti. Almost identical to the Indian version (which is thicker than the Malaysian version), roti is a staple bread in many West Indian countries, used to sop up curries. You can order roti in place of rice & peas as part of the large order of anything, or buy it separately.

For $9 I got the large order of goat curry with roti, which is a little pricey for not getting rice and peas- but you do get a ton of roti, which while not the greatest of all time, was surprisingly good for coming off of cart. Half of the goat curry was fat, so if you’re not into bones and a lot of fat, you may want to go with the curry chicken. The little bit of meat there was in dish, was very tender and the curry had a nice (albeit tame) flavor, perfect for dipping the roti.

But even more exciting than the roti is the coco bread- which in and of itself is nothing special. A large piece of slightly sweet egg bread, it is pretty similar to the consistency of a doughy hot dog bun. It gets its name from how you split it open like a coconut and stuff it with a Jamaican patty! Always a fan of the carb on carb sandwich, I’m pretty excited that this Jamaican treat has finally made its way to Midtown.

$3 ($1 for the bread, $2 for the patty) is all it takes to secure this Jamaican beef patty sandwich. The oily spiciness of the patty is perfectly cut by the slightly sweet coco bread- creating my new favorite Midtown sandwich!

If you want the best Jamaican food in the Midtown, go to the Dutchy, but if you work in the high 30s/low 40s or have the craving for some roti or a Jamaican beef patty sandwich, the new Caribbean Spice cart will do you just fine.

Caribbean Spice Cart, 46th St. btw. 6+7th

The rennovation of the 47th St. Japanese Convenience Store between Lexington & 3rd continues on, and I got this look inside.  It’s hard to make out exactly what is going to happen to this place, but as long as they keep all the bentos and fun stuff they used to serve (at fairly low prices) it should be good.  The store, which is owned by the upstairs restaurant Amakusa, has been closed since January.

Major plywood just went up at the original Kati Roll location on 46th btw. 6+7th, covering not only Kati Roll but another location next door.  Still no word on what may be moving into the place… but from the last bit of info I got, it probably won’t be a Midtown Lunch.

Speaking of speculation, info about the Strawberry space in the McGraw Hill plus the Indian buffet on 37th St., after the jump… 

The West Tandoori Club on 37th btw. 7+8th is still closed.  Rennovations continue, and they hope to re-open next week.  I’ll try to keep an eye on it…

And finally, it turns out I was right about Oceana moving into the McGraw Hill Building.  The New York Times reported it today.  Bummer.  Think about the enormous Midtown Lunch’ish buffet they could have fit in that space…

And as always, if you have any bits and pieces of your own to report, please email them to zach@midtownlunch.com 

Please warn fellow Midtown Lunchers [about John's Shanghai on 46th btw. 6+7th).] Here’s the review I posted on MenuPages: “I’ve ordered here many many times before and have never been so disappointed. Sure, restaurants have their off days, but today’s food was a complete insult. I had 6 orders in total, none came close to mediocre. General Tso’s chicken was just a pile of red chicken, no broccoli on the side or anything. Chicken and Brocolli was sweet. Double Sauteed Pork was sweet rather than spicy, and pork slices were too thick. Thought that was bad, here’s the icing on the cake. Soy Sauce Chicken over rice, they had the nerve to give us re-cooked chicken. I’m Chinese, I know! It looks like leftover soy sauce chicken reheated in the steamer. The skin on the chicken had shrunken a bit and the color from the soy sauce had come off already. Why would you dare serve something like that to a customer?!!?!?!??!?!!! I will NEVER order from them again!” Thanks, Lily.

Wow… I don’t even know what to say to that.  Luckily, John’s Shanghai has never really been considered a Midtown Lunch, so I don’t even really need to waste any time trying to interpret that rant.  The email I got about Ambrosia was a little more upsetting.  Why the generic deli (that became a ML favorite by adding Korean food) might have me re-thinking my ”Best Bi Bim Bap in Midtown” claim- after the jump…    

The Bi Bim Bap from Ambrosia (45th btw. 5+6th), April 2007.

I check out the site everyday (awesome site btw) and have never really commented but I just HAD to today. I decided to order the Bi Bim Bop from Ambrosia. So I called in to order pickup. When I got there to pick up my food, I found out the prices had increase!! AGAIN!! I’ve only been working in midtown for a year now. So the bi bim bop use to be 6.95. Then late last year, it increased to 7.95, and now its 8.95!!! What really gets me is that the banchan comes in smaller portions now and they give you less variety! You use to get like 4 side items w/ soup and now its only 3! Lastly, they have gone production line style. When I got there to pick up my food, there was a huge stack of maybe 10 premade bi bim baps. Which is actually okay with me as long as the food is the same BUT they have actually stopped doing the over-easy fried egg with the yolky goodness and have now replaced with it with the non-superior version of a sliced egg omellete. This place used to be my favorite, but now with the subtle changes in the food and the two price hikes in the last year. I just don’t know anymore.

The same dish in August 2007. Definitely more banchan in the April 2007 photo, but more variety in the August photo- although where’s the beef!?! I’d hate to think what it looks like now… photos don’t lie people.

Thoughts?  Feel free to contribute in the comments. Got a grievance you’d like to air? Email it to zach@midtownlunch.com

The space formerly occupied by Kati Roll on 46th btw. 6+7th (before they moved to 39th St.) is finally getting a tenant.  A “kitchen man” showed up yesterday, and it would appear as if the place is being gutted.  They were pretty hush hush about what was moving in, except to say it was a “reputable restaurant” with “American fare” switching spots from their current location in Midtown.  In other words… nothing new- and more importantly, definitely not a Midtown Lunch.

At least it’s food- sad news from the shuttered Le Croissant Shop, after the jump…

Great.  Mexican food, in the back of a bakery, replaced with another cell phone dealer.  Just what we need on 6th Ave. in the 30s.  Lame.

Got any news to report?  Email it to me at zach@midtownlunch.com

It turns out the new cart that popped up Monday on 46th btw. 6+7th is from the owners of Caribbean Spice, the now shuttered Hell’s Kitchen restaurant that used to be on 44th btw. 9+10th Ave.  Their hand written signs may be scrawled on posterboard, but the menu is pretty straight forward.  Jerk chicken, stewed chicken, curry chicken or goat, and oxtails, served over rice and peas.  Sound familiar?  You can’t help but think these ladies must have been influenced in some way by the success of the Jamaican Dutchy on 51st & 7th.  Only a 6 or 7 minute walk away, you’ve got to admire the boldness of setting up shop so close to what I consider one of the best carts in Midtown. 

It’s not really fair to judge the food on day 4, but I just can’t resist the exitement of a new cart. Check out the plate of food I got yesterday, after the jump…

Jerk chicken with rice and peas (plus a little curry goat up top).   The small size is $5, the large (seen above) is $7.  They plan on having daily specials, and the menu on Wednesday included Ackee & Salt fish (Jamaican’s “National Dish”) and callaloo, a Carribean soup/stew made with greens, okra and in this case, has fish in it. 

We’ll definitely keep a close eye on this one- and if you decide to join me as an early adopter, let everyone know what you think in the comments…

There was only one thing missing at Margon… until now.  The Media Noche, a very popular pressed sandwich with pretty much the same ingredients as a cuban (pork, ham, mustard, pickles and cheese) but instead of French style cuban bread, it’s pressed inside a slightly sweet egg bread.  Delicious!

For $4, I couldn’t resist, and picked one up the other day.  Check it out after the jump…

Just ham and cheese (no pork or salami) and you have to actually tell them what condiments you want.  I thought he was joking when he asked if I wanted lettuce and tomato, but I suppose it makes some people happy.  I told him mustard and pickles (some will add mayo) and ended up with a pretty tasty pressed sandwich.  Not the best I’ve ever had, but for $4, you’re not going to hear me complain!

Margon, 136 W. 46th St. (btw. 6+7th), 212-354-5013

I guess it’s an Indian food kind of day… first Indus Express and now this.  The “Chef” (on the right) of the Chapati Roll/Biriyani Cart (46th & 6th Ave.), has returned after two and a half months in Bangladesh, and as promised there’s some new stuff to talk about.  Let’s get the bad news out of the way first… two Kati Rolls/Chapati rolls are now $5 ($6 for lamb).  $4 was a ridiculously low price, so I don’t begrudge the cart a little price increase…

Now on to the good news… they’ve added a fifth kind of Chapati Roll to their menu- the vegetarian Aloo Gobi roll (curried potatoes and cauliflower).  I’ve been on a big cauliflower kick since having this sandwich 6 months ago, so I’m excited to try this.   They’ve also added the chicken tikka masala and biriyani to the permanent menu, items previously only available as specials on certain days.

On the seafood front, there is now a salmon dish (presumably to compete with the Kwik Meal Cart’s fish platter).  And even more items are in the works, including shami kebabs (made from ground up lamb or chicken), and chapli kebabs (made from ground up beef).

A shot of the menu, plus the big news for Chapati Roll lovers on the East side, after the jump…

I think that’s my Chapati roll photo they used (I’m a published photographer!), but more important than that is the part at the bottom of the sign.  “Coming soon with new selection & location.”

That’s right, a second Chapati Roll cart is in the works, and they’re planning on rolling it out somewhere on Park Ave. (possibly on 49th St.?) as soon as they get the permits.  As soon as they’re up and running, I’ll let you know where.