Midtown Lunch

Midtown Lunch Flickr friend The Flooz has been tracking the fried fish sandwich at the Kim’s Aunt Kitchen Cart on 46th btw. 5+6th for over a year now. The first photo was taken back in November of 2007, and TF had this to say:

I finally got a chance to visit Kim’s Aunt Kitchen Cart on 46th btw. 5+6th (right next to Moishe’s) and i have to say- i’m so glad i did! I ordered the fried flounder on a hero. Yeah everyone else in front of me was getting lettuce and tomato on white bread, but why bother? Slap on some tartar and hot sauce and we’re good to go. Also because of the quantity of fish (so much!) I went for the toasted hero so as to enjoy every last morsel. Wow- $4.50 never tasted so good!!!

But then, things went wrong back in September…

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Blondie and Brownie stray from their comfort zone at Woorijip (on 32nd btw. B’way+5th), ordering the ramen with egg and spicy kimchi soup with pork and ham from the Noodle Bar in the back of the shop. But take note: the noodle bar is only opened until 2pm, so make sure you aren’t going for a late lunch.

Related: 2008 Readers’ Poll: Best Korean Food

Earlier this week I had an email exchange about the new changes at City Burger(on 39th just East of B’way) with Josh “Mr. Cutlets” Ozersky. Not only is he editor of The Feedbag, but he is also the self appointed president of the Pat LaFrieda fan club:

Josh: “You better get on down to City Burger… Went there with a few other people the other day. It is SICK! Really, really good now.”

Me: “I don’t know.  [The black label burger] is a little pricey for my cheap-ass blood… but yeah, I’ll probably break down and try it this week.  Have the regular burgers changed at all?”

Josh: “Listen to this! I like the regular burgers BETTER than the black label. They’re top-three burgers in town right now.  They got rid of the grills and brought in griddles…started warming the buns… oh man I wish I had one now.”

That is a bold statement… top 3 burgers in the city?!?!  (Not even just Midtown?) The truth has been narrowed down to 2 possibilities.  1)  City Burger has significantly improved their burger.  Or 2) The Abitino Brothers (who own City Burger) have some serious dirt on our good friend Mr. Cutlets.

Only one way to find out which is true…

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It looks like Moshe’s Falafel (on 45th & 6th) is no longer the only Kosher cart on the block. Kosher Oasis popped up on the SW corner of 44th & 6th a few weeks ago selling falafel, schnitzel (fried chicken cutlets), soups, and kosher hot dogs.  The schnitzel hasn’t been selling well so they plan on taking it off the menu, but maybe if enough people go ask for it (hint hint) he’ll keep it around (what can I say?  I love the idea of schnitzel from a cart!)

The kosher hot dogs have been the most popular item so far, but they are still tweaking the menu.  Any early adopters tried this cart yet?  Feel free to comment below.

Maybe this wasn’t the best day for this post. The Friday after Thanksgiving is quite possibly the biggest sandwich eating day of the year, followed closely by the Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving.  Maybe you’re sick of sandwiches.  Maybe if you look at another sandwich, it’s going to make you puke.  But maybe, just maybe, the mark of a truly great sandwich is one that can still make you salivate, even on the Monday after Thanksgiving.  So, in that spirit- I’m proud to present the Midtown Lunch entry in the Murray’s Salami challenge.

First, let’s get everybody brought up to speed.  A month ago Murray’s Cheese opened up a salami counter in the Grand Central Terminal Market (entrance on Lexington and 43rd). Everything in the market is very expensive, and Murray’s is no exception.  But they’ve got a staggering array of amazing meats and charcuterie from some great purveyors around the country, and for a guy like me that is tough to ignore. Unfortunately, they are prohibited by Grand Central from selling anything that would resemble a “sandwich” or packaged lunch (probably to protect the food court vendors downstairs.)  So, if we were to enjoy the new Murray’s Salami, in a lunchtime form, it was up to us to create our own sandwiches, made from ingredients foraged from the market.  Most importantly, it would have to be under $10 a person. (Spending more than that on lunch, is a crime against humanity… unless it’s an all you can eat buffet- in which case you are allowed to spend a little more.)

Blondie and Brownie weighed in first, followed by Lunch’er Dave, and finally Lunch’er Max. And now, the Midtown Lunch entry, from start to finish.  In all its glory.

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Got this email from Lunch’er “Spencer” who has been stalking a lady selling Latin food on the sidewalk of 48th btw. 5+6th on Fridays for the past few weeks. Not sure if a) she’s only there on Fridays, and b) if it’s the same Ecuadorian lady who used to sell food on 46th btw. 5+6th. (I haven’t seen her in awhile…)

“Two Fridays ago I was with a co-worker who gets a jump on the lunchtime rush by going out every day at 11:30. He hits Variety Cafe 19 out of every 20 lunches (the other one being Tina’s Restaurant). As we’re walking from 6th Ave. on 48th towards Variety, someone drops a can of soda and I pick it up and hand it back to a little lady with what is essentially one of those metal laundry/grocery upright carts filled with plastic bags of all sizes and colors. I see it is food and waste no time asking what she’s selling. She says sheepishly “food” as if I’m going to bust her. Instead I said I’d take a plate, and to allay her fears I take the first thing she offers. It ends up being a piece of fried fish over a bed of awesome yellow rice, drowned in a great shrimp sauce.”

But wait… there’s more.

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Photo by 52 Projects

It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten at Yips, and I have to say I’m a little concerned about the fast food Chinese mainstay on 52nd btw. 5+6th. The last time I walked by I noticed they had condensed their operation from 2 steam tables and 3 lines, to 1 steam table and 1 line. It can’t help that better options, like Hing Won on 48th btw. 5+6th) are so close by. But Jeff from 52 Projects stopped by last week and vouches for his favorite fast food Chinese place. “Their excellent BBQ Chicken on top of Lo Mein [is] cheap, fast, plentiful-times-two, and absolutely delicious.” Well, there you have it. No need to worry…

And we have another entry in the Grand Central Terminal Market sandwich challenge.  To recap: can you make an under $10 Midtown Lunch’ish sandwich, or sandwiches, from ingredients purchased from the newly opened Murray’s Salami (and the other shops in the Grand Central Terminal market.)  Blondie and Brownie weighed in first, followed by Lunch’er Dave, and now… Max.

2 of my compatriots and I ventured in the semi-brutal cold to Grand Central Market to try the Murray’s challenge. (We went a little crazy, also picking up 3 pieces of very nice seasonal Murray’s pumpkin cheese cake for dessert, but I am excluding that splurge from the challenge.) We gorged ourselves on speck, mozz, and salami, had a photo shoot and assembly party back @ the office. I think our per capita expenditure will definitely be lower next go round (oh yes!), but this was gooddamn delicious!!

Last week there was a complaint about not being about to get a sense of scale from the photo… so after the jump is a list of ingredients, plus a photo that gives you better perspective of the sandwich size.

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Wow… today has not been good for the Midtown Lunch’ing news.  This just in from Lunch’er Jill: “Two Boots under Rockefeller Center is closing!  Today is their last day. They are opening a new place at 9th and 45th.” And confirmed on the Two Boots website:

And it was one year ago this month you guys voted this best slice in Midtown. The end of an era… and a big loss to the lazy lunchers of 30 Rock who hate leaving their building.

If you read this site often, you know I have fairly strict rules about price. I feel in my heart that lunch should not cost a person more than $10.  But I have equally strong feelings about buffets, and when it comes to something like the concept of all-u-can-eat, well… I can’t help but think that rules were meant to be broken.  I’ll admit up front I don’t break the rule too often for Indian buffets (there are good Indian buffets in Midtown for $10 to $11… so why spend $17?) but when it comes to Asian buffets, all bets are off.  So, two years ago this month I made a price exception and hit up the Todai buffet on 32nd btw. Madison+5th. I thought it was just ok, and definitely not as good as when it was Minado (its previous buffet incarnation, before being bought out by the big buffet chain.)

Since that time the price has gone up to $18.95, not completely shocking for a sushi buffet, but waaaay out of the Midtown Lunch price range (even for a buffet lover like me.)  But when I got an email invite to buffet it up with competitve eater (and profiled Midtown Lunch’er) Crazy Legs Conti and a few of his competitive eating buddies, how could I say no!?!

The play by play of our meal, their pearls of wisdom, and a photo of every plate put down by Crazy Legs… all after the jump.

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