Midtown Lunch

If you’re the type of person that reads Midtown Lunch, you probably like cheesesteaks. Lucky for you, plenty of decent Philly-style options have opened up in recent years… like this one, this one, and this one. These places are all great, but you may find it difficult to stay under $10. Sometimes, I just crave a big gut-buster that won’t bust my wallet too. So, I began a search for midtown’s best cheap cheesesteaks. Initially, my intention was to order as “traditional” a Philly cheesesteak as possible at each destination, but it soon dawned on me that there’s really nothing traditional or authentic about ordering cheap-ass cheesesteaks from street carts in New York City.

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I don’t know about you, but I always enjoy some drinking games whilst watching presidential debates- which always makes for a rough time at work the next day! Thankfully I have found a pretty spectacular hangover cure: a Magdy’s Philly Cheese Steak. The cheese steak cart has been a favorite of the blog since 2007, and has perplexed us with interesting menu items like Chicken Scampi and a Cheesesteak over rice.

And besides serving up a wonderful recovery delight the day after painting the town red, I’d like to note that the cart is a Midtown classic: Magdy’s has been around for 15 years. Judging by the always long but fast moving line, it’s still going strong! I took this opportunity to remind Midtown Lunchers since we haven’t touched upon it in nearly a year, and I wanted to make sure our new readers know the score.

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You can always count on Magdy’s Cheesesteak Cart (46th btw Park + Lex) to have a line, always about a dozen people deep. I know they’re famous for their cheesesteaks and have been meaning to give it a try. But whenever I try a new street meat cart I can’t help but get the chicken and lamb over rice.   If only there was a way to combine the two…

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I was on the prowl for some street meat yesterday (thanks to everyone for twittering their recommendations @midtowlunch) when I noticed this sign on the Magdy’s Philly Cheesesteak Cart (on Park Ave & 46th St.) I’m sure it’s always been there, but Magdy’s is known for their philly cheesesteaks… and I just never noticed it before.

Scampi means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. To my mom it meant breaded shrimp baked in a pyrex dish covered in Pam cooking spray. At most Italian restaurants it involves shrimp, butter, garlic, and white wine. In England it’s fried lobster! I was super curious what it meant to a cheese-steak cart in Midtown.

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Park Ave. is quickly becoming the cart/truck capitol of Midtown.  Between Jiannetto’s, Pranzo, The Steak Truck, three Indian Carts, and a number of chicken and rice carts with long lines, you pretty much have everything you could ever want (if only the 2nd Daisy May’s cart would return). Yesterday, on a recommendation from a Midtown Lunch’er, I headed to Park Ave. to partake in a steak & cheese from a cart.

Now, here is the big disclaimer.  If you have ever been to Philadelphia, and had a philly cheesesteak, then you are aware of what a “real” cheesesteak is.  If you have ever lived in New England, you have disputed the Philadelphia claim to having the best steak & cheese (after all, provolone is far superior cheez whiz, right?).  Maybe you have even been to the Tony Luke’s (now Shorty’s) on 9th Ave., and feel like you have had a decent cheesesteak  here in New York City.  Steak & Cheese from a cart in Midtown is not going to live up to any of those standards.  It costs $4.  It’s from a cart.  That being said, the steak & cheese I had yesterday from Magdy’s on Park & 46th was pretty damn tasty.

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