While this may not be “Midtown Dinner” some of us occasionally work hours that might require dinner at the office or picking up take out on the way home after a long day. If that describes you, or if your cheap eating tendencies extend to the dinner hours, the Bian Dang in Food Gallery 32 (on 32nd btw. 5th+B’way) is doing a dinner special that includes entree, appetizer and a drink for $10 from 6:00pm until 11:30pm.

On Saturday we gathered together at City Winery with a couple hundred of our closest friends to celebrate the 5 year anniversary of Midtown Lunch (yes, we too are surprised this thing has been around for 5 years!)   A great time was had by all thanks to the amazing food (provided graciously by Kwik Meal, The Biryani Cart, Cer Te, Ma Peche, Food Gallery 32, El Rey del Sabor, Tri Tip Grill, Wafels & Dinges, Miss Softee & the Rolling Cones, Kelvin Slush, and Momofuku Milk Bar) and the endless drinks courtesy of Brooklyn Brewery and GuS’s soda.

Check out the highlights, after the jump…

Bian Dang’s colorful truck was there, serving up their tasty, meaty Taiwanese style pork chops with pork gravy and pickled veggies over rice with a smile. It was contributor Donny T’s favorite of the day.

They were parked next to their Food Gallery 32 co-horts, Boon Sik Zip, who served up delicious made to order kimbap featuring your choice of beef, tuna and veggie flavors. So good!

Eddie’s Pizza showed off their brand new cart (the very first of its kind!), serving up a light and shatteringly crisp tomato and basil bar pie.

Má Pêche Chef, Tien Ho, and his crew brought their A-game, serving a special banh mi that was conceptualized just for this event. This sandwich featured a ridiculously juicy and rich slab of pork belly, paired with crunchy pickled daikon beef,
crab mayo and green papaya, in a good crusty roll. Mamacita was a fan, saying “their pork reminded me the strong richness and fattiness that I would expect from an old school carnitas store in East LA. A heavy squirt of shiracha sauce just put a happy ending to the whole mouthful. I should mention the serving size demanded a two hander, my boyfriend had to hold my beer while I took this thing down.”  And Chris H appreciated how juicy and messy it was. ”I want stuff falling out of it and juice to be running down my wrists when I take a bite – this sandwich did just that, and it was awesome!”

Based on hear-say from the crowd, the Tri-Tip Grill crew earned themselves some new customers, as people buzzed about the lusciously meaty Baby Buck sliders.  Thinly sliced, super tender roast beef dipped in debris and topped with bbq sauce and horseradish… it was perfection on a potato roll.

Our friends over at Cer Te, not to be bested by Má Pêche, also came up with a new menu item for this event. Their contribution was a hearty house made lobster sausage in a snappy natural casing. They paired this ‘haute dog’, with a truffled fingerling potato salad, sprinkled with lobster infused salt. This dish ended up as contributor Brian Hoffman’s favorite dish, as he raved,

“It was so unusual and the flavors worked really well together. The truffle creamed potatoes on the side and a garnish of an inventive and out of control lobster salty put the dish over the edge for me. I don’t see this on their regular menu, but if they ever do add it, I know where I’ll be spending the majority of my summer lunches.”

El Rey Del Sabor showed up with their signature tacos, which were available with pork, beef, or chicken. The folks that opted for spicy were treated to an exhilarating but tongue searing level of spice. Luckily there was plenty of suds by Brooklyn Brewery and GuS soda available to put out the fire.

Muhammed Rahman and the Kwik Meal Cart team stuck with the stuff that made them famous… handing out samples of their pita stuffed with their signature chunks of whole, juicy lamb. A Midtown Lunch classic!

Meru and the Biryani Cart offered samples of another iconic aMidtown lunch, chicken biryani and kati rolls.

The crummy weather didn’t stop people from gulping down cup after cup of refreshing ginger and Arnold Palmer slushes from Kelvin Natural Slush. (And we may or may not have spotted Zach behind the prize table adding something from a flask into his…)

For dessert, attendees were treated to the always scrumptious Wafels and Dinges liegewafels, which were topped with a swipe of nutty spekuloos and a swirl of whipped cream.

And Chrissie (aka Miss Softee), ringleader of The Rolling Cones, was there to hand out her innovative ice cream creations, including the infamous Potato Chip Choco Dip cone and the Watchamacallit cone.

But the “genius of the day” award goes to Blondie, who sandwiched Miss Softee’s soft serve between two cookies from Momofuku Milk Bar!

Although food was the focus of the event, it was also a chance for friends and family of Midtown Lunch to meet, eat, drink, and be happy. And there was probably no one happier in attendance, than little Harry the unofficial Midtown Lunch mascot, who was able to escape the stroller and stretch his legs.

In addition to all the great food and drinks, thanks to all the vendors who donated prizes! Including, Sweetery NYC, Bon Chon, Goodburger, Mooncake Foods, Beacon, BeerParc, Schnitzel & Things, Eddie’s Pizza Truck, Bistro Truck, Big Gay Ice Cream Truck, Yushi, The Counter, Glaze Teriyaki, Taim Mobile, Kimchi Taco Truck, Mai Cuisine, Macaron Cafe, ‘wichcraft, Hertz Connect, Seamless Web, Not For Tourist Guides, and Bouchon Bakery. You didn’t have to be present to win, so we’ll be sending out the rest of the prizes this week!

And finally a big thank you to everybody who came out to the party to support Midtown Lunch and the Street Vendor Project. You guys made this birthday one we’ll always remember!

Earlier this week I saw on the ML Twitter Tracker that in honor of their return to the streets the Bian Dang Truck (aka NYC Cravings) was selling their #1 and #2 (chicken or pork chops over rice with pork sauce) for just $5 all week long
! Surprisingly I had yet to try the Bian Dang Truck and with a $5 special on offer, I couldn’t resist checking it out.

I arrived at around 1:15 and there was a short line that moved quickly on account that the fact that they had the specials prepacked and ready to go. Good planning guys! For $5 this is an awesome deal. The pork was ample and juicy and the pork sauce with pickles lived up to it’s crackalicious billing. The special is only on this week and according to their site they should be on 53rd between Park and Lexington. As always, check on the ML Twitter Tracker.

Related:
NYC Cravings Truck is Not Just Taiwanese Fried Chicken Anymore

Bian Dang, formerly known as NYC Cravings, has returned after a season of focusing on the brick and mortar world of Food Gallery 32. On Tuesday they hit my turf, the Flatiron District, in a brand new truck- but still serving up their usual menu (on 24th Street btw. Park+Mad). And yesterday they were in the Financial District.  Today?  They’re back in the fold, and planning to park on 53rd St. and Park Ave. (their old Thursday spot.)  But you’ll probably want to check their twitter account or the ML Twitter Tracker before heading out just to be safe.

First of all, the menu has finally found its legs, settling on a curtailed line-up of curated crêpe combos, as well as a DIY option.

Sweet Monsters
Red Rabbit – $6.00
Red bean ice cream, mochi bits, sweetened condensed milk

Milk Toaster – $5.00
Buttered Hong-Kong style raisin toast doused in sweetened condensed milk

Snow Beast – $7.00
Two scoops of ice cream + one spread + two toppings

Baby Beast – $5.50
One scoop of ice cream + one spread + one topping

Savory Monsters
Good Morning Monster – $5.50
Sliced ham, egg, cheese, fresh scallions

Booglie Googlie – $7.50
Bulgogi, sautéed onions, fresh romaine lettuce

Build Your Own
Frankenstein Crêpe – $5.50
One spread + two toppings

Ice Cream
Extra scoops – $1.50
Ice Cream Cups – $3.75
(Red bean, taro, black sesame, almond cookie, zen butter, green tea from Chinatown Ice Cream Factory)

Toppings/Spreads
First extra topping – $1.00
2nd and up toppings – $0.50 ea
Topppings: (Strawberries, blueberries, bananas, almonds, peanuts, coconut flakes, graham crackers, whipped cream)
Spreads: (Nutella, dark chocolate, white chocolate)

They now have two crêpe irons, and enough staff to man both simultaneously, although the process of creating the crêpe is, by its very nature, a bit on the slow side (anticipate a 5 minute wait per order). And instead of the classic French version, Crêpe Monster’s proclaims there’s to be Tokyo style, which is made slightly crispier with the addition of corn starch. The crêpe is then furnished with toppings and spreads, folded into a cone, and handed over the counter with a smile.

On my visit, I went with a Frankenstein Crêpe ($5.50) – sliced-to-order bananas, a sprinkle of crunchy graham crackers, and a generous layer of Nutella crammed into a fresh crêpe with a shatteringly flaky rim and pliable body. The result was outstanding.

I’ve picked up grumblings from various bloggers that Crêpe Monster needs to do a better job of advertising, as few people purposely venture up to the 3rd floor of Food Gallery 32. However, I wouldn’t be disappointed if Crêpe Monster kept themselves a hidden secret for a bit longer – I’d like to try a few more crêpes without the wait.

Crepe Monster in Food Gallery 32 (3rd Floor), 11 W. 32nd Street (btw. 5th and B’way).

The writers of Midtown Lunch (spurred on by Zach, no doubt) all seem to have a rapt fascination and begrudging respect for General Tso’s chicken – the faux-Chinese dish of deep fried lumps of breaded chicken, slathered in an unidentifiable glaze. Food snobs may dismiss this humble dish, but for the sentimental type, this dish is strongly evocative of simpler times – perhaps your childhood mall food court or the take-out dive that you’d frequent as a broke college student. And when we heard that Bian Dang in the Food Gallery 32 would be carrying this dish, it was a done deal.

But first, a PSA – I was informed by the Bian Dang counter staff that they are brushing off the dust on their street truck (fka NYC Cravings), which could be hitting the streets as soon as next Tuesday! This is obviously exciting news for the upper-Midtown lunchers that are out of range from Food Gallery 32. Additionally, their new ordering system seemed to be working well, though that may be a different story during peak lunch and dinner hours.

I sensibly chose the medium General Tso’s chicken ($8). I say sensibly, because the medium portion of chicken and rice was impressively large. So large, that I had to tap out with at least 1/3 of my rice remaining on my plate. Also, just as a fair warning, since the chicken is cooked to order, you’re looking at a 5-10 minute wait. But for fans of General Tso’s chicken, it’s certainly worth it.

Food plunked down onto the gleaming white tables in the cheerfully lit dining area, I dug in and found the chicken to pleasantly juicy, though not as crispy as other variations of the dish. The sauce was also comparably more delicate (well, as delicate as you can get with this dish), without the fierceness of salt and brawniness of garlic that I’ve come to expect out of General Tso’s chicken. And instead of a licking of heat, this version strayed towards the sweeter end of the flavor spectrum.

Though quite different from what I expected, this was a nice departure from bottom shelf preparations, which in the past have so often left my palate fatigued and my face and fingers swollen from an excess of salt and MSG. In short, it’s a fine version, and for $8 will definitely fill you up without overloading your palate with salt, grease or garlic.

In the meantime, we’re anxiously awaiting the re-launch of the Bian Dang truck, so be sure to follow them on twitter or the ML twitter tracker to find out where they’ll be next week.

Bian Dang (in Food Gallery 32), 11 W 32nd St (btw B’way+5th)