Midtown Lunch

• Carnegie John is still MIA [Midtown Eating]
• A Banh Mi throw down is being proposed. Are you up for the challenge? [Midtown Eating]
• McDonald’s in India used to have a lamb Big Mac! I want to go to there. [Miscellaneous]
• Favorite food mash up? A street meat topped pizza sounds incredible! [Midtown Eating]
• How cool would it be if the Howard Stern show read Midtown Lunch!? [Midtown Eating]

In Kathy YL Chan‘s definitive guide to finding out of bounds sweets (like Doughnut Plant) in Midtown, she gave us good reason to throw money at Oren’s, Joe The Art of Coffee, and Dean & Deluca. But a few days ago, Lunch’er “Mariposa_3676” pointed out that Oren’s (on 3rd+50th) canceled their Doughnut Plant order for the week because no one is buying!  (Passover maybe?) She checked out Joe’s in GCT too, but nothing there either. It was a grim day for square-shaped doughnut fiends, until…

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The problem with Korean Fried Chicken is that it’s actually so good that you’re willing to go through a lot to get it. I discovered this a couple years ago at Mad For Chicken (a branch of Bon Chon Chicken at the time.) Both patience and the lunch hour were tested as 10, then 20, then 30 minutes went by with neither food served nor drinks refilled. But a year ago, when Zach first posted about the place, it was our only lunchtime option. It cost more than you wanted to spend and often took a lot longer than you really had time for… but oh, that chicken! Crisp, sweet and sticky, it made all the worries of time and work melt away.

That’s why when Kyochon’s ‘coming soon’ sign went up last February, I rejoiced. Korean Fried Chicken without the interminable wait? Yes, please! Or so I thought. If the year-long delay didn’t set me straight, the lines out the door after it opened certainly did. Clearly, waiting for Korean Fried Chicken is just a requirement. It’s the way it is. So, the question becomes, with Kyochon finally here, Mad For Chicken across the street and a Bon Chon a few blocks away (and another opening up on the same block as Kyochon), how do they stack up?

With the alternating hype and dog-piling on Kyochon, a clear, unbiased fried chicken smackdown was in order. I gladly stepped up (arteries be damned.)

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So… as much as it saddens me to say, next week will be my last week of full time lunching in Midtown. It’s not really goodbye, and I will definitely be back for Street Meat Palooza, Choice Eats, the Vendy Awards, and some random lunching, but after next Friday I won’t be the full time voice of Midtown Lunch anymore. Since I announced a few weeks ago that I was moving to L.A. there have been some “sky is falling” comments and emails saying that things won’t be the same.  Not that many… but a few.  And I just want to assure those 7 concerned people that nothing is going to change on Midtown Lunch when I leave.  Not just because I’ll still be overseeing the site, and would never let that happen- but also because the site has never really been about me.  It’s always been about finding lunch.

In just under four years Midtown Lunch has grown into an enormous community of like-minded eaters, converging in one place to share news, tips, and opinions about the best hour of our lousy work day. Everything I write about on this site originates from you, whether it’s an email, a photo, a comment on a review, or a post in the forums.  Nothing comes out of thin air… everything comes from you guys. What I’m trying to say is, on Feburary 1st I’ll just be handing over the site to the people who have always run it… you guys.

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Got this email from Profiled Midtown Lunch’er Jenn today, and it started me thinking what other weird lunchtime treats are people hiding in their desk drawers.

Since the word is out on your LA departure, I thought I’d take this opportunity to impart to you my Midtown Lunch Secret of Shame. A few things you should know first:

1. My midtown office only has 3 people (including myself) in it.
2. My desk is partially blocked from view by a semi-wall.
3. I really really love sardines and other varieties of stinky canned fish.

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As is customary here on Midtown Lunch, we always end the year with a gigantic photo of every lunch consumed in Midtown that year.  Once again I can’t decide whether or not to be proud or ashamed… but one thing is for sure, the photo is much larger than last year.  (As is my gut.)

So, without further ado… every Midtown Lunch I consumed in 2009 in one gigantic photo.

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If you work anywhere near Rock Center you might want to leave work now, or consider sleeping under your desk tonight. Not surprisingly tonight’s tree lighting ceremony has turned the entire area into a zoo. But what really sucks is the cops have kicked all the street vendors off 6th Ave from 46th to 52nd. Some of the sidewalk carts have managed to find spots off the corners (like the Biriyani Cart, which moved 50 yards West) but trucks are being kicked off the streets entirely. Street Sweets has moved to 43rd St and 6th for now, but the Treats Truck fled to the Flatiron. Kwik Meal seems to be ok, as do the carts on 53rd and 6th (for now). Got any updates? Feel free to put them in the comments…