Archive for February 2010

A Hidden Bargain from Swich

As Zach pointed out to me, I’ve been on a bit of a hoity-toity binge lately. Pricey burgers, fancy cafes. I’m worried I’m going to start losing some Lunch’er cred soon. Fortunately, Chris has been keeping us on the right track with tasty pizza and cart food, and I promise to do some real bargain-hunting for next week.

In the meantime, though I returned to Swich the other day and found a cheap and wonderful surprise tucked away on the Sides section of their menu: For $2.50 you can get a heaping container of israeli couscous with herbs and cranberries. It’s not big enough to be lunch on its own, but it’s the perfect thing when that bacon-jalapeno slice doesn’t quite sate you.

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PROFILE: Dowtown Lunch’er “Bobby”

As it customary here on Midtown Lunch, every Tuesday we’ll profile a different lunch’er and get their recommendations for places to eat in Downtown NYC. This week, international man of mystery Bobby tells us how his aunt scarred him for life and his pick for best late lunch deal around the FiDi…

BobbyName: Bobby

Age: 31

Occupation: Information Technology (and international hardcore techno dj!)

Where do you work?: Financial district

Favorite Kind of Food: Pizza & wraps. Street meat will always have a special place in my heart. And who could say no to a good sandwich?

Least Favorite Kind of Food: I say my least favorite food would have to be intestines. In fact anything that isn’t really meat just turns me off.

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Kiva Cafe is a Breath of Fresh Air

Seth talked last week about how downtown dining is all about location, location, location. We may not have the variety of midtown, but we boast loads of places to eat that are pleasant places to be as well.

Kiva Cafe on Reade Street is just such a place, and the food is terrific to boot. Kathy over on Serious Eats tipped me off to Kiva’s $8.50 soup and sandwich deal, and her picture was so enticing that my friend Gigi and I went the next day. The food was just as excellent as I had hoped, and the cozy feel and super-friendly staff make this a place I’ll be returning to often.

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Downtown Links (The “My Sweet Tooth Just Got Bigger” Edition)

Pear Tart from Ceci-Cela, courtesy of Kathy Chan from A Passion for Food

  • I want Ceci-Cela’s Pear Tart, and I want it now. [Serious Eats]
  • I’d also settle for Village Tart’s Apple Galette. [Lunch with Front Studio]
  • Yvo’s quest for the perfect bowl of hand-pulled noodles continues at Sheng Wang. [Feisty Foodie]
  • Yes, Locanda Verde’s all-you-can-eat pasta dinner costs $39, but if I eat four lunches worth, does that make it OK? [New York Magazine]
  • BLT Bar & Grill and Beta Coffee coming to the FiDi. [Eater]
  • In case you missed it, downtown’s favorite grimy bar The Patriot Saloon  has an, uh, intriguing job offer. [Eater]

Bacon Jalapeno Slice Available Today at The Grotto: In case you missed it, the owner of the Grotto pizzeria and restaurant responded to our readers and is making his bacon jalapeno pizza available in slice form today! Ask and you shall receive.

Zaitzeff’s Terrific Burger Worth the (Considerable) Cost

Thinking about writing this post, I spent a long time trying to come up with some excuses for the prices at Zaitzeff on the corner of Nassau and John: They use high-quality beef, they make all the sandwiches and fries to order, they’re sitting on prime real estate, etc. But I realized that the fact that I want to excuse them might just be endorsement enough.

I love this place. I wish I could get a burger and fries and a drink for my $10, but I can’t. I still love it. I also–and I’d loved to be proven wrong–can’t find a better burger in the area.

The meat they use is terrific, a burger ordered medium rare is actually cooked medium rare, and the fries–even though they’ll put your lunch well over $10– are awesome in both their regular and sweet potato varieties. We could argue until the cows come home (to be grilled) about whether this burger is “worth” the price, but I for one keep going back. Quod est demonstrandum, if you ask me.

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Pizza Goes Underground at the Grotto. Literally.

The Grotto 002
Today was going to mark Midtown Lunch: Downtown NYC’s first foray into Chinatown, but for that occasion we wanted to make it special.  At first we thought flowers or balloons, but that seemed so cliche.  Then we thought about getting you a kitten, but buying someone an unexpected pet is never a good idea in NYC.  Finally, we decided on the perfect surprise, something we knew would make your eyes light up and maybe even cause you to shed a tear of joy.  Unfortunately, the surprise isn’t quite ready.  But it will be.  And soon.

In the mean time, let me take you on a little stroll down New Street to the aptly named Grotto.  Located in the basement at 69 New Street, the restaurant is fairly dungeon-esque with no windows, no natural light to speak of, but thankfully a pretty good ventilation system.  Not that you’ll want to inhale anything other than the heavenly aromas emanating from the ovens.  These guys are taking pizza to unseen levels as far as New York pizza is concerned, with spicy buffalo chicken, chicken parm, and bacon jalapeno pizzas.

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