Archive for April 2011

It’s FiDi Truck Day!: No, it's not a specially designated day, but Wednesday is when all of the trucks flock way downtown. On the ML Downtown Twitter Tracker we have Korilla BBQ on Front,  Bian Dang on Water and La Cense on Wall. In SoHo there's Joyride on Hudson and Rickshaw has a truck in Tribeca on Greenwich.

Fried Chicken Udon Soup From Cafe Hanover Is A Fat-Filled Cure

There is no scientific evidence that eating fried foods in soup will make you feel better but I’m just going to pretend this is true. Also, I know doing a post on soup when it’s 70 degrees outside isn’t exactly logical either but I’ve been under the weather and thought it would be an opportune time to sneak one more hot food post in before that starts to sound disgusting. With my head in a fog I was thinking of possible places to get soup and for some reason Cafe Hanover came to mind since I knew they had a section devoted to udon and soba. And nothing cures you better than noodles, salty broth and fried protein!

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Hopefully You Don’t Have To Desk Dine Today: The perfect weather has for once coincided with a bunch of trucks on the ML Downtown Twitter Tracker. Big D's Grub Truck is on Hanover Sq. and La Cense Burger is on Barclay. Calexico has a pulled pork with pineapple habenero salsa special and Taim Mobile is back from its break on Hudson. Rickshaw is also on Hudson and Korilla BBQ is on Varick. And another new entrant downtown today is the Cevap Truck parked on Old Slip.

Half Off Panini At Osteria Morini: If you've been wanting to eat at Osteria Morini on Lafayette (btw. Spring & Kenmare) but don't want to pay a lot now's your chance. From today through Friday you can try one of their new lunch panini for half off (normally $12 to $14), and one of them involves porchetta.

PROFILE: Downtown Lunch’er (And Tribeca Citizen Scribe) “Erik”

As is 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, we have Erik, who writes and edits TribecaCitizen.com and often tips me off to new restaurants I wouldn’t otherwise know about. And he thinks the neighbohood has untapped lunch potential.

Name: Erik Torkells

Occupation: Writer/editor

Where you work: Tribeca

Age: 41

Favorite Kinds of Food: Every food is better as a sandwich. And pizza, preferably of the charred-crust variety.

Least Favorite Foods: I’ve recently swung mostly vegetarian, so I’m going to have to say anything really meaty.

Favorite Lunches Downtown: I love Tribeca, and I love lunch, but they don’t really love each other. That’s why the first place that came to mind is Taïm in the West Village, where I’ll often make my pug walk. I’ve been trying to get the Taïm Mobile truck to come to Tribeca, but it won’t. I suppose you’d like me to talk about what’s around here…. Pakistan Tea House on Church St. (btw. Duane & Reade)for takeout. Capri Caffé on Church (btw. Chambers & Reade) is a cute hole-in-the-wall. Birdbath (Multiple Locations) makes delicious soups. 92YTribeca’s café on Hudson (btw. Vestry & Desbrosses) is an excellent value. I loved Stuzzicheria on Church St. (at Walker). Most people know Ward III on Reade (at W. Broadway) as a bar, but it has pretty good food, too. Yorganic on Greenwich (btw. Warren & Murray) is handy if I’m feeling virtuous (but even then I’ll order extra sauce). Greenwich Grill is one of my favorite restaurants, and it has an amazing $12 lunch deal of soup/salad, pasta/risotto, dessert and coffee/tea; And every now and then I take myself to Dim Sum Go Go on E. Broadway (btw. Catherine & Chatham Sq.)—my partner had a bad experience there years ago, so he refuses to go.

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Schnitzel, Merguez On The Twitter Tracker: If the rain holds off it's balmy enough out to eat outside, so let's see what's on offer on the ML Downtown Twitter Tracker, shall we? Rickshaw is on Wall St., La Cense Burger Truck is on Barclay, and Comme Ci, Comme Ca is on Old Slip. Sweetery is on Hudson along with Schnitzel & Things. It looks like the Tribeca Taco Truck is also making an appearance on Broadway.

High Hopes For Sandwich House Didn’t Pan Out

After a recent trip to Italy I’ve been thinking about all of the great food I ate there including a number of top-notch sandwiches. The problem is that most of the options near my office are more of the giant Italian-American parm variety. And I love Alidoro in SoHo but it’s not exactly convenient for those of us in the Financial District. Then I remembered Sandwich House on Ann St. (btw. Nassau & Park Row) served some Italian sandwiches that may just be what I was looking for. Daniel seemed to be impressed when he ate there a couple of years ago in search of his Rosario’s replacement so I decided to give it a shot.

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