Midtown Lunch

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 Nancy who works in the middle of three neighborhoods with plenty of food options. Just don’t expect her to ask for extra mayo. 

Name: Nancy

Occupation: Advertising art director

Where you work: Canal & Varick

Age: Younger than the San Gennaro Feast

Favorite kinds of food: I prefer Asian food over American but I do love a good steak, great BBQ and lobster.

Least favorite foods: Anything with mayo or eggs, so egg salad tops the list.

Favorite lunches downtown: This neighborhood is great since we are so close to Tribeca, Chinatown, and the newly named “Hudson Square” which is growing in lunch options. I go to Pecan in Tribeca for their soup (butternut squash) and salad (chicken quinoa) lunch combo. When heading to the library on Leroy St., I hit Better Being Underground  (btw. Hudson & 7th Ave. South) for the Nuyorican wrap or Slumdog Millionaire press sandwich. Everyone in the ‘hood loves Alidoro on Sullivan (btw. Spring & Prince) and I usually order the Frugoletto sandwich. For $5 pho, I go to Nha Trang on Centre St. (at Walker) but if I’m not up for a walk through Chinatown, Mekong on King (at 6th Ave.) has tasty, though more expensive, Vietnamese. Mooncake Foods on Watts (at 6th Ave.) is close by and I love their salmon.

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: Soho Made Soups on Varick (at Grand) is in our building, so that’s where you’ll find most people on a rainy day. I pass a lot of co-workers on Grand St., getting lunch from Gourmet Garage or the Japanese Sunrise Mart.

Places downtown you discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch: Downtown? The Red Hook Lobster Truck! Their Connecticut roll has no mayo! And the Korean deli/bibimbap spot Picnic Basket on Hudson (btw. Franklin & N. Moore).

Dream job location, purely for lunch purposes, and why: I was going say Singapore for all their tasty Asian food, but I have to go with Italy…lunch lasts at least 2 hours and the food is fresh and amazing.

Anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch: Downtown readers? Any good salad places? I miss Thompson St. Café.

I’ve heard Clementine (used to be Columbine) at W. Broadway & White has good salads. And the kale salad at Birdbath Bakery is great. What do you all think? And as always, if you would like to be next week’s Profiled Lunch’er (or know somebody you’d like to nominate), email us at downtown@midtownlunch.com.