Midtown Lunch

• More lunch options could come to All Good Things. [Tribeca Citizen]
• A rundown of some lunch-only offerings, including Rubirosa. [Grub St.]
• Basil seed drink + banh mi = lunch of champions. [Eating in Translation]
• What it’s like to volunteer at the Vendy’s (and how to be one). [SENY]
• And speaking of…Vendy Cup finalists were announced! [ML]

The last time we checked in with A-Pou’s Taste cart they were still at their spot on Liberty St. & Broadway. One Citi Bike station and a couple of failed spots later, the cart is trying to put down roots on William St. between Maiden Lane & John St. in between Biryani House and Halal Gyro Express carts. As I walked up to the cart to ask if they were planning to park in that spot long term (they are), I noticed there were a couple of new dishes being advertised including a pork chop over rice and shrimp fried rice for $6 each. I’ve generally enjoyed everything I’ve eaten from this cart, but I’d have to say the fried rice may be a weak link.

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The newest addition to the genre of lunch spots serving many different types of things and having a by-the-pound buffet is Open Kitchen on William St. (at Beaver). The place occupies a huge retail area on the bottom floor of the William Beaver House condo building, and it’s perhaps the least-crowded lunch experience I’ve had.

Not all of the stations were up and running (still to come: Stir fry, ramen and specialty sandwiches), but most others were, along with the buffet which featured items that looked a bit tastier than the usual offerings. Prices are a bit higher than at the generic delis in the area, but the surroundings are also nicer, and they serve fancy Intelligentsia coffee. The good and bad about my lunch experience on what was essentially Open Kitchen’s opening day, straight ahead.

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This may be an exaggeration, but it seems like every week or two another place selling juices/smoothies/frozen yogurt/of the above opens or is coming soon to the Financial District. This week it’s the Elixir Juice Bar on Nassau St. between John & Fulton, opening in the spot that was formerly an Energy Kitchen. No word on why that place closed up, or if it’s being opened by the same people.

The strange assortment of foods offered at Roll and Go on Fulton St. has expanded to include bubble tea, according to a banner affixed to the window. You’re going to have to pay more than $1 for the drink (it looks like the price is between $3 and $4 depending on type), but it’s sure to complement your cheap slice of pizza or bargain basement rotisserie chicken.

While walking past the row of lunch spots between Pearl & S. William streets, I noticed that Pizza Pizza had changed its name to Justino’s Pizzeria. A search online shows that it’s a third location of an NYC mini-chain that’s also on Staten Island and Midtown. The menu looks pretty standard, although they do offer clam pizza and an “L and B style Sicilian” which I’m guessing is an homage to L&B Spumoni Gardens in Brooklyn.

Is it good or bad when you swear out loud due to the size of the lunch served to you? This was the question I asked myself after unwrapping my sandwich from the Fried Chicken & More cart.

I’d first tried the cart’s namesake fried chicken after they started serving food at Park Place & W. Broadway in January. The chicken was reasonably good, and most of all, dirt cheap. Since that first taste, the cart has expanded its offerings by leaps and bounds with several kinds of fried chicken products (nuggets, popcorn, wings) on the menu alongside cheeseburgers, a fish sandwich, falafel, pizza rolls, biscuits and fries. Unless you only order a single piece of chicken, you are not likely to go away hungry here.

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