Midtown Lunch

While walking by the Yushi on Pearl St. (btw. Maiden Lane & Pine) I noticed that he windows are all papered up although the lights were on inside. This could mean that there is some sort of renovation happening inside, or that Yushi is no more and something else is moving in. This location had to do a lot of work to reopen after last year’s hurricane and then they were operating during limited hours and running on generators. If I get word on what the situation is, I’ll post an update.

When I saw a man handing out food on Nassau St. next to Nicky’s Vietnamese Sandwiches, I thought I was going to get a little free banh mi action. Instead, I discovered that a place called Pisillo Italian Panini had opened next door with a super-focused menu of only sandwiches. There are 25 varieties with fillings such as prosciutto, salami, tuna, sopressata, fresh or smoked mozzarella and various spreads and toppings it’s a bit like Alidoro in that there aren’t any parm sandwiches or other Italian-American concessions made. Prices range between $8.50 to $11.90 and note that it’s cash only. As always, if you eat there, let us know how the food was in the comments!

Pisillo Italian Panini, 97 Nassau St. (btw. Fulton & Ann streets), (212) 227-1304

I’ve eaten sushi from a drug store, surprisingly good sushi, and disappointing sushi from a place with sushi in its name. However, I’d never eaten a sushi crepe before so when Tous Crepes opened its doors with this item on the menu I decided to sidestep the long list of more conventional iterations. What happens when you substitute rice for a buckwheat crepe? Find out straight ahead.  Read more »

• Yuji Ramen becomes a permanent fixture at Whole Foods. [Eater NY]
• Go to Square Diner for the ambience, stay for a sandwich. [SENY]
• A branch of a gourmet takeout shop is coming to BPC. [DNAinfo]
• The bagel sandwiches at Davidovich are a steal. [FitR]

I wasn’t sure what to expect when walking into Maid Cafe NY on Centre St. (at Walker) in Chinatown. Would I be accosted by ladies dressed as maids? Would the food be terrible? Neither of these turned out to be entirely true, although the cafe is probably better used as the source of Japanese sweets than a solid lunch.  Read more »

Last week the Banh Mi Cart at Hanover Sq. and Pearl started serving beef noodle soup (aka, pho) which was a departure from their roster of sandwiches, spring rolls and drinks. This is kind of great news for the winter months when a heart soup may sound better than a sandwich, but could pho from a cart be any good? The answer is yes, but with some caveats.  Read more »

This place got an A but its neighbors may not have.

An article recently came out saying that only 51% of the restaurants in Chinatown have earned an A grades from the Department of Health. This doesn’t sound so bad until you compare it with the statistic that 80% of restaurants in the rest of NYC have gotten an A. I’ve noticed that ethnic eateries in neighborhoods with large immigrant populations often have a B, C or Grade Pending displayed in the window, but it doesn’t really bother me. However, changes are being made to try to reverse the trend.  Read more »