Midtown Lunch

Those of you who work way down in the Financial District often complain that your eating options aren’t that great, but to that I say, have you noticed how many trucks park down there these days? On a recent day, within a two-block radius there was the Cevap Truck, Souvlaki GR, Big D’s Grub and a frozen yogurt truck. I was trying to decide which to eat at and then spotted Moshe’s Falafel which showed up downtown a couple of weeks ago after disappearing from midtown, and hasn’t looked back. A guy working at the truck told me they’re parked in that spot at Hanover Sq. & Water every Friday, but it seems like they’re there every day. Read more »

Today is the day that Crisp finally introduces the Financial District to its “falafel handbag sandwiches” with its newest location on Fulton St. (nr. William). I went yesterday to check it out during a soft opening for friends and family (and lunch blogs!) and found out that this location is one of 10 more they hope to open around the city, although I was assured they are not trying to be the next Subway. They have all of the creative interpretations on falafel that exist at the two stores in Midtown, plus a couple of new things they’re trying out like opening at 7 a.m. and serving breakfast. What you will find is some fried chickpea balls thrown together with ingredients foreign to most purists (goat cheese and nachos anyone?). What you will not find is a falafel lunch at the rock-bottom prices you’re accustomed to from a trip to Sam’s or Alan’s carts.  Read more »

I don’t really know what voodoo I was expecting Chickpea to perform with its baked falafel to make me forget it wasn’t fried, but it didn’t happen. The chain is focused on healthy eating, and nothing there is fried. Don’t get me wrong, in the absence of Maoz way downtown, I’ll take Chickpea if I’m not in the mood to eat outside or at my desk. What can I say, I’m a sucker for falafel chains with fixin’s bars? Read more »

Back in the day when Daniel was on the downtown beat, he checked out the street meat truck that’s always parked on Cedar at Broadway and christened it the Frito Lay Truck, because that’s what it was in it’s former life of ferrying tasty snacks. A week or two ago I noticed the truck had been officially named the Gyro House, maybe after one too many people came by in search of Lay’s potato chips. In addition to a name, the owners got extra fancy and added a seizure-inducing sign on the top advertising the wares (I swear the above photo was a complete accident, and did not encourage me to order lamb). Daniel seemed fairly satisfied with the chicken he got there, but I was in search of falafel and wondered how this truck’s would stack up to the heavy hitters Sam’s Falafel across the street and Alan’s Falafel on the plaza in front of the truck. Read more »

If there’s one thing downtown is lacking in, it is gross (and I mean that in the best possible way) mash ups in sandwich form. The last place I expected to find such a thing was at Baba Ghanouge on Church St. (btw. Chambers & Reade), where their tagline is “Eat Healthy Live Longer.” Even the healthiest people like to put crappy food in their bodies sometimes, and for that purpose there is the chicken beiruti sandwich. It contains a secret ingredient that elevates this sandwich a few notches and almost makes you forget you’re eating in a place that’s trying to make you healthy. Read more »

I like exploring downtown to find promising places to eat, but I always prefer to follow a good lead. I was absolutely starving at 11:30AM on Friday, and so I followed Lunch’er Matt’s suggestion and my stomach’s desire for a hearty meal down to Kosher Luncheonette on the corner of Fulton Street and Cliff Street.

Matt recommended the falafel, so I got myself one of those, but as I was voracious – and so that I could give you guys a better sense of what Kosher Luncheonette has to offer – I also got a kasha knish and a bowl of tomato rice soup.

That morning I think I could have gnawed on a shoe and been happy, but even in that state I could recognize that Kosher Luncheonette’s food was not only far better than a shoe but was really good on its own right. My falafel was good, but the other food was even better, and I’ll be heading back to Kosher Luncheonette regularly for my lunchtime Jewish comfort food needs.

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“Every weekday, in broad daylight, a tahini-splattered falafel war is waged in Liberty Plaza Park, Wall Street’s great outdoors lunchroom.”

This kind of battle, described so eloquently by Rob and Robin in New York Magazine, is one that this otherwise peacenik Lunch’er can definitely get behind.

The other partisan in this fried chickpea conflict is, of course, Sam’s Falafel, which Daniel gave a thumbs up to back in 2008. I would have raved even more about Sam’s food that he did, but as much as I love Sam’s, I had to give the competition a try.

So who has the best falafel in the plaza? Whose fried chickpeas reign supreme? The winner is…

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