Midtown Lunch

In case you’re in the mood for a sandwich involving french fries or an extreme amount of garlic, the new location of Baba Ghanouge is open on Fulton St. (btw. Broadway & Nassau), adding to the original on Church St. in Tribeca. The Financial District now has a bunch of solid options within a small area for falafel and meats cooked on a spit, including Crisp, Alfanoose and Pita Express. There’s always room for one more, and maybe if you sniff real hard you will be able to smell fried chicken from the previous inhabitant of Baba Ghanouge’s space.

Do you ever take a look at your lunch and wish you would have bought a coffee to go along with it? That was the feeling I had after unwrapping the loaded knish I got during the first day of business at Long Island Bagel Cafe on Fulton St. (btw. Nassau & William). They were still training staff so they were giving 50% off your order. I took this as an opportunity to double dip and get both a bagel sandwich (for a later review), and to find out what was up with the loaded knish section of the menu. Basically, I ordered a handheld nap.

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Earlier this week Lunch’er Jamie wrote in to say that the Goodburger on Maiden Lane (at Pearl) which has been closed since hurricane Sandy was gone and being replaced by…another burger shop. Lo and behold, something called Clarke’s Standard is going in there, with paper in the windows promising freshly ground burgers and homemade sausage. It looks like another location of Goodburger in Midtown is making the same switch so either they’re owned by the same company, or Clarke’s Standard is just picking off faltering burger joints. Watch your back Five Guys!

I’m not sure how many of you are in the camp that loves sandwiches on bagels, but Long Island Bagel Cafe which is coming to Fulton St. between Nassau & William has announced an approximate opening date. The paper’s been down from the windows, and people have been working inside which makes it look open, but you would be wrong. There is a sign propped up on the door saying that they hope to open around Jan. 14, so prepare yourself for whatever a “loaded knish” is.

It’s not only the Financial District that’s having a flurry of new lunch spots opening: Battery Park City is having its day in the sun with the previous Japanese curry invasion announcement and word that Bill’s Bar & Burger is coming to the neighborhood. It’s already been approved by contributors over on the Midtown site, so maybe we should start getting excited about the beef influx coming our way. Read more »

Do you like giant platters of fried meat with Japanese curry gravy and rice? And do you occasionally want to eat something called a Grand Slam that doesn’t come from Denny’s? If the answer to these questions is “Yes!” get ready to get excited because Midtown institution Go Go Curry has announced on Facebook that it’s opening a third location somewhere near the World Financial Center. That could mean Battery Park City or somewhere in Tribeca…or actually in the WFC. At this point, details are scarce other than it’s opening early in 2013. We can only hope that they bring the eating contest and free anniversary toppings with them.

If you’re familiar with the menus of places like Energy Kitchen, Muscle Maker Grill and Dig Inn, then you probably know what lunch options you’ll find at Stamina Grill that just opened on Nassau St. (btw. John & Fulton). Think lean meats in sandwiches, salads, wraps, quesadillas, and on pizza. There are also smoothies, a juice bar and all-day breakfast if that’s your thing. Click through for a partial look at the expansive, muscle-building menu.

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