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 Cia who hadn’t ventured past Broadway or below Fulton for her lunches, and needs you help finding a spot to make her do it.

Name: Cia_b

Occupation: Web producer

Where you work: Barclay + Vesey

Age: Older than your ramp pickles

Favorite kinds of food: Peter Luger’s porterhouse, Sushiden sushi/sashimi, Sichuan Chinese food, a perfectly poached egg, pork belly anything, pickled anything.

Least favorite foods: White chicken breast

Favorite lunches downtown: Nicky’s Vietnamese Sandwiches‘ classic bahn mi with extra sriracha (because I have no other closer choice, so I’ll take it); Chipotle (Multiple Locations) for cilantro-lime rice; smoked turkey and Brie sandwich at Blue Spoon Coffee on Chambers (btw. B’way & Church); Locanda Verde’s shaved porchetta sandwich; the raw bar at North End Grill; the lunch specials at Takahachi Bakery on Murray (at Church); the hangover sandwich at Petite Abeille (Multiple Locations); and Shake Shack on Murray (btw. West St. & N. End Ave.).

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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 the president of the Alliance for Downtown NY, Liz Berger, who not only works in lower Manhattan, but has also lived there for 30 years.

Name: Liz Berger

Occupation: President, Alliance for Downtown New York

Where you work: Broadway between Cedar and Pine streets

Age: 51

Favorite kinds of food: Anything delicious, fresh and not too sweet, from Shaun Hergatt’s take on haute cuisine to the fantastic new food trucks at the World Financial Center.  Right now, I’m craving crunchy, Asian home style and fusion, Italian or anything grilled, but I’m easily entranced by other flavors and cuisines.  I love to eat, am fascinated by foodways, and co-authored a book about food many years ago in which I interviewed Julia Child, among other great cooks, chefs and food writers.  I’ll never forget what she said her favorite dessert was:  a perfectly ripe pear.

Least favorite foods: I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t like yogurt, a staple of so many cuisines and a really versatile lunch.  I’m also not so fond of dishes that gild the lily – lobster mac and cheese, brownie hot fudge sundae, anything “supersized”; while I’m happy to redefine authenticity, sometimes more is too much!

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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 Jen who has all of the bases covered for downtown lunching, but is looking for some elusive good ramen.

Name: Jen Balisi

Occupation: Digital marketer and food blogger on the side

Where you work: World Financial Center

Age: 22

Favorite kinds of food: Anything indulgent (i.e. lobster rolls, rich & fatty ramen, anything with truffle oil/butter), proteins that are juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside (Filipino lechon, Peking duck), Asian fusion (Korilla tacos/burritos, Bibimbap burger, Japadog), pizza with LOTS of fresh basil, tacos, pork buns, and eggs benedict. I like most everything.

Least favorite foods: $15+ salads. It just doesn’t make sense. Also not a fan of cole slaw, non-pickled cucumbers, bananas, or raw tomatoes (exceptions: pico de gallo and bruschetta).

Favorite lunches downtown: When I was still at NYU, I practically lived off Cafetasia lunch specials, shakshuka from Hummus Place, and NY Dosas. For corporate life, the food trucks at the WFC lot have been my lunchtime savior with the falafel platter from Taim Mobile, arugula pie from Eddie’s Pizza truck, lobster BLT from Red Hook Lobster Pound truck, and al pastor tacos/torta from Mexico Blvd. at the top of my list. Having a Shake Shack on Murray St. (btw. West St. & N. End Ave.) by the office is obviously a great option too. Other FiDi faves are the shrimp or lobster roll from Luke’s Lobster on S. William (nr. Broad), the $6 potsticker/”Chinese spaghetti” combo from A- Pou’s Taste cart on Liberty (at Broadway) w/ extra hot sauce, chocolate pork tacos from Toloache Taqueria on Maiden Lane (btw. William & Gold), and half soy garlic/half spicy wings from BonChon on John St. (at Cliff).

Since I practically live in Nolita on weekends, I also have to give some love to the Cuban sandwich and grilled corn (it’s like crack) at Cafe Habana on Prince St. (at Elizabeth); beef rendang and Hainanese chicken w/ rice from Nyonya on Grand St. (btw. Mulberry & Mott); bocadillos at Despaña on Broome St. (btw. Lafayette & Centre) – the namesake with Serrano ham and goat cheese is my fave; the most amazing shrimp tacos from Cafe El Portal on Elizabeth (btw. Kenmare & Spring); and the Bronte/Bondi burgers from Ruby’s on Mulberry (nr. Spring). Sweet chili sauce on a burger/chicken sandwich? Yes, please.

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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 Yury who is looking for the perfect Indian burrito (my terminology, not his).

Name: Yury

Occupation: Fraud investigator

Where you work: Broadway & Cedar

Age: 24

Favorite kinds of food: I generally love food and love trying new things, but the three things that I can never go wrong with are burgers, sushi and kati rolls.

Least favorite foods: I can’t stand olives, but other than that I will eat almost anything (within reason).

Favorite lunches downtown: There are a bunch of places downtown that I tend to rotate among. These include: Pita Press on Cedar (btw. William & Pearl) for chicken and lamb platters; Water St. Deli on Water (btw. Broad & Moore) for great udon noodles and a fantastic specialty sandwich selection; Flavors (Multiple Locations) has a nice salad bar; Zeytuna on Maiden Lane (btw. Nassau & William) for their large selection of pretty much everything you can imagine, and it’s also a great place during the summer since they have outdoor seating; Suspenders on Broadway (btw. Pine & Thames), Goodburger on Maiden Lane (at Pearl) and Five Guys on Fulton (at Dutch) all have good burgers. Also, the other day I discovered that there is a Shake Shack over on Murray St. by the World Financial Center, so they will definitely be seeing a lot of me in the coming weeks!

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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 Eric who works ever so slightly out of bounds, but I know many of you working in Soho often trek up to the W. Village for lunch.

Name: Eric

Occupation: HR & financial analyst and food blogger

Where you work: Hudson and W. Houston

Age: 26

Favorite kinds of food: Pizza, Chinese, Thai, bacon cheeseburgers, anything with melty goodness.

Least favorite foods: Tofu, Indian

Favorite lunches downtown: For (American) Chinese, it would be Suzie’s on Bleecker (btw. Thompson & Sullivan). Their lunch special tops out at $8, which includes soup (wonton soup – awesome), two chicken wings/veggie roll, your dish and rice.  The sesame chicken is on point, as is anything with broccoli.  Pizza, I gotta go Bleecker Street Pizza on 7th Ave. S. (at Bleecker) and get either the grilled chicken or Nonna Maria slice.  The “secret” Chick-Fil-A at NYU is another favorite.  Of course with all the food trucks around, Schnitzel & Things and Crisp on Wheels are frequented, too.

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: “The Kapeteria” aka the cafeteria in my office building.

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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 Casey who has thus far not gotten any lunch recs from this site (sad!), but at least discovered the deals at Peep.

Name: Casey

Title: Associate Director – Fashion + Beauty Practice

Where you work: Varick & Vandam

Age: 26

Favorite kinds of food: Indian, sushi, Korean

Least favorite foods: Ethiopian

Favorite lunches downtown: Peep on Prince (btw. Thompson & Sullivan) for their lunch special which has great basil noodles

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: Pret a Manger (Multiple Locations), Hale & Hearty (Multiple Locations), and the local deli.

Places downtown you discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch: Downtown? [Ed. note: Casey unfortunately said she hasn't made any discoveries from this site! Clearly I must get up to that area of Soho more often].

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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 Drew who often strays up to Greenwich Village for lunch, and needs your help finding a certain kind of sandwich.

Name: Drew

Title: Consumer and lifestyle social media associate

Where you work: Attention at Varick and Charlton

Age: 24

Favorite kinds of food: Italian, Mexican and dessert

Least favorite foods: Anything with goat cheese.

Favorite lunches downtown: The smash at the Meatball Shop (Multiple Locations); chicken burritos at Dos Toros (Multiple Locations); Michigan Sandwich #9 (Turkey, brie, raspberry mustard, green apples) from Grey Dog on Mulberry (btw. Spring & Prince).

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: The Meatball Shop.

Places downtown you discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch: Downtown? Energy Kitchen on Nassau (btw. John & Fulton).

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