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A REAL Midtown Lunch challenge: $5 LUNCHES
Posted: 5:13 pm, July 9th, 2009 in Midtown Eating
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50 Comments
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Btw, "REAL" = "absolutely huge challenge"
(not taking shots at ML, Zach, don't worry :) ) -
This is not so different from the $6 lunch thread, but it's my favorite topic, so I'll bite.
Does it have to include tax? Let's say it does, just to make it really difficult.
The obvious would be the majority of street meat carts and pizza places. Beyond that, there's the unda masala roll (b/c potato is more filling than meat) at Kati Roll for $4.25 plus tax. I like the jap chae at Woorijip for $4 plus tax, but it's also vegetarian. For the meatatarians they have an awesome new item: curry-flavored fried chicken wings ($4 plus tax), but it's not very filling. I forgot the price of Khodiar chaat, but it's definitely under $5.
But for me, the king of quality and cheapness is Cafe Zaiya. The Zaiya Meal at $4.25 plus tax offers variety, size, and cheapness. (Fried fish sandwich is also great, but it's not a complete lunch. You'd have to supplement it with a baked good or rice ball.)
P.S. As much as I love Hing Won, it ain't a $5 lunch. Most of the items on the menu are $6 plus tax, or more.
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2 tacos from El Rey del Sabor... mmmmmm, goood
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Guys, you are awesome. I have to try the Zaiya Meal at Cafe Zaiya; my only problem with them is that they're so dang far away from the office!!
Where is El Rey del Sabor?
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And yes, it's not much different from the $6 forum, but I wanted to see if I can go to $5...
Thanks again! Keep the suggestions coming!!
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El rey Del Sabor 60th and 3rd
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But isn't Bojangles a US chain serving chicken and biscuits. You can easily get the same big chain fast food lunches here for $5.
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Jamaican Dutchy: $5 for either stewed or curry chicken mini-meals.
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Bojangles' IS a US chain, but the food there is exponentially better than most chain we can get here.
(also, the $5 meals would not be limited to Bojangles', haha)
Thanks, Apikoros18! (and thanks, locondcoco for the Dutchy cart; I pass by him all the time)
Keep 'em coming!!
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Zaiya is less than 10 little blocks from RockCenter. Inconvenient but still walkable. Closer to RockCenter, Indus Express has some chaat for under $5. The funny thing about eating chaat for lunch is that although it's often big enough, it doesn't "feel" like lunch. It feels more like an enormous snack.
Speaking of chains, I'm actually a bit surprised that Subway honors the $5 footlong deal in Midtown. Too bad subway is gross. And if you can find the McDonalds dollar menu, you could choose any 5 items from it for $5 plus tax. Completely disgusting, but imagine eating 2 McDoubles, 2 McChickens, and 2 apple pies for $5 plus tax. That's astounding "value" when you think about it. I did the math, and that's a 2000 calorie meal (860 from fat).
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Good point, Dan L. I have ventured to Indus many times.
Variety Cafe has a Mongolian grill in the back, but I'm wondering if I can get a dish there for $5...
And yes, Zaiya is about 10 blocks, I'm lazy, sue me :P
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A huge Gyro (or 6 other sandwiches) from Uncle Nick's is $4.95
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That looks DELICIOUS, MWinston. Thank you!!
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I second the chaat from Indus Express, great deal for under $5 and lately I've been going to Sukhadia more as well, extremely filling, just be sure to stick with the paneer or kachori.
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Cheap (and GOOD) Indian food is a hard thing to come by in Midtown, dmax, and I totally agree the paneer and kachori are delicious.
(Being Indian myself, I appreciate good cheap Indian meals)
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The halal cart at the NW corner of 39th and Broadway does a smaller sized chicken/lamb on rice for $3.50. It's just just big enough to be filling.
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Yum, but 39th is a bit of a trip from Rock Center.
Keep 'em coming!
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5 combo for 5 dollars (incl tax) from lunchbox 34th bet 7th and 8th. this place hardly gets any love.
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I'll bring some love.
That sounds phenomenal. Define "5 combo" though, AL@1PP
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http://midtownlunch.com/2008/06/20/fay-da-bakery-elevates-the-lunch-box-buffet/
basically at the steam-buffet bar you choose 5 items for your 5 dollars. they control the portions, but it's not really a problem in terms of quantity. the best stuff is at the end of the table near the door, giant egg rolls, fried chicken legs, stuff like that. (rice counts as 1 item, but you get alot of it)
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I get a big bowl of Cup Ramyun (Cup noodles) at any deli that has them.. (get the SHIN NOODLES.. they're teh best) that will be about 3.50.. then a small thing of rice at a chinese place for $1.00... after i eat the noodles, dump the rice in the broth.. it's delicious
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Besides being a street meats devourer, I'm a pizza pulverizer so 2 Bros special at 2.75 for 2 slices and soda can.
I also read the recent post about fried chicken for a buck a piece. A slice is a buck too. F#%& the useless soda and make yourself a delicious FRIED CHICKEN PIZZA SLICE for 2 bucks! Who cares if your fingers and hand are all greasy. -
That fried chicken pizza sounds absolutely delectable, StreetMeasOnsumer3008!
I plan to take a trip to Fay Da soon, AL@1PP.
And sushiburger, I haven't tried the SHIN Noodles yet, but that's a smart move! Hmmm
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mean fiddler's $4 slider special is def one of the best meals for under $5. I had it the other day and the beef burgers are amazing. Their burgers are bigger than white castle sliders and taste 1000 times better.
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Thanks, jokgga!
I've been meaning to try Mean Fiddler's deal. Is that only during Happy Hour, and is that also 7 days a week??
The slider deal I've been living on is 123 BSB's - they're small, but they're so greasy and delicious
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Yup the $4 sliders at Mean Fiddler are good, even the buffalo chicken ones with blue cheese dressing are worth trying. If you haven't seen it, here's the review I did for ML
http://midtownlunch.com/2009/07/10/midtown-happy-hour-duck-away-from-times-square-for-sliders-at-the-mean-fiddler/ -
Yeah, I read your review, Mamacita. It looks phenomenal, and it's MUCH closer to me than 123 BSB (though the walk helps me get hungrier, haha).
Yay, my forum got the Mamacita treatment! (Little pleasures in life)
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What else, guys??? I need more suggestions!
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The Biriyani cart at 46th /Sixth Ave is a great place.
It has become our staple. Try their "combo kabab over rice" ... ofcourse you always have their Biryani ! -
I haven't tried the Biryani cart (I almost did a few weeks ago) yet! I know, I know, I'm lame.
Btw, have you guys seen the ML sponsor stickers on the sides of the 53rd and 6th Halal Guys carts? Pretty awesome!
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So what else, guys???
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1.75 cent slices from naples 45.
2 slices r sufficiently filling if you dont plan on napping after lunch. -
ooh! 45th and what?
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45th and park...met life building...
its only after 2pm but the pizza is just as delicious.
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I don't think that it's too hard to get a filling meal for under $5. One big rule is not buy anything to drink. Ever. Only get it when it comes with the meal. If anything always ask for water. It's always free b/c it's NYC law. Best place for free water is Starbucks.
For $5 or less meals:
- Whole Foods: Go to the hot bar and you can get a vegetable, meat, and starch all for under $5. You might be able to sneak a piece of fruit from the produce section. The thing is that you have to carefully monitor how much they are putting into your small containers. Don't let them pack it up and be mindful of what is heavier and lighter. You can get a good helping of mac and cheese for about $1 and some change. If you get a piece of bread from their bakery section then you won't even need to get a starch. That way you can change it up a bit.
- Chinatown Buffet on Times Square:
Get your meal to go. It's about $5.00+ p/lb. So unless you really need a pound of food you really shouldn't have to spend more than $4.75 here. They claim that they charge extra for seafood, so stick it underneath the cheaper food if needed.-Cafe Zaiya:
They have those $5 meals. In order to avoid the tax making it over $5 skip out on the water.- Fuji bakery:
Get there before 12:30pm and you can still have your pick of Dim Sum leftover from the morning. You can get Sui Mai, shrimp Rice Noodles, and a baked good for under $5.- Jimmy's Burgers:
The small burgers are $2.50 each. You can get 1 burger and a side for under $5. The burger is small, but the side is plenty. Get 2 burgers for $5.00, but after tax it's going to be a little more so take your chance.-The Lunch box on 34th st:
Get 1-2 baked goods plus the single container. You can only get one hot item from the buffet, but with the 1-2 baked bread goods you should feel pretty full.- West Indian restaurant near K-Mart & Penn on 34th st:
Somewhere in that area there's a West Indian restaurant that offers $5 lunch specials. They are smaller than their normal offerings, but they pack as much food into that thing as humanly possible.I can't think of anymore at the moment, but sometimes, one thing you can do is to ask for much less. When you do they will cut down the price a lot. Sometimes. Depending where you go so you will have to check it out for yourself.
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Not to double post, but I just remembered. Another great tip is when you do go out and get that $6-9 meal, have it last for about 2 days, 3 max. That way you can revel in the fact that you, literally, spent $2-3 per day for lunch.
This only works where they serve you a LOT of food, of course.
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Good point, 5DollarQueen. That's what I've been doing a lot recently. Thanks for all the suggestions too!
Thanks for the st location, Samwich, I do have a lot of late lunches.
Keep 'em coming!!
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@5DollarQueen, is the West Indian near K-Mart and Penn this place?
The post above says that "small" lunches are 7 to 8 dollars. Please clarify.
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Does Chinatown count as Midtown? I didn't think so. I've got nothing.
When I went down to NC to see my girlfriend a month ago, we were eating lunch at Bojangles' and talking about the price of lunch here versus back up in NYC (where we went to college together). In her words:
"If you spent more than $5 here, you'd feel guilty. If you spent less than $5 in NYC, you'd feel like you didn't get much at all."
That made me think: can you get a meal in Midtown for $5 or less???
What I have so far:
- Gyro from the 53rd and 6th St. cart ($4)
- Classic American cheese grilled cheese from Burger Heaven ($3.50)
- 1 full dish from either Yip's or Hing Won ($5 tops)
- Fried fish sandwich at Cafe Zaiya ($3.50)
- Burrito from the 50th St. btwn. 6th and 7th Mexican taco and burrito cart ($5)
What else???