Midtown Lunch

As is customary at Philly Lunch, every Tuesday we turn over the site to a different lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Philadelphia. This week, it’s Aubre, who will glady let you eat the foie gras off her plate.

Name: Aubre

Age: 24

Occupation: Coordinator at U Penn

Where in Philly do you Work?: University of Pennsylvania

Favorite Kind of Food: Generally any kind of carb that has cheese incorporated. That being said—sandwiches, bagels, pizza and pasta are some of my biggest weaknesses. I could eat an everything bagel with veggie cream cheese every single day, for the rest of my life, and die a very happy, very fat woman. I love falafel, any kind of curry, Thai and Japanese noodle dishes, SUSHI, burritos, cheeseburgers and hot dogs. I also passionately love brunch. Idea for you—Midtown Brunch. Let it marinate.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Foie gras. 1 out of every 3 times I tell someone this, they’re all “Oooh no, you just haven’t had the right foie gras. There’s NO way you could just outright hate it.” Actually, I could. And I do. No arguments!

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Philly: Since I started working at Penn, it’s been the Magic Carpet truck (corner of Walnut and 34th & another back on Sansom and 36th) . Favorites are the falafel pita sandwich with a side of grape leaves or the Greek salad with falafel on top. Everything here is delicious and fresh and I LOVE their hot sauce and balsamic dressing.

Hummus on 39th and Walnut. A little on the pricey side but portions here are huge. Their shawarma is fantastic and they have a great Greek salad with falafel on top. Their pitas are delicious as well. A little spongy and doughy—perfect for dipping.

The burritos at the Tacos Don Memo truck, on 38th btw Walnut and Chestnut, are amazing. These are tough at lunch time though, because afterwards I feel like I’ve been shot with a tranquilizer dart and have trouble finishing my work for the day.

The lunch combo specials at Sang Kee, on 36th and Chestnut, are another great option in my area. Slightly pricey by ML standards, but a TON of food. Even enough to bring the rest home for dinner. I usually go with the steamed dumplings, beef with eggplant in garlic sauce and brown rice. Their chicken with string beans is excellent, too– one of my favorites in the city. ($9.50 including a drink)

Lemongrass Thai on 36th and Lancaster does a great lunch special. Tulip dumplings, Lemongrass soup & either the Royal Noodles or the Panang Curry. They have a lot of vegetarian options as well. ($8.95)

“Go-To” Lunch Place You and Your Coworkers Eat at Too Often? Cosi. I hate even admitting this to myself. It’s right across the street from my building and whenever I’m too busy to think about lunch, this is where I end up. Same goes for most of my co-workers. I die a little inside when I pay close to $10 for a salad, though. I remember when I moved to Philly for college from my hometown in South Jersey and patronized to my first Cosi. I thought it was the greatest! Like a chic European Bistro—god, I was an idiot.

Place you discovered thanks to Philly Lunch (if any) Koja truck, Mexico on the Square, and El Jarocho.

If you could work anywhere (just because of the lunch) where would it be and why? Realistically: New York. Boring, I know, but they have more food trucks than I’d even know what to do with. Also, I could live off of Tasti D-Lite and imagine I would be very happy doing so. Unrealistically: this elusive “Night Market” in Taipei blogged about on My Inner Fatty. I want to go to there!

Is there anything you’d like to ask the Philly Lunch readers? Where can I get a big, delicious salad near Penn that doesn’t cost over $10? Occasionally I need to eat healthy. And how about some good vegetarian lunch options? I should probably eat more vegetables than I currently do and there’s no way I’m going to be cooking them myself.

If you would like to be next week’s Profiled Philly Lunch’er (or know somebody you’d like to nominate), email me at jamie@midtownlunch.com