Midtown Lunch

It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

Midtown may not be the best food neighborhood in New York City, but if there is one thing we can stake a claim to it’s the best Japanese food in the city. The after work Japanese food/bar scene is second to none (Sake Bar Hagi, Yakitori Totto, Aburiya Kinnosuke), we have a bunch of great ramen joints (poll on that coming later), and most importantly for Midtown Lunch’ing purposes, there is the fast food. 41st btw. Mad+5th has long been home to 3 of the best options for Japanese fast food; add the rest into the mix and you realize there is no shortage of great, cheap Japanese food for lunch. Here are the nominees for best Japanese fast food in Midtown:

• Cafe Zaiya (41st btw. Mad+5th)
• Cafe Zest (47th btw. Lex+3rd)
• Chiyoda Sushi (41st btw. Mad+5th)
• Go Go Curry (38th btw. 7+8th)
• Shinbashi 49 (Formerly Naruto Sushi on 49th btw. Mad+5th)
• Sushi-Tei 47 (in front of Katsuhama on 47th btw. Mad+5th)
• Yagura (41st btw. Mad+5th)
• Yummy Sushi (Two Locations)

Vote for your favorite after the jump…

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It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

Earlier this year 20 Midtown Lunch’ers converged on Bryant Park to try street meat from 13 different carts in a massive Street Meat Palooza. A champion was crowned on that day, and whether or not you disagreed or agreed with the outcome, here is a chance for your voice to be heard. Here are the nominees for best Chicken/Lamb over rice cart in Midtown:

• Adham’s Halal (40th & Broadway)
• Famous 53rd Street Halal Guys (Multiple Locations)
• Kwik Meal (45th & 6th)
• Rafiqi’s (Multiple Locations)
• Trini Pak Boys (43rd & 6th)
• XPL (48th & Park)

Vote for your favorite after the jump…

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It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

2008 was a pretty sweet year in Midtown, with the already established Dessert Truck and Wafels and Dinges Truck joining the Treats Truck with regular stops in our lunching range. Couple that with the cupcake explosion of the past six months, and you were left with plenty of options to satisfy that afternoon sweet tooth. Here are the nominees for best Sweets in Midtown:

• Crumbs (Multiple Locations)
• Dessert Truck (52nd & Park Ave.)
• Fay Da Bakery (on 34th btw. 7+8th)
• Macaron Cafe (36th btw. B’way+7th)
• Magnolia Bakery (6th Ave. and 49th St.)
• Treats Truck (Multiple Locations)
• Wafels and Dinges Truck (Multiple Locations)

Vote for your favorite after the jump.

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A few weeks ago, The Australian was the bar featured in our new Friday “Midtown Happy Hour” column, and while their food was mentioned briefly in the post, it didn’t cover their $8 lunchtime special… a fact I noticed when I walked by the place the other day:

While I normally ignore sit down lunch places, and bar specials (even the ones that are around $10, because you still have to pay tax and tip and drinks are usually super expensive) you can see why this caught my eye. Meat pie! Sausage Roll!?! With chips!!! (That’s french fries by the way.) For $8. Yes please. I’ll have both.

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It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

It was kind of a sad year for Latin food in Midtown. 2007 nominee La Strada shut down, along with the Sophie’s Cuban location on 41st Street. Plus, the International Buffet House went from all you can eat (for $9) to a pay by the pound situation (very, very sad.) But there is still no shortage of great Latin food in Midtown, as you can see from this incredibly long list of nominees for “Best Latin Food in Midtown”.

• Cafe Cello (on 46th btw. 5+6th)
• El Rincon Del Sabor (on 47th btw. 5+6th)
• El Sabroso (39th btw. 7+8th)
• International Food House (35th btw. 7+8th
• Margon (46th btw. 6+7th)
• Newsstand Latin Food (formerly inside the Blimpie on 6th Ave. btw. 38+39th)
• Sophie’s Cuban (Multiple Locations)
• Tina’s Restaurant (Multiple Locations)

 
Vote for your favorite, after the jump.

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Blondie and Brownie stray from their comfort zone at Woorijip (on 32nd btw. B’way+5th), ordering the ramen with egg and spicy kimchi soup with pork and ham from the Noodle Bar in the back of the shop. But take note: the noodle bar is only opened until 2pm, so make sure you aren’t going for a late lunch.

Related: 2008 Readers’ Poll: Best Korean Food

It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

Oh yeah… the big daddy in my world. It’s no secret that I love cheap Chinese food, and as a result every one of these joints has a special place in my heart. And the nominees for the best Cheap Chinese fast food in Midtown are:

• Hing Won/Hop Won (48th btw. 5+6th & 45th btw. Lex+3rd)
• Lunch Box Buffet/Fay Da Bakery (on 34th btw. 7+8th)
• Sun Yip (formerly Ho Yip on 45th btw. 5+6th) 
• Ying Du (Formerly the 38th St. Restaurant btw. 7+8th)
• Yips (52nd btw. 5+6th)

Vote for your favorite, after the jump.

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Wondering about Danku, the Dutch kroket chain that opened a few weeks back on 57th btw. 5+6th? This update just arrived in the old Midtown Lunch inbox:

“Can we get a review of Danku sometime soon? Or at least an airing of grievances? I went when it first opened up and ordered the krokets and salad, and found them both kinda nasty. Texture is gross because they’re basically fried flavored food starch, there’s nary an actual food item in them. Salad dressing is gross too, tastes really artificial. I went a week ago to try the satay and they said they were out of it. I left cause I didn’t feel like anything else.”

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It’s time for the 2nd Annual Midtown Lunch Readers’ Poll. Between now and the end of the year I’ll be asking all of you to decide on the best Midtown Lunches in a whole range of categories. You can only vote once per category (so choose wisely), and official results will be posted after the new year.

It was a big year for Indian food in Midtown. Indus Express opened on 48th btw. 5+6th, Khodiar Lunch Services (aka “Newsstand Indian”) expanded to include Taj Delhi Chat, and of course the Biryani Cart won the People’s Choice Vendy Award. They’re all nominated for best Indian Fast Food, along with a few old standbys.

• Biryani Cart (on 46th btw. 6+7th)
• Indus Express (48th btw. 5+6th)
• Joy Curry & Tandoor (46th btw. Lex+3rd)
• Kati Roll (39th btw. 5+6th)
• Khodiar Lunch Services/Taj Delhi Chat (6th Ave. btw. 38+39th)
• Maharaja (formerly Hurry Tasty & Curry on 45th btw. Lex+3rd)
• Minar (on 46th btw. 6+7th)

Vote for your favorite, after the jump.

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