Midtown Lunch

Remember when Kati Roll was the only place in midtown that served kati rolls.  When they moved from 46th street to 39th street, the Biryani Cart jumped in and served their own version of the Indian burrito.  (And we all know how that turned out.)  They were followed by Indus Express’ naan wraps (on 48th btw. 5+6th), the standard kati rolls from Grill 44 on the East side, and even Spice Fusion (which is known for their all you can eat buffet) jumped on the bandwagon.

Now Touch of India (on 37th btw. 7+8th) becomes the latest to join the fray. I didn’t love their all you can eat buffet when I tried it last August, but for $9 it’s good enough.  And there’s no reason a mediocre buffet would stop me from trying their “kathi rolls”.

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Great news from the Trini Paki Boys cart on 43rd and 6th.  If you didn’t get a chance to try their chicken biryani special this past Thursday, you may have 5 more chances this week.  I couldn’t confirm the rumor with the cart, but I read this Friday on twitter: “Trini-paki boys sold out of rice and doubles today. Biryani all next week thanks to all the new business.” If true, this would be huge news (although not surprising at all.)  No harm in checking it out if you’re interested.  Worst comes to worst, if there’s no biryani you end up with a delicious plate of chicken over rice with yogurt and Trinidadian pepper sauce.

Related:
The Hidden Delicious Mysteries of the Trini-Paki Boys Cart

At the beginning of the month we reported the sad news that Fashion Soup (on 41st btw. 6+B’way) had closed. Last week Lunch’er Kay sent in this email detailing the final days of the Midtown soup institution.

“I read your article in the NY Times just today and thought I’d tell you what little I know about Fashion Soup, which was my favorite lunchtime destination (I work at 7 Times Square, just down the block from the place). On a Tuesday at the end of May, I went there for lunch and found a sign outside, and a big truck parked on the street in front, saying they were auctioning off all the fixtures. I went inside and all the tureens, pots, etc., were lined up clean as a whistle and being sold. It was my thought that perhaps they were going out of business because of the economy, because not so many people wanted hot soup as it got to be summer.”

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Contemplating the line at the La Cense Burger Truck on Thursday

• Here’s confirmation of what we reported on Wednesday. Xie Xie will not open this weekend. [Eater]
• Joe The Art of Coffee is now serving blueberry doughnuts from Doughnut Plant [Blondie and Brownie]
• Woorijip is now selling a bulgogi and kimchee wrap! [Fressagirl]
• Quiznos is commenting on the VV blog, and Sietsema is pissed! [Fork in the Road]
• Make sure you’re actually on 53rd and 6th when ordering that late night lamb over rice! [Serious Eats]
• Mangia’s Pizza Campo is a satisfying and affordable lunch [Examiner]
• The Hawaiian BBQ at Osaka is good and cheap [BLD Project]
• Nothing to do with Midtown… but you should go to the Un-Fancy Food Show on Sunday.  It’s awesome. [Brooklyn Based]

If you like to eat, chances are you like to drink (read: a lot of you are freakin’ lushes), so I thought maybe it was time to introduce a happy hour column to the site. Every week, our Happy Hour Correspondent “Mamacita” will post about a different bar in Midtown that fits the Midtown Lunch mentality: unhealthy food, not lame (unless it’s lame in a cool way), and most importantly… cheap.

Foley’s pub is just across the street from the Empire State Building and has a storied history. The building is over a century old, and the decorative Tiffany glass in the back and the men’s room urinals claim to have come from the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Not only do they proudly assert to have one of the oldest men’s restrooms (why this is a good thing I can’t fathom) but they also have the largest professional sports collection I have ever seen, which includes over 2,000s signed baseballs, jerseys and enough autographed pictures to make a killing on Ebay.

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Remember that amazing vegetarian Indian sandwich with doritos being sold out of the now shuttered Blimpie on 46th btw. 5+6th?  Lunch’er “Bikewobble” claims that it was supposed to return:

“Before they closed the owner mentioned they were going to try to get the sandwich into another local shop, maybe have a little corner in another establishment, just making the nacho sandwich. Anyone know if they ever succeeded in setting up somewhere? i want them back so bad!”

Yes, does anybody know?  Please comment below, or email me at zach@midtownlunch.  Be sure cc Sarah DiGregorio from Fork in the Road.  She’s the one who originally found it.

Related:
The “Special Vegetarian” at Blimpie is the Spiciest Sandwich in Midtown