Midtown Lunch

The calm before the storm

It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten at Five Guys, so I decided to use yesterday’s grand opening on 3rd Ave. (btw. 43+44th) as an *ahem* excuse opportunity to retry the place I called “NYC’s closest thing to In N Out Burger” two years ago.  At the time Fresh N Fast hadn’t opened yet, and most people agreed that Blue 9 Burger had gotten really bad.  But since then I’ve learned some important lessons about hamburger writing in this city.  First, don’t compare any burger to the Shake Shack.  The minute you do, you are essentially insuring that a certain group of people will never like the place.  Because to those people, Shake Shack is the reigning champ.  The perfect berger.  And how can you improve on perfection?  Don’t believe the backlash is automatic… ask Steve Hanson.

And #2.  Don’t compare any burger to In N Out. This city is dying for their own branch of the west coast chain, and nothing short of the real deal with satisfy.  But I still stand by my original statement, and my lunch yesterday confirmed my feelings.

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See… the Kosher gods aren’t so terrible after all. Yesterday we reported the sad sad loss of the Diamond Dairy, but today we get to tell you about Gan Eden by Jacob- a new Glatt Kosher restaurant opening in the same building as El Rincon del Sabor (on 47th btw. 5+6th). I don’t know a ton about Bukharian food, or Glatt Kosher for that matter, but the menu looks very similar to Taam Tov. Check it out, after the jump…

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• Kar Won doesn’t have their roast pig ready until 12:30 [Midtown Eating]
• The old Soul Fixins space is now an Indian restaurant [Midtown Eating]
• The Downtown Blarney Stone got a makeover from some new TV show [Downtown Eating]
• Bill’s Gay Nineties is a great place to drink around MOMA [Midtown Eating]
• Another ML Happy Hour is being planned for 12/21 [Midtown Connections]

Clearly Five Guys has learned a few lessons since their debacle of a grand opening on 55th btw. 5+6th a few years ago. Their newest location (on 3rd btw. 43+44th) had their first lunch rush today and passed with flying colors. Despite a line that stretched all the way back to the door for almost 2 hours, the wait times capped at about 25 minutes, with only about a 7 minute wait time between the time you ordered, and the time you got your food.

The unique set up certainly helped, and you get to watch your burger being assembled while you wait (the well oiled machine is quite a site to behold.) It’s refreshing to see a place that clearly thought about how they were going to handle the crush of Midtown Lunchers on opening day… and it’s a good thing because I doubt the line is going to die down anytime soon.

Remember when 99 Cent Fresh Pizza operated in Midtown with a monopolistic iron fist?  Their original location, behind the Port Authority on 9th Ave. and 41st, has always been well known for its constant line, and fast service.  A slice of pizza for 99 cents is not going to be the best tasting slice you’ve ever had, but there are always customers- insuring a fresh out of the oven slice every single time.  It may not be a taste revelation, but it certainly revolutionized this fat guy’s view of a slice as a viable snack (i.e. if it costs $1, you can consider it a snack.)

Naturally they expanded to 43rd btw. Lex+3rd a couple of years ago, and quite possibly put Prince Deli out of business (it became a Five Guys Burgers and Fries today, actually.)   So it’s no surprise that competition was going to eventually take aim.  2 Bros Pizza popped up behind Port Authority back in April, with what I think is a superior slice- and there is no doubt it has hurt business. So I’m guessing the owners must be equally scared about the nameless 99 Cent Pizza place which opened last month on Lexington btw. 45+46th (right around the corner from the second location of 99 Cent Fresh Pizza.)  2 Bros is a completely different product, making a side by side comparison pretty easy (Slice agrees with me about 2 Bros. being better), but this new spot on Lexington is run by a former employee of the 99 Cent Pizza place on 43rd.  So naturally I was expecting both places to taste exactly the same.

Not so says this commenter, declaring the new place on Lexington the better slice.  Clearly I needed to check this out for myself.

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After months and months of anticipation, Midtown East finally has its own Five Guys! On Saturday, as promised, the Five Guys on 3rd Ave btw. 43+44th opened to the public, and Lunch’er Christopher was there to check it out. He reported that it wasn’t that crowded, but as you can see they had a *ton* of employees working the line. “The staff outnumbered the patrons 2 to 1.” I doubt that ratio will hold up today- but it’s good to hear they’ve got a big staff. They’re going to need them today… (Early adopters, feel free to send in reports from the scene.)

Related:
Five Guys is NYC’s Closest Thing to In N Out Burger

Last week we got some terrible news from the Diamond District, the strip of jewelry shops on 47th btw. 5+6th known for their hidden lunch options.  The Diamond Dairy, a kosher luncheonette hidden in the back mezzanine of the jewelry exchange on 4 W. 47th Street has closed. Along with Taam Tov, the almost 60 year old diner is one of the most well known of the hidden gems in the diamond district, and it will be missed.  Even as I stood at the bottom of the now closed staircase leading up to the place, a number of confused customers looking for lunch were turned away in disappointment.  No word on exactly why they closed, but according to one of the jewelers it came out of nowhere (and they are definitely gone for good.)  With Chanukah just a few days away, this is an especially big blow.  Where am I going to go for potato pancakes this year?

Related:
Chanukah Potato Pancakes in the Super Secret “Diamond Dairy”