Midtown Lunch

Listen, we would be pretty excited if a truck parked outside our office selling gravy and cheese curd topped french fries, but there’s something about this story that’s a little laughable.  Fork in the Road reported this morning that T Poutine, in the Village, has closed up shop because they couldn’t get a liquor license. But they plan on reopening the restaurant somewhere else- and in the meantime, “we’ll probably get some food trucks around to keep spreading the Canadian poutines!”

Sure! Why not?  “Get some food trucks”. You know… because getting a food truck license is soooo easy.  We so want to get our hopes up for this, but our prediction: never going to happen.  (And if it does it will be short lived.)

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I can’t exactly say why, but we here at Midtown Lunch have always been big fans of seafood from a cart. Cheap fish sandwiches, fish and chips, fried shrimp, tilapia… even Zach has continued the tradition in L.A. by eating sushi off of a truck. I recently spotted this sign at the cart on the Northeast corner of 39th & 3rd Ave. Since this isn’t a regular cart of mine, I have no idea how long they’ve had this, or if it’s a contender for next year’s Lenten Lunches. Or, after searching ML, whether or not this cart is any good at all. (They weren’t nominated for Street Meat Palooza 3 either, results coming soon btw.)   Sadly, I had already eaten lunch when I walked by… but it is totally calling to me right now.  Has anybody taken the plunge?

And the first item to be schnitzified by the Schnitzel & Things Truck is… proscuitto and ricotta! (They amended the tweet to note that there isn’t actually rice in the fried balls.) They’re parked on 48th and 6th… and we’re guessing these are going to go fast. Godspeed freeloaders. Godspeed.

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We didn’t get too excited over the opening of the new Heartland Brewery in Port Authority (on 41st and 8th Ave.) but this could change our minds!  As a grand opening special they’re offering your choice of entrees (New York Reuben, HB Burger, Grilled Chicken, Chicken Ceasar Salad, or a Taco salad) plus a homemade soda and french fries for $9.95.  A HB Burger or reuben plus homemade soda and fries for $10?  Sounds good to us… the only catch is you have to sit at the bar to get the deal.  Even though they’ve been open for a month, and it’s a “grand opening special”,  the hostess at the desk said the lunch special is something they might keep going for a while.  From her lips to… uh… whoever owns Heartland Brewery’s ears.

I passed Thai-Nam (on 45th btw. Lex+3rd) the other day and immediately zeroed in on the tasty-looking photo of pho bo – Vietnamese beef and rice noodle soup – plastered on their window. They describe their new offering as “hearty beef broth scented with cloves and anise. Served with thin rice noodle. Choice of beef/chicken/seafood.” Food that’s scented with anything always sounds suspicious to me, but I love pho so will overlook their attempts at fancy language. Thai-Nam wasn’t well-received by Zach on his last visit, but I’m curious enough to give it a go. Have you had it? And speaking of pho, any suggestions on where to find a good bowl in Midtown East?

Over on the Downtown section of Midtown Lunch, Andrea (our new Downtown corespondent) has discovered that the Wafels & Dinges Truck (which usually parks in Midtown on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays) has launched a new permanent cart parked at the South Street Seaport. According to owner Thomas this is the first of a number of carts he plans on rolling out over the summer. Doubtful that one of them will end up in Midtown, but we can dream- right?  The cart features the same menu as the truck, minus the pulled pork topped waffle.   (Also making us kind of jealous today Downtown… a new New Orleans themed sandwich shop with fried chicken biscuits, po boys, and $1 beignets. Hmmm… that’s kind of close to the F and the B/D, right?)