Midtown Lunch

There’s nothing more miserable than standing in line at the post office, unless it’s standing in line at the post office on Tax Day. For those of you haven’t e-filed and find yourselves in the unfortunate position of heading to the city’s main post office to mail in your returns, might I suggest a side trip to the slightly out of bounds NY Pizza Suprema for a fortifying slice?

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Thanks to Jean for pointing this one out in the forums! Mia Dona (the upscale Italian restaurant on 58th btw. 2+3rd) is launching a “meatball cart” on Friday.  According to Diner’s Journal the meatballs are “slow braised in ragu, smothered in caciocavallo cheese, garnished with arugula and sandwiched between two squares of homemade potato-ricotta foccacia.”  Sandwiched between two pieces of focaccia, the meatballs will cost $6, without the bread $5.  And according to Fork in the Road the cart will be open from Noon to 2pm. Sounds pretty awesome.

In honor of tax day (that’s today, by the way, for all you procrastinators), there is all sorts of free stuff being given away. The big one is Energy Kitchen, who will once again be giving away free lunch with the purchase of a beverage from Noon to 2pm. You get your choice of a Bison Cheesesteak Wrap, California Wrap or Buffalo Chicken Burger. That’s not the only thing going on though… if you’re looking for something after work, McCormick & Schmick’s is doing $10.40 specials at the bar (and giving out $10.40 gift certificates.)  And finally there’s free drip coffee from Starbucks all day (as long as you bring your own mug), and free mini cupcakes at Cinnabon from 4-6pm 6-8pm.

Do you wonder what our new ML contributors do when they’re not eating lunch in Midtown? (They’re actually pretty easy to stalk!)

Photo courtesy of Blondie and Brownie

Brownie was at Ippudo in the EV loving on the pork filled “special ramen”, while her partner in crime, Blondie, was buying chocolate covered pork at Roni Sue’s in the LES to make cookies for this weekend’s Great American Bake Sale to benefit Share our Strength. Ultraclay finds pernil goodness in Chelsea.  Danny is in France eating rillettes (lucky!)  Jason tried the pork belly while brunching at Diner in Brooklyn. And our own Amy Cao was featured in the New York Daily News!

This is great…  the NY Post did an article about the longest food lines in New York City and the daytime halal cart on 53rd and 6th made the list. If you think the line at 1pm is long, you should see the line after 8pm once the real cart shows up!  As longtime ML readers know, the cart on the SW corner during the day is different than the the “famous” cart that parks on that corner at night.  To get the “famous” halal food during lunchtime, you have to go to the SE Corner of 53rd and 6th, the SW corner of 53rd and 7th, or the NW corner of 52nd and 7th. The food on the SW corner during the day isn’t bad (they came in 6th at Street Meat Palooza 2), it’s just obvious that a lot of those people in line think they’re eating at the famous night time cart.

The line on the SE corner has gotten a lot bigger over the past year, and we thought that word was finally getting out… but clearly not everybody has gotten the memo!

Related:
Are Lunchers Finally Getting the Message About the Halal Carts on 53rd & 6th?
Debunking the Myths of 53rd & 6th, the Most Famous Halal Intersection in New York City

Every once in a while twitter presents some interesting lunching options. The other day, Urban Lobster Shack (in the basement food court on 3rd btw. 49+50th) was shouting out some of their daily specials and a couple things caught my eye: the Chef’s Special, a lobster roll served on garlic bread (!?) drizzled w/scampi sauce with a side salad and cole slaw and the personal deep dish shrimp pizza served w/small soup and side salad. Only problem was both lunches were $11. Could they be worth the extra buck?

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It may be a week late, but Market in the Grand Hyatt is finally open. I stopped by yesterday, and while it feels a bit like a high-end airport convenience spot, it did come through on the promise of a few quality goods: Manhattan Special soda, Ronnybrook Chocolate Milk, and fresh pastries from Tisserie, Macaron Cafe, and CHIKALICIOUS (seriously, seriously fantastic cupcakes). All of the savory food is under $10, but I passed in favor of a delicious house-made peanut butter cookie sandwich for $2 (a little pricey, but not unheard of.)

Check it out after the jump…

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Thanks to Lunch’er Jennie for this great tip… Bann, the pricey Korean restaurant on 50th St. btw. 8th+9th (in Worldwide Plaza), has blocked off a corner of their existing space, packed in four tables, and called it “Bann Next Door” (even though it’s technically not next door, but inside the restaurant.)  Confusion over location aside, Bann has always been out of the Midtown Lunch price range (save for Korean Restaurant Week 2008), but Bann Next Door’s under $10 menu, complete w/ pork spare ribs and Korean fried chicken, sounds right up our alley. (Yes, I said Korean fried chicken.)

Check out the menu after the jump… Read more »