Midtown Lunch

Now that Downtown has its very own section of the site, what are we going to post on Fridays? Answer… how about a column devoted to those lunches just south of the ML boundaries. Every week we post about a lunch in Murray Hill south, Gramercy, Flatiron, and everything in between… or to make it easy: Flatiron Lunch.

Latin food has been popping up a lot lately, from the higher end options at Leña Latin Grill (full +/- coming soon!) to that random appearance in the 99-cent pizza store, but what about the old fashioned Latin spots? You know, with the shiny furniture and a staff and clientele that speak more Spanish than English? La Taza de Oro is one of my favorites, but a crazy schlep from the office. Then I found Milanes, just down the block from Johny’s Luncheonette. With everything from Tripe soup to chuletas and a decor that looks like Abuela put it together, it certainly fits the bill for authenticity, but how about the food?

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We were pretty excited back in July when the Dessert Truck announced they would be returning to the streets, only to be disappointed to find out that they would only be parking at Astor Place.  Well, today that frustration comes to an end!  We’re hearing that the Dessert Truck will be returning to Midtown for lunch every Friday of September, from Noon to 3pm, starting today! They’re gonna try to park in their old spot (55th & Lexington), but will twitter the exact location once they’re settled.  Welcome back old friend!

Do you wonder what the 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 all about the chicken biscuit at Pies N Thighs in Brooklyn, while Clay checked out the staff at Eataly. Danny ate 25 spicy chicken nuggets from Wendy’s and survived to tell the tale, Amy enjoyed her (albeit small) 3 course lunch from ABC Kitchen, and Chris H. swears you will have a good time at 153 Fusion Po-cha in Flushing. Curious what’s going on in other parts of the ML universe? Zach rubs it in again with yet another post about the amazing Thai food in Los Angeles, Jamie says no to eyeball tacos in Philly, and Andrea revisits the banh mi cart on Pearl St.

For those of you who are into having desserts for lunch, I felt the need to direct your attention to the ice cream cakes being sold at Quality Meats (on 58th btw. 5+6th). They first caught my attention when I walked by and saw their shiny new DOH grade. (Nothing screams out “try me!” more than an A!) The cakes here are (a shocking) $8.72 after tax, but I suppose it could be shared with somebody else as a dessert. (Although after one bite, you might be into sharing so much.)  They give you three options: Pie Fight (lemon meringue ice cream), Cherry Monkey (pistachio cherry ice cream), and Cookie Monster Ice cream. At almost $9 it certainly isn’t for everybody… but I was totally down.

Two quintessential New York foods have finally been combined into a solitary lunch.  (Dreams really do come true!?)  Meet the Street Meat Pizza, brainchild of Eddie’s Pizza Truck in conjunction with Rafiqi’s.  They’re offering chicken, lamb, a combo or half and half (and, just like Rafiqi’s street meat platter- black beans are optional.)  And don’t worry… the hot sauce and white sauce get added last, so you can request it without (or extra!)  The truck has already gotten a ton of pre-orders, but they’re expecting to not run out until at least 1pm- so you still have time.  Call 917-439-7522 to order ahead if you don’t want to wait in line.

UPDATE: Miss Softee just checked in to let us know she tried it before heading to her spot on 44th and 6th.  Her verdict (plus a great looking photo of the pie) is after the jump.

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Good news for Korean pastry fans… the location of Paris Baguette on 32nd btw. 5+B’way that we told you about last month is opening today. This will be the first Manhattan location for this huge Korean chain of French-style bakeries (not to be confused with Paris Sandwich, the banh mi shop in Chinatown.)  Anyone else excited about this place? Comments on our last post go back and forth between those who think the place serves up delicious pastries to complaints that it’s over-priced.  Who’s rushing in for some fresh-baked goodness? Let us know how it is in the comments.

• What’s the best coffee in Midtown? [Midtown Eating]
• Lunch’er Joer reviews the Kosher banh mi at Kolette’s [Midtown Eating]
• You can get gourmet sandwiches at the new Duane Reade [Midtown Eating]
• Is the new Twitter Tracker working for you? [Site Support]