Midtown Lunch

Every Tuesday we turn over the site to a different Midtown Lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Midtown. This week it’s Peg, a quantitative analyst (!?) whose birthday is tomorrow!

Name: Peg

Age: 45 (tomorrow!)

Occupation: Quantitative Analyst

Where in Midtown do you Work?: 55th & 6th

Favorite Kind of Food: Tasty.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Boring.

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: Jerk chicken at Jamaican Dutchy‘s multimedia experience & food cart. Drunken noodles with pork at Topaz (56th bet 6th & 7th). Original or spicy Menchanko noodle soup at Menchanko Tei (55th bet 5th & 6th); with a side of shrimp or pork gyoza for a splurge. Cheeseburger & fries at The Burger Joint (56th bet 6th & 7th), Five Guys (55th bet 5th & 6th), or Island Burger (9th bet 51st & 52nd). Ma Paul Tofu at Wu Liang Ye (48th bet 5th & 6th). Falafel sandwich at Meze Grill (8th Ave bet 55th & 56th). Korean tacos at Bann Next Door (50th bet 8th & 9th). Korean tacos or superbowl from Korilla – bacon & kimchi fried rice is worth the extra $1. Cuban sandwich at Margon (46th bet 6th & 7th) or Tina’s Cuban (56th bet 5th & 6th). Coffee & panini at Zibetto (6th bet 56th & 57th). A pie at Angelo’s Pizza (57th bet 6th & 7th). Out of price range splurge: unagi rice box at Radiance Tea House (56th bet 6 & 7th), the eel-sashimi combination meal – a total deal! – at Ise (56 bet 5th & 6th), lobster salad BLT or grilled cheese & tomato soup combo at Bouchon Bakery (Columbus Circle).

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Yesterday we let you know that Pitopia was now open on Broadway and 37th, and Lunch’er Michael couldn’t wait to try it (plus score his free side salad.) He was kind enough to send in this early report:

Hey Zach, Got a review of Pitopia from their falafel freeloader soft-launch special. Long story short, I’m very impressed.

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I’ll admit I was pretty excited when I heard that Harry’s Pizza was coming to Rockefeller Center. The Rock Center concourse hasn’t had a dedicated pizza spot since Two Boots Pizza left, so the lazier part of my nature was looking forward to getting pizza for lunch without leaving the building. Read more »

Remember the signage that went up back in April for Pitopia, the new hummus and falafel bar on Broadway and 37th?  Well, they are finally open and looking to get some feedback during their pre-grand opening/training phase… so, anybody who mentions Midtown Lunch today (Monday, 11/28) will get a free small salad from the salad and pickles bar (a $4.95 value) with the purchase of any falafel or hummus bowl.  Freeloading falafel lovers, prepare to engage.

Curious about the menu?  Check it out after the jump.

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Let me start out by saying that if you ever come across a lobster roll in New York City that is within the Midtown Lunch budget, you should proceed with extreme caution.  Urban Lobster Shack once had $10 specials, but they’re $11 now in Midtown and now the Snack Box is doing something pretty close, offering lobster rolls in Times Square for $11.75. For those keeping score, Luke’s Lobster Truck and Red Hook Lobster Pound Truck both come in at $16, so Snack Box’s version could be  a real game-changer in Midtown West.

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A tamal from Leon Bakery. Photo courtesy of Food in Mouth.

• The tamales from Leon Bakery are still good [Food in Mouth]
• 4 Food is considering expansion [NRN via Eater]
• Here’s more info about Pie Face, the place we noticed on B’way last week [DNAinfo]
• Luke’s Lobster is coming to the Plaza Food Hall! [NYT]
• STK Midtown is finally set to open on Dec. 5th [Grub Street]
• A Midtown coffee list that doesn’t include Zibetto!?  For shame.  [SENY]
• Watch how Momofuku Milk Bar makes their thanksgiving croissants [SENY]

There used to be a deli called Cafe Express on 7th Ave btw 29th and 30th (they closed couple years ago to make room for a stupid Pret A Manger ) that served my favorite roast beef sandwich. It had roast beef, mayo, fried onions and was sandwiched between 2 delicious slices of focaccia bread. It was such a magnificent sandwich, that I got really sad when I found out the place was closed. Since then I haven’t really eaten a good roast beef sandwich in Midtown during lunch. So when I found out that Melange Green & Gourmet has a roast beef sandwich that was supposed to be great, I knew I had to give it a try.

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