Midtown Lunch

So as painful as it is to say, this is my last week of full time Midtown Lunching. Don’t worry… the site isn’t going anywhere, but I’m moving to L.A. so this week I’m making sure to hit all the places I’ll miss the most. A “Farewell Lunch Tour” if you will. Here’s where I’ll be today…

For me this day is bittersweet. I’m excited to move to the west coast and start Midtown Lunch: Los Angeles, but I’m also sad to leave Midtown. That’s right. Next week I won’t be working in Midtown anymore, and I’m SAD about it. When I first started this site it was about “Finding Lunch in the Food Wasteland of Midtown Manhattan.” Well, after almost four years of eating lunch here I can tell you… this is no wasteland. In fact, I would venture to say there is no better 400 block area to eat lunch in the entire country. The amount of variety crammed into such a small place, there for the taking- provided you’re willing to walk more than 2 blocks away from your office.

And isn’t that what separates us from them? A willingness to walk somewhere (an activity that is good for you) to stuff our faces with amazingly tasty lunches (an activity that is decidedly not good for you.) This week was especially tough because I couldn’t fit all my favorites into one week. Margon, Cafe Cello, Cafe Zaiya, Woorijip, Newsstand Indian, XPL, all the new school carts (Cravings, Schnitzel & Things, Treats Truck, etc.), Hallo Berlin, Cer Te, Yakitori Totto, all the ramen spots (Sapporo, Menchanko Tei, Men Kui Tei), Crisp, Olympic Pita, El Sabroso in the freight elevator hallway… the list could go on and on.

It was tough choosing my final week of lunches… with one notable exception. There was never a question as to where I was going to end the week.

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So as painful as it is to say, this is my last week of full time Midtown Lunching. Don’t worry… the site isn’t going anywhere, but I’m moving to L.A. so this week I’m making sure to hit all the places I’ll miss the most. A “Farewell Lunch Tour” if you will. Here’s where I’ll be today…

It’s no secret that I’ve always been down with the Jamaican Dutchy cart (on 51st and 7th Ave.)  Since the very first day they opened, almost 3 years ago, I’ve been a fan of their jerk chicken, sweet and sour chicken, oxtails, and curried goat- despite the long waits. But it wasn’t until a lunch back in October that my feelings for the Dutchy went from schoolboy crush, to complete and total adulation. It was the first day I tried their stew peas.

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So as painful as it is to say, this is my last week of full time Midtown Lunching. Don’t worry… the site isn’t going anywhere, but I’m moving to L.A. so this week I’m making sure to hit all the places I’ll miss the most. A “Farewell Lunch Tour” if you will. Here’s where I’ll be today…

How could I leave Midtown without hitting up the winners of Street Meat Palooza and Street Meat Palooza 2. I had a platter from the Famous Halal Guys on 53rd and 6th recently, so I feel pretty satiated on that front… but it’s been awhile since I hit up Kwik Meal (on 45th and 6th.) And how could I leave Midtown without saying goodbye to the legend that is Muhammed Rahman.

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So as painful as it is to say, this is my last week of full time Midtown Lunching. Don’t worry… the site isn’t going anywhere, but I’m moving to L.A. so this week I’m making sure to hit all the places I’ll miss the most. A “Farewell Lunch Tour” if you will. Here’s where I’ll be today…

The Original “Biriyani Cart”, circa 2007

I still remember the day that the Biriyani Cart went from being just another chicken and rice cart with a few Indian dishes tossed in, to the media superstars you now know and love.  Kati Roll had just been forced to move their extremely popular operation from 46th btw. 6+7th, to 39th btw. 5+6th.  And it was in that moment that Meru, the owner of the Biriyani Cart, had the greatest idea of all time.  He threw up a sign on his cart for “kati rolls”, and a legend was born.

I still think of Kati Roll as the industry standard (their freshly fried paratha is out of control good), and my original post about Kati Roll was the most read post on Midtown Lunch for a long long time. But the Biriyani Cart is one of my favorite carts in Midtown… and they’ve had their share of accolades as well.  It would be impossible to choose a favorite… so, I guess I’ll have to go both!

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So as painful as it is to say, this is my last week of full time Midtown Lunching. Don’t worry… the site isn’t going anywhere, but I’m moving to L.A. so this week I’m making sure to hit all the places I’ll miss the most. A “Farewell Lunch Tour” if you will. Here’s where I’ll be today…

Since Noodle Bar opened Momofuku has always been synonymous with the East Village. The food, the style, the attitude, the music… nobody would mistake any of the Momofukus for uptown restaurants. But that didn’t stop me from occasionally mentioning my favorite New York City empire on Midtown Lunch. The first time was in June of 2006, in a post about Sapporo (on 49th btw. 6+7th), and on many other occasions I practically begged David Chang to bring his pork buns to Midtown- both on this site and on other sites.

Well this year my dream finally came true when Momofuku started serving a limited menu in the mezzanine of the Chambers Hotel on 56th btw. 5+6th (a preview of Ma Peche, their new Vietnamese influenced restaurant opening sometime this year.) And in a move that practically made my head explode in disbelief, even offered a $10 “Midtown Lunch” menu of specials for those of us who are financially challenged (aka cheap bastards.)

How could I leave without stopping by one last time…

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