Midtown Lunch

I am not a huge soup person, but when the weather gets like this it’s tough to resist… so rather then attempt to fake expertise, I asked Midtown Lunch’er Grace, our resident soup expert, to compile a list of her favorite soups in Midtown.  Here’s what she came up with:  

 

Turkish

• The Creamy Chicken Soup ($4.95) at Akdeniz (46th between 5th and 6th) — Akdeniz is hands down my favorite Turkish place in midtown. I normally go for the Sultan’s Delight (stewed dark meat chicken over smoky eggplant puree) as an entree, but when I just have to have soup, the creamy chicken soup can’t be beat. The silky, milky broth has a butteriness to it that complements the sweetness of long simmered vegetables and goes perfectly with the rich dark meat chicken chunks.

Healthy/Vegan

• The White Bean Escarole Soup (about $3.50 and for a small) at Green Symphony (43rd btw 7+8th) — This place bills itself as a “healthy” food place and many of their soups are vegan for those that flow that way. Most of the soups here are pretty tasty, but I particularly like the white bean escarole on a cold winter day. I probably like it because despite being vegan, it tastes like it has meat in it. The owner tells me that the secret ingredient that gives it that carnivorous richness is miso—never would have guessed that a little soy could make a soup taste like that.

Carts

• The Jamaican Jerk Chicken at the “hot soup” carts (Multiple Locations) — I use to work by one of these carts on 34th and Park, and my take on it was that the soups were a bit too artificially starchy for me so I sort of avoided them. However, I remember the Jamaican jerk chicken being somewhat tasty despite the gunky cornstarch thickener.
• Potato Cabbage Soup at Hallo Berlin (54th and 5th ) —Though German sausages are the star at this cart, my co worker once brought me back a creamy potato cabbage soup from this cart that tasted like a German grandmother slaved away in the kitchen all day to make it. He said it came as part of the “Dictator’s Special,” so he wasn’t allowed to choose from the other soups on the menu. I haven’t tried any of the other soups, but if the potato cabbage is any indicator of the rest of the soup, it’s definitely worth the trek to try the rest.
• Soups at the Jamaican Dutchy (51st between 6th and 7th) — Now I haven’t had a chance to try the soups here yet, but they just sound plain intriguing. A” Goat’s Head” soup? Bring on the weird animal parts!

Chains

• The Harvest Pumpkin Soup (about $4 for a large) at Au Bon Pain (Multiple Locations) — Of all the commercial, mass market soups out there, ABP’s are probably some of the best in terms of consistency and seasoning. This creamy pumpkin creation that starts to be available around October has the perfect amount of spice (the ingredient list includes curry) and sweetness with a silky consistency.
• The Macaroni and Cheese with Beef Soup and Mulligatawny Soup ($4.39 Small/ $ 6.19 Medium/ $ 7.19 Large) at Hale & Hearty (Multiple Locations)— I’m not generally a huge fan of Hale & Hearty because many of the soups taste gummy and I think they are overpriced, but I do really like these two soups—to the point where I have Hale & Hearty send me email alerts when they are available. I’m not sure it’s fair to call the Macaroni and Cheese with Beef a Soup because it is so thick that it is almost the consistency of a casserole, but whatever it is, I can never resist the meaty, cheesy goodness of this comfort food classic turned soup. I love the bold curry flavor of the Mulligatawny soup reminds me of a number of Indian dishes, but has a sweetness that is almost like a Japanese curry you might get at place like Go-Go Curry. 

The longest list of Asian soups you’ve ever seen… after the jump Read more »

 

From Eater (via FatWallet)

Another day, another fro-yo opening, another promise of free goods. Today a Red Mango opens on 45th and 8th Ave., and promises to give away their goods from 3-10pm.

My track record with free frozen yogurt  is not that great, but this one seems legit.  A phone call to the location confirmed that the new Red Mango will be giving away the small size frozen yogurt with one topping.  723 8th Ave. (btw. 45+46th).  Enjoy!

Update:  It’s pretty cold out for fro-yo, but it was free so how could I resist.  See what “free” should really get you, after the jump…

Read more »

 

I guess it’s an Indian food kind of day… first Indus Express and now this.  The “Chef” (on the right) of the Chapati Roll/Biriyani Cart (46th & 6th Ave.), has returned after two and a half months in Bangladesh, and as promised there’s some new stuff to talk about.  Let’s get the bad news out of the way first… two Kati Rolls/Chapati rolls are now $5 ($6 for lamb).  $4 was a ridiculously low price, so I don’t begrudge the cart a little price increase…

Now on to the good news… they’ve added a fifth kind of Chapati Roll to their menu- the vegetarian Aloo Gobi roll (curried potatoes and cauliflower).  I’ve been on a big cauliflower kick since having this sandwich 6 months ago, so I’m excited to try this.   They’ve also added the chicken tikka masala and biriyani to the permanent menu, items previously only available as specials on certain days.

On the seafood front, there is now a salmon dish (presumably to compete with the Kwik Meal Cart’s fish platter).  And even more items are in the works, including shami kebabs (made from ground up lamb or chicken), and chapli kebabs (made from ground up beef).

A shot of the menu, plus the big news for Chapati Roll lovers on the East side, after the jump… Read more »

There is no shortage of generic delis here in Midtown, and we’ve got our decent share of fast and cheap Indian steam tables too.  Combine the two, and then you’re talking craziness!  Walk into what used to be City Market Cafe on 48th btw. 5+6th, and you will find the latest in worktime lunch’ing ingenuity.  Keep the set-up, change the food seems to be the motif at the newly christened Indus Express, the latest cheap, fast food Indian place to open in Midtown.  I haven’t tried anything yet, but early word from a tipster is that the saag paneer is “pretty good”.

They don’t have printed menus yet, so I don’t know exactly what the scope of their offerings will be or how much everything will cost, but they did have a list of basic steam table pricing.  $7.95 gets you two veggies, dal, rice & bread,  $8.95 gets you one meat, two veggies, bread (and I’m assuming rice, although it doesn’t say it),  $9.95 gets you two meats, two veggies, (rice), and bread,  and $10.95 gets you fish with two veggies, and bread. 

They also have a steam table full of nice looking pakoras and samosas.  

But a steam table alone will not pull lunch’ers away from already established Midtown Indian food favorites.  For that, Indus Express is bringing out the big guns, which I have photos of, after the jump… Read more »

Day off from work + no line at Amy Ruth’s (116 & Lennox in Harlem) = Very Happy Zach. I love President’s Day!!!The camera phone photo didn’t come out so hot.  A much better looking one, after the jump… Read more »

Normally they give away free topping coupons the day after Hideki Matsui hits a homerun, but why should we be punished because it is the Yankees’ offseason?  Problem solved.  Today is free topping coupon day at Go Go Curry on 38th St. btw. 7+8th. 

The new House of Pita on 8th Ave. btw. 39+40th finally replaced the Mandler’s Sausage sign.  They smartly decided to keep the H.O.P. name, and only add the “Chicken Bar” part to the sign underneath.  I guess they “discovered” that Chicken Bar already exists.

Kashmir Express, the Indian take out place on 8th Ave. btw. 38+39th, has converted to a by the pound buffet.  Looked pretty good, although having to pay for my lunch by the amount it weighs is always a scary proposition.  The $4.99 price tag is not bad, but Indian food can get heavy!  And it forces you to break the #1 rule of eating at buffets by the pound… go easy on the rice and bread.

A shot of the buffet, plus Piece of Chicken’s shocking new menu changes, after the jump… Read more »

The owners of Abitino’s, a generic take out pizza place with a few locations in Midtown, are three weeks away from opening “City Burger” on 39th St. just East of Broadway, and I got word from the owners that their burgers will be made from Pat Lafrieda meat, the same purveyor that supplies beef to the Shake Shack.  Not sure if it will be the “high end stuff” or the “regular commodity” meat, but either way it looks like this is the closest thing we’re getting to a shack burger in Midtown.

I got a sneak peak at the menu, and it looks pretty similar to Goodburger.  The burger/fries/soda combo is a disappointing $10.55 ($10 is usually the midtown lunch price limit), but at least you’ll be getting a 1/2 pound burger (no doubt larger than the standard Goodburger, and twice as large as the Shack burger).  They will also be carrying a turkey burger, salmon burger and veggie burger, fries, onion rings, and shakes.

If they are good, the thing that may set this place apart is their buffalo wings (10 for $6.99), and the $13.50 burger/fries/soda/5 buffalo wings combo will definitely have me re-thinking my under $10 rule! 

As of now, there is no Good Burger or Five Guys in the immediate area, but the competition should heat up once the Hale and Hearty owned “Shake Shack” concept planned for the NY times building opens up one avenue away.

Thanks to lunch’er “Gail” for the tip.  If you have any tips, news or recommendations, email them to zach@midtownlunch.com

Minamoto Kitchoan, Posted to Flickr by bottleofblues

So it’s Valentine’s Day, and while you should have trekked to Vosges (Soho), Mariebelle (Soho & UES), or Jacques Torres (Soho, UWS, Dumbo) for some of the best chocolate in New York City- you didn’t.  So, now you’re stuck in Midtown and need to get something tonight after work. 

For some perfect Midtown (and Upper East Side) chocolate options, check out Ed Levine’s great post from earlier this week.  For something in the non-chocolate category, here are a few of my suggestions (along with an interactive map). Read more »

The Village Voice doesn’t branch out into Midtown too often (and quite frankly, do you blame them?), but I still love their blog Eat For Victory, and -of course- Robert Sietsema’s “Counter Culture” column.  They always have great recs, especially for inexpensive and authentic eats, and we’re clearly not the only ones who think so.  Last week, in response to a challenge from the owner of Casa Havana, Eat for Victory launched a best Cuban sandwich contest- and Comedian Aziz Ansari from Human Giant, posted this nominee in the comments:

My favorite cubano in the city hands down is at Margon on 46th btw 6th and 7th ave. They throw in a slice of salami that takes the whole thing to another level. I’m not sure that raw garlic can compete with that as far as genius.

Midtown represent! That piece of salami actually makes it more of a Dominican style “Cuban” sandwich- but why bother getting technical?  It’s freakin’ Aziz Ansari!  (Sorry, I’m a huge Human Giant fan.  That dude is freakin’ hilarious.)  You may remember Human Giant from such informative films as this K.C. Rib Ticklers video I posted a link to a few months ago.

To nominate your favorite Cuban Sandwich, go to Eat For Victory.  You have until tomorrow.

 

According to their website, a 3rd Midtown Qdoba (on 46th btw. Madison & 5th), is coming soon.  I tried the newest one on 53rd St. & 3rd Ave., and I have to say I don’t find it to be that much different then Chipotle (or, as the kids say- “meh”.)  The selection at Qdoba is a little larger, so the chances of finding that one thing you can tolerate is greater- but I ain’t willing to put in that kind of time.  So, if you’re sick of Chipotle, and looking for something new, you’ll probably enjoy Qdoba.  If you hate Chipotle, and are hoping for that burrito savior, I’m guessing this probably won’t be it.  (The Baja Fresh vigil continues…)

While Chipotle expands its Midtown holdings, other Midtown Lunch favorites are branching out.  Five Guys & Sakae news, after the jump… Read more »