Fashion Soup Corp.
Continuing our Fashion Week theme, I decided to give the full +/- treatment to a place I discovered on Friday, and mentioned briefly in yesterday’s post. Walking back to work from taking pictures of ‘wichcraft for my Fashion Week guide to Midtown Lunch, I randomly stumbled upon this weird little soup place- and based on the name alone, and what was going on half a block away in Bryant Park, I figured I had to check it out. As big and strange as NYC is, it really is a small world. Coincidentally enough, I ran into a friend of mine from college who I’ve maybe seen twice in the past 7 years, who was picking up lunch in the weird soup place.. so I asked him if it was any good, and on his recommendation I decided to check it out.
Whatever pre-conceived notion you might have about a place called “Fashion Soup Corp” it’s definitely wrong. There’s nothing about this place that is fashionable (unless you count the fashion magazines strewn around the counter for patrons to read). It’s actually so bare bones, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear that they opened up just for Fashion Week attendees once a year (like those Halloween stores in the mall)… but that is not the case. Fashion Soup has been on 41st St. btw. 6th & Broadway for years- and the brother and sister duo who run it make a delicious array of homemade soups, sandwiches, quesadillas and empanadas for a menu that changes every single day.
What I got, and the +/- after the jump…
Posted by Zach at 5:51 am, September 12th, 2006 under 41st btw. 6+B'way, Fashion Soup, Soups.
If you are a regular reader of this blog then you know I’m not a huge fan of the “Midtown Deli”. You know the place I’m talking about- salad bar, pre-made sandwiches, there’s one on every block. So when my friend Joanne emailed a link to a New Yorker article about one of these very places, I was pretty surprised. The New Yorker was writing about a Midtown Lunch deli??? I expected more from you, oh high-brow’d New Yorker…
I’m not sure how it happened but Jews love Chinese food. I’m sure there are exceptions, but it seems to be a stereotype that holds true. I’m Jewish. I love Chinese food. Therefore all Jews must love Chinese food. It’s fool proof logic. Actually, it’s strange when you think about it. Pork and shellfish are a staple of Chinese cuisine, yet for some reason, Jewish mothers everywhere chose it as THE meal to order when they didn’t feel like cooking (usually on Sunday nights). Of course the boneless spareribs, and pork fried rice ensured that while Jewish, I would never end up being Kosher. (I wonder if Chinese food had something to do with the rise in the number of reform Jews?)
I don’t think I have to say it- but there are very few destination restaurants for lunch in Midtown. You know what I’m talking about… the place you can recommend wholeheartedly, without any concern for how far the person will have to travel to eat the meal your endorsing. 
What can I write about Pizza that hasn’t already been written? 
The list could go on and on. The simple fact is, I’m not a pizza aficionado. Don’t misunderstand this for pizza hate… I love pizza just as much as the next guy- I’m just not a connoisseur. I guess some places are better then others, but I can’t really pinpoint exactly what I love and hate about each slice. If you’re into that sort of thing, there are plenty of blogs that talk about pizza… and only pizza.
When Chipotle opened up in the bottom of my building I spent a full week lamenting how bad Midtown (and even New York in general) had become for finding good Mexican food. Of course, “Good Mexican food” can mean alot of things to alot of different people. For me, it means there are a) no good burritos (hold the “cilantro and lime rice” please), and b) no good authentic tacos.
I must have walked by this place a million times in the past month and a half since it opened (it’s on the same street as 
Then of course there’s the fact that it shares a space with City Cafe. I don’t know what that is, or what their affiliation is with the other million places in Midtown with “City” or “Cafe” in their title, but if you do decide to check this place out you’ll be able to tell which part is the “City Cafe” by the generic salad bar and paninis behind the glass counter. Go directly past that counter, the Ranch 1 part is in the back… 
If you have ever been on a NYC food message board, then you know that nothing gets the troops riled up more then a post about “The Best” Hamburger in New York City. One thread, started two months ago, just got its 
So in my opinion to talk about “the best” or compare burger places across genres is really useless. If two places are right across the street from each other, and serve the same kind of burger at the same price- compare away. In ‘n Out is better then McDonald’s. But to compare Blue 9 Burger in the East Village to the burger at Spotted Pig is futile. (BTW, if you are a fan of In n Out, and are ever in the East Village check out Blue 9. It’s the closest thing to a good double double you’ll find in NYC.)
Work is tough. Work is not fun. And quite frankly, I don’t understand why more people don’t use their lunch break to relax- or even better, have some fun! Of course most people’s idea of fun is probably different from my idea of fun. My idea of fun, is lunch at Cafe Zaiya- the funnest restaurant in Midtown! (As declared by me of course… I’m clearly a very strange person.)
Cafe Zaiya is Japanese- but not in the way that probably first comes to mind. They are not a Ramen place, and they don’t specialize in sushi (although they do have sushi as an option). It’s more of a Japanese bakery, that also has a nice variety of bento boxes (or Japanese boxed lunches). Clearly their specialty is baked goods. They have Cream Puffs (or beard papas as they’re known by some) made fresh and filled right before your eyes. They also have Mochi Donuts, Yakimochi, Mont Blanc’s and other delicious looking Japanese Pastries and cakes.
Now for many of you, I’m sure delicious pastries is all you have to hear to make this place worthwhile. Lord knows I’m all for eating pastries as a substitute for real lunch. As a matter of fact, my dream lunch would be a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts if I thought I could do it without dying (either from stomach ache or sugar coma). But in reality, pastries and donuts a lunch does not make (did that make sense?).