Midtown Lunch

Last week, we received a tweet from Phoenix_3_Tears with the question:

“Do you guys know of a place where they sell Bourbon Chicken? Like the ones back in Manhattan Mall?”

That sent us on a search. We hadn’t heard anything about the confusingly named dish since DC Fusion Cafe closed, but we found out that Hop Won Express, Hing Won’s twin sister, has a Bourbon Chicken daily special on their menu for $6.47.

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Summer is finally here and as much as I love eating massive lunches like a roast beef sandwich or a whole platter of fried chicken with rice and peas, I tend to lean towards the more simpler (and lighter) lunches. First thing that comes to my mind and stomach are cold noodles. We have talked much about the cold ramen (Men Kui Tei and Sapporo ) and lets not forget Korean cold noodles. These are all great summer treats that don’t make you feel disgusted after eating them, but sometimes I want something even more simple.  And that is when the Chinese version steps in.

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Okay, I’m addicted to curry chicken. Ever since I had a pretty decent curry chicken over rice from the Fahima Halal cart, I’ve been on the look out for other curry chicken dishes. Even though I know I need to take a long walk over to the West side to try the curry chicken from Trini Paki Boys cart, I just haven’t done it yet. I’ve been too lazy to walk from 3rd Avenue to 6th, so instead I found a few worthy curry dishes on the East side to satisfy my curry craving. After Fahima, I tried a not so spicy curry chicken from NY Biryani Express Cart. Then, most recently, my quest took me to Hop Won, followed by Jamaican Dutchy. How did their curry dishes compare to what I have had so far? Let’s find out.

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As much as I love Hop Won’s chicken and broccoli from the steamed table, I’ve been exploring their menu. Their wonton noodles weren’t as good as I had hoped, but I was determined to find more hidden delicious gems. My previous visit I ordered the omelette with shrimp over rice, an item on one of their handwritten menu that was taped to a wall, and I was glad I did. Who doesn’t love a good fried egg omelette with snappy shrimp and vegetables over a bed of steaming rice? With that dish still fresh in my mind, I walked into Hop Won recently and ordered a similar dish. This dish was an off-the-menu item and even I wasn’t sure if they would make it.

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It’s very hard not to walk into Hop Won (on 45th btw Lex+3rd) and not end up getting lunch from their steamed table. I’m a big fan of their chicken and broccoli and have also tried roast pork, their sweet and sour chicken, and chow mein. But there are also some great gems on the regular menu, especially if you pay attention to the handwritten items on pieces of bright yellow papers taped to the wall. Gems like the shrimp omelette over rice for $6.23.

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A couple of nights ago, I was treated to a homemade wonton dinner that my friend did. She invited few people over and served a couple of variations on wontons (pork and fish). Lucky for us, she did most of the work so all I had to do was arrive, sit down and eat. Ever since then, I’ve been dreaming about good wontons. I know the stuff they serve in restaurants will rarely be as good as the ones my friend made. So I wasn’t hoping for much when I got a wonton noodle soup at Hop Won (45th btw Lex+3rd).

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I love Chinese food. I can eat it 3 meals a day, every day of the week. So obviously when I started this new job in Midtown east, I had to find a new go-to Chinese place (my previous go-to Chinese place was Fuji Bakery on 35th btw. 7th+8th). The easy/obvious answer seems to be Hop Won (45th btw. Lex+3rd). I had high hopes for this place since it is the twin sister of Hing Won (and you know how much we love Hing Won).

To decide if Hop Won could become my go-to Chinese spot (I’m quite picky with my Chinese food), I tried few different dishes and luckily for me Hop Won delivered. Check out what I ate after the jump.

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My dad’s in town today from Miami, working out of a building on Lex btw. 46+47th. I gave him a choice of lunch spots I could meet him at within a few blocks from the building and naturally he chose Hop Won (on 45th btw. Lex+3rd). I recommended my two favorites, roast pig over rice and sauteed udon noodles with pork- to which he exclaimed “those are my favorites too!” Isn’t DNA a wonderful thing?

The sauteed udon was great, as always, but sadly the roast pig over rice wasn’t as life changing as when I had it at sister restaurant Hing Won (on 48th btw. 5+6th), and the portion wasn’t as big either. I suppose it’s to be expected that once the dish became popular, they’d cut back on the portion (or maybe it’s just inconsistent.) The cracklin’ was still out of control good though, and it was most definitely worth the $6. What did my dad think? He loved both dishes (and is probably recommending them to anyone who will listen, as we speak.)

Related:
Roast Pig Over Rice is Available at Kar Won and Hop Won
Hing Won Has a Twin Sister, Serving Best Cheap Chinese Food to Midtown East

The sign at Kar Won (on 60th btw. Park+Lex)

Great news for those pig lovers who work too far North or East to take advantage of the new “roast pig over rice” from Hing Won (on 48th btw. 5+6th) that I raved about yesterday. Both Kar Won (on 60th btw. Park+Lex) and Hop Won (on 45th btw. Lex+3rd), which are owned by the same company as Hing Won, are also serving the roast pig over rice for $6.

Thanks to Lunch’er “Dylan” for passing along the tip in the comments. He hit up Kar Won for the special and had this to say:

“My container looked almost identical to Zach’s, but it came with a heaping portion of garlicky sauteed bok choy/cabbage. While the belly was great, and the skin crispy, there were a few pieces that had a bit too much inedible bone or cartilage. That said, still awesome.”

But is the pork all I made it out to be?  Some say no.

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When it comes to take out, cheap chinese food there is no question in my mind that Hing Won is the king of Midtown.  On 48th btw. 5+6th, the quickness that they serve up authentic, Chinatown style dishes to hordes of Midtown Lunchers is mind boggling.  It can be pretty intimidating for the uninitiated, so they even have a steam table on the left side of the counter, for those addicted to sesame chicken (and afraid of ordering off a menu that is half in Chinese).

Walking around on the East side on Monday, I discovered something exciting.  On 45th btw. Lex+3rd, there is a Hing Won East.  It’s called Hop Won, and by looking at the takeout menu- you would never be able to tell the difference between the two places.  The even have the double sided ordering counter.  Right side is the steam table, left side is the real stuff!  With Menchanko Tei and Maharaja right next door, this is becoming a pretty formidable block.

My (not surprising to anybody who has eaten at Hing Won with me) lunch, after the jump… Read more »