Midtown Lunch

Here we go again… was on my way to Oaxaca Grill and noticed this madness outside of the newly opened Mapo Tofu (on Lex btw. 39+40th). The restaurant claims there is no connection between them and Wu Liang Ye (the former tenant), but clearly the protesters disagree. This all stems from a lawsuit in which Wu Liang Ye employees claimed to be mistreated. We’re not sure who is right or wrong, but the cops have shown up.

Check out that photo after the jump…

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Here’s an interesting development… it’s been months since the Wu Liang Ye on Lex btw. 39+40th closed, amidst a legal battle in which they were accused of being owned by the Chinese govt. and mistreating their employees. Well, the restaurant has reopened as “Mapo Tofu” and claim to have completely different owners and better food (natch) than the original.  The lunch menu actually looks amazing, and kind of supports their claim.  It’s filled with far more authentic Sichuan specialties than the Wu Liang Ye menu, and is already receiving good reviews on Yelp.

Check out the lunch menu after the jump…

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The Rock Center Tree Lighting wasn’t the only thing causing craziness on 48th Street yesterday.  Fork in the Road is reporting that disgruntled Wu Liang Ye workers (from the now closed 39th & 86th Street locations) were protesting the branch on 48th btw. 5+6th yesterday. You might remember that back in July these same workers held a demonstration outside the Wu Liang Ye on 39th and 3rd Lex., claiming that the restaurant (along with the 86th Street location) was owned by the Chinese Government and horribly mistreated their employees.  In October, a judge ruled that the locations had to pay back wages and compensation to the workers, but those two branches have closed since then- leaving the Wu Liang Ye on 48th Street the only location left to protest in front of (even though 48th Street was excluded from the lawsuit by proving they had a different owner.)

The workers told Fork in the Road they don’t care what the paperwork says, all three Wu Liang Ye locations were opened and run by the same person. If these allegations turn out to be true, it’s hard not to side with underpaid and mistreated workers- but my stomach hopes that the 48th Street location really does have nothing to do with this.  Wu Liang Ye serves some of the best Szechuan food in Midtown (a fact that I discovered thanks to Fork in the Road, coincidentally enough.)  It looks like Blondie and Brownie agree with me as well.  They broke the picket lines yesterday for some Dan Dan Noodles.

Related:
Workers Stage Protest Against Chinese Govt. Owned Wu Liang Ye
Fork in the Road Weighs in on Wu Liang Ye

If you wanted to read more about my kid’s first taste of tea smoked duck, the Village Voice’s Robert Sietsama has a great write up of a sit down lunch we shared last week at Wu Liang Ye (on 48th btw. 5+6th).  Sadly, none of what we ate is in the Midtown Lunch price range- with the exception of the dan dan noodles and the wontons in hot oil. Both were delicious, but neither are big enough to make a complete lunch.  Wu Liang Ye’s takeout menu does have a list of $8 lunch specials- but very few of their “Szechuan Specialties” are on it (unlike Szechuan Gourmet, which has a number of their specialties available as lunch specials.)  Either way, it was still a really tasty lunch- and worth checking out the write up if you love Szechuan food. [Fork in the Road]