Archive for August 2010

PROFILE: Downtown Lunch’er “Katie”

As is customary here on Midtown Lunch, every Tuesday we’ll profile a different lunch’er and get their recommendations for places to eat in Downtown NYC. This week, we have fellow food blogger Katie who is trying to kick her anti-seafood habit and has a short, but solid, list of favorite lunches.

 width=Name: Katie Ett

Occupation: Officially, I’m a facility coordinator, but I’m a full-time blogger in my heart.  (I have three blogs, and that’s not even close to all of them.)

Where you work: A software company as far downtown as you can get without actually being in the water.

Age: 28

Favorite Kinds of Food: On the high end, really mundane ingredients done so well they surprise me. On the low end, all of the terrible chain restaurants from my hometown in Ohio that you can only find in Times Square here.

Least Favorite Foods: Tomatoes.  And all seafood, although I’ve been trying to get over that so my boyfriend will take me to Per Se as a reward.

Favorite Lunches Downtown: Tabasco chicken from Water Street Deli (get it with a side of baked ziti!) on Water (btw. Broad & Moore), roast pork and plantains from Sophie’s Cuban (Multiple Locations), and zeppoles from The Grotto on New St. (btw. Exchange Pl. & Beaver) for dessert every day.

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: Flavors on Whitehall St., just because it’s right out our back door.  At least they sell chocolate pudding and the best Oreo brownies you can imagine. Read more »

Downtown Happy Hour Is Happening Wednesday: Do you enjoy Bon Chon chicken and an alcoholic beverage after work? Well, head to the Bon Chon on John St. (btw. Cliff & Pearl) starting at 6 p.m. Wednesday for a little happy hour action and possibly a spirited discussion of where exactly the best street meat can be found. Find more info in the forums.

Taking The $3.50 Roast Pork Challenge At New Kim Tuong

A few weeks ago I thought I had found a pretty good deal in Chinatown with a Sichuan lunch including soup, appetizer, rice and entree for $5.50. I know there are cheaper meals to be had in Chinatown, but it’s pretty daunting finding them. Well, after the post was up the ML Twitter account got this little message from @Gordoneats:

Downtown deal of the century? How about $3.50 for roast pork on rice (with bean sprouts and soup, takeout) at New Kim Tuong?

According to Zach, Gordon used to work for Serious Eats and is an authoritative source on all things tasty in Chinatown. The next time the urge hit me to head up there, it was with this mythical, cheap roast pork meal in mind. After all, it’s time I branched out from my five-for-$1 dumpling meals. Read more »

Downtown Links (The “Delicious Things On Bread” Edition)

I have eaten you, and you are good. Courtesy of Always Hungry NY

  • Cheeky Sandwiches gets another seal of approval, and it should be noted their “ben-yays” look a lot like Dunkin’ Donuts’ munchkins. [Always Hungry]
  • The guy behind Baoguette is opening a fusiony taqueria on the Lower East Side in October. Tacos are so the new cupcakes. [Metromix]
  • At least three restaurants in Chinatown were closed by the health department recently, but roaches will not keep me away from dirt cheap food. [Grub St.]
  • Fancy Italian sandwich shop Salume makes the list of 10 overpriced dishes, and then drops its prices. [Eater NY]
  • A craving for bresaola can be satisfied at Grandaisy Bakery, but you have to go elsewhere for soup. [Lunch With Front Studio]

Letter Grade Spotting Has Started In The FiDi

I doubt anyone who got a C would do this, but I spotted the above signboard outside of The Diner on Nassau St. (btw. John & Fulton). In addition to knowing that they scored an A from the Department of Health (the actual placard was hung in the window), you can also rest assured that they have a tuna salad sandwich as a lunch special for the day! Nothing like multi-tasking. As other sites have pointed out, since the letter grades have been given out at the end of July, about 80%  of the 250 inspected have gotten an A or B.

A Very Carb-Tastic Lunch At Takahachi Bakery

Walking into the newish Takahachi Bakery on Murray St. (at Church) is a little bit like sensory overload at lunchtime. You could compose whatever kind of lunch you want, basically, even if it’s just buying a bunch of cookies and baked goods. I had already sampled some sweets from there when they opened back in June, but I hadn’t gone for an actual lunch. This time I was after a sandwich and something sweet but as I am not immune to the impulse buy, ended up with something of a three-course lunch which was OK because I still came in under the ML $10 limit. Read more »

ML Downtown Forums: Happy Hour; Street Meat; Sick Lunches