Midtown Lunch

There’s no pork in this Cuban sandwich. Via SENY.

• We’re finally getting our Danish open face sandwiches! [Diner’s Journal]
• Two WFC lunch spots are closing, including Au Mandarin. [Broadsheet Daily]
• A veg sandwich at Cafe Habana‘s a “weighty beast of a lunch.” [SENY]
• ICYMI: Food trucks are a terrorist threat? [Public Intelligence via Eater]

In what seems like a new record for the shortest amount of time it takes a new lunch place to go from papered up windows to serving food, the Lenny’s sandwich shop on Water St. (btw. Coenties & Broad) was open for business yesterday when I walked by, and full of people. This joins the location on John St., and according to the Lenny’s Web site, there’s another shop coming to Battery Park City. Unless someone can tip me in the direction of an awesome sandwich to be had at Lenny’s, I’ll probably pass on eating there, but it’s clear they probably won’t be hurting for business.

It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten a good deli sandwich so when the opportunity presented itself to check out M&O Market & Deli on Thompson St. (at Prince), I took it. This place is an old school bodega with a deli counter hidden in the back, and that’s where you want to head. You’ll notice a board with the usual Boar’s Head options, but you may want to see what the house roasted special of the day is. Some days they do turkey, others pork loin or meatloaf, but when I was there is was a giant hunk of rare roast beef resting in the deli case. Read more »

The weird rollercoaster ride that It’s A Pizza on John St. (btw. Broadway & Nassau) was on seems to finally be over, as the place has been closed for a week, the inside has been gutted and there’s a marshal’s order of eviction on the window. I waited to post anything because the place has closed down at least two other times, once in January for failing a Department of Health inspection and then in May for operating without a permit. I know a lot of you loved their pizza (and I loved their pasta), but the constant construction on that stretch of the street for the past couple of years likely did them no favors. As one Lunch’er who wrote in to alert me to the closure noted, it’s best to just head down the street to Cafe 41 for a $1 slice to soothe your sadness.

Yet another new cart has made its way to the Financial District, as Midtown contributor Brian tells us. This one’s called Toast Monster and it doesn’t serve overpriced juices, but it does have toasted sandwiches involving Nutella and cheese (not together). He learned that they’ve been around for a few weeks, used to set up in Tribeca, and that they may or may not be back in the FiDi on Thursday, but could be here next Wednesday. You can take a look at the menu they were serving at Maiden Lane btw. Front & Water yesterday straight ahead.

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