Midtown Lunch

$6 for a whole chicken? Too bad we can’t get this in Midtown! Photo by Brownie.

Chris showed Serious Eats readers Singapore’s 12 must try dishes, Brian drank beer and ate sausage at Jimmy’s No 43, Blondie surveyed the sweets in San Francisco, Brownie got thrifty with a $6 whole rotisserie chicken from Brancaccio’s, Rachel had grilled fish taco night and I photographed the kitchen at Do or Dine in Bed-Stuy.

Elsewhere in the ML universe… Zach hits up a truck in Los Angeles that serves Rochester garbage plates (!!!), Jamie got chicken and waffles from a truck in Philly and Andrea found a SoHo Dominican spot where the truck drivers and delivery guys go.

Next time you’re heading over to the Grand Central Food Concourse for some Flex Donuts or to check out the new Tri Tip, you should make a plan to eat your lunch there. A few months ago, they unveiled the EAT exhibit by photographer Jim Dow; it’s in both middle seating areas and scheduled to run through June. The exhibit highlights some of the photos from his book, American Studies and includes some beautiful shots of–one of our favorite things–food carts. Be sure to check out one of my favorites, a shot of the El Oriental cart in Buenos Aires.

I like to think New York is one of the most diverse food meccas in the world. With so many options these days, it’s hard to believe that there are unexplored cuisines in Midtown. Yet, until Monday, I could not direct you to an Australian meat pie establishment. (Unless you have a time machine back to when Tuck Shop briefly occupied the Cyber Cycle Cafe on 49th Street.) Enter Pie Face, a meat pie takeout chain straight from down under that opened its first US shop on the corner of 53rd and Broadway this week.

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Yesterday in the forums we heard the news that Yummy Yummy (on Lex btw. 55+56th) had closed and was being replaced by Peter’s Since 1969, the rotisserie chicken joint with locations in Hell’s Kitchen and Brooklyn.  I just walked by and they are actually open for business starting today!  There have been mixed reviews about their chicken, and Jeremiah wasn’t a huge fan of their BBQ chicken sandwich.  But Lunch’er “mingusaham” says their chicken salad sandwich is not bad, and if they’re expanding they must be doing something right, right?  Early adopters, let us know how it is in the comments.  And fans of the 9th Ave. location, let us know what we should be ordering…

I actually stopped by Joe’s Kitchen Cart (SE corner of 44th+6th) within hours of Clay picking up the $3.50 street meat platter last week, and had the same doubts and misgivings. The odd menu, the double duty of a coffee cart trying to extend its hours into lunch without a clear agenda or needed space, and incredibly low price point are all red flags that would warrant most customers walking to one of the more trusted carts in the area instead. I knew that I should try something other than the platter, and once I saw Chicken Parm ($5) on the menu, I knew it would either be a disaster or EPIC!

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• Yummy Yummy being replaced by Peter’s Since 1969 [Midtown Eating]
• Has anybody tried the baked ziti from Joe’s Kitchen Cart? [Midtown Eating]
• If you can afford Kwik Meal, you probably drive a limo! [Midtown Eating]
• The first ML happy hour meetup of 2012 is a week from today [Connections]

I noticed on Twitter over the weekend that the Tribeca Taco Truck is about to launch a second truck. Andrea was a fan of their tacos when she finally tracked them down in Soho. The plan is to have the new one on the road by the end of the week and they promised that they will now hit up different locations, so here’s hoping they will pop up in Midtown soon.

Every Tuesday we turn over the site to a different Midtown Lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Midtown. This week it’s Sara, a student who discovered the joys of Midtown East while interning on the Rachael Ray show.

Name: Sara

Age: 22

Occupation: Student at FDU

Where in Midtown do you Work?: Former intern on the Rachael Ray Show

Favorite Kind of Food: Any Spanish food and/or comfort food

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Can’t think of one (serious.)

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: Potbelly Sandwich Shop for the Roast beef sandwich with lettuce, tomato & italian seasoning. 696 Deli (on 3rd btw. 43+44th) for their Bacon Egg & Cheese. Sophie’s Cuban for the Ropa Vieja with rice & beans & their empanadas are legit too! Blarney Stone (on 3rd btw. 45+46th) for their Rotisserie Chicken with 2 sides or Hamburger Lunch Special. Mangu Dominican Restaurant’s Sancocho Soup. And McFaddens on 2nd btw. 42+43rd for their Shepherds Pie

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