Midtown Lunch

The NYT City Room blog revisits the topic of the late night line at the Famous Halal Cart on 53rd & 6th, and seems to be in awe of how it has led to “daytime halal carts now outside office buildings and nighttime vendors close to nightclubs, theaters and hotels” (as if this was a recent phenomenon.)  It doesn’t mention that you can avoid that late night line, by crossing the street to the SE corner of 53rd & 6th for the exact same food- but Shendy’s, the 2nd place finisher in Street Meat Palooza 2, did get a big shout out from one of the “clubbers” interviewed on the line:

“I’ve tried both carts; 53rd is really the touristy spot,” Mr. Amos said. “52nd is the spot for the people who just couldn’t wait, the starving guy. I’m usually starving.”

The article also mentions that there are other carts drawing crowds these days, like 28th and Madison Avenue, 40th and Seventh Avenue (really?), 45th and Sixth Avenue (uh, do you mean Kwik Meal?) and 52nd between Ninth and Tenth Avenues.

Related:
Debunking the Myths of 53rd & 6th, the Most Famous Halal Intersection in New York City

Every Tuesday I turn over the site to a different Midtown Lunch’er for his or her recommendations for the best lunch in Midtown. Last week we did a feature on the ladies of Queen Frostine, an all female collective of Midtown ice cream truck drivers. Well, not only does one of the drivers (“Miss Softee”) sell ice cream in Midtown, but she also eats in Midtown! Here are her favorite spots…

Name: Chrissy, but you can call me Miss Softee

Age: My grandmother always told me that a lady never tells three things: her age, her weight, and how much she paid for it.

Occupation: I serve ice cream from a Mister Miss Softee Ice Cream Truck in midtown. And, as you might have read last week, in addition to the traditional menu I also make a special cone everyday. It all started when I was driving and bunch of waffle cones fell off a shelf and broke. Since they were still wrapped in plastic, I figured I could use them as a special topping for the day. People went nutso! After experimenting with the broken cones, my first special was an almond biscotti crumble and it was a biiig success! Everyday I try to take into account the general mood, day of the week, special requests, and the weather to come up with a different cone. I post them on my twitter so people can check what the special cone is before they come to the truck. Most popular (so far) have been: Gimme S’more, Frosted Flakes, Cinnamon Bun, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Cake Batter, and Salty Sweet.

Where in Midtown do you Work?: I do a lunch spot every weekday by Bryant Park and the New York Public Library on 40Th and 5th Avenue during the day from about 1-6:30PM and then I do a nightspot at 47th and 6th Avenue. At the nightspot, I put up an after-work happy hour menu with special deals from 7-8:30PM, followed by a nighttime menu for late night snackers.

Favorite Kind of Food: I like just about everything! When it comes to lunch, I’m a sandwich fanatic. Two pieces of bread, something in the middle, and a little dressing. That’s all I need to be totally happy in life. Recently, I’ve also been having a passionate affair with Naked Green Machine since I spend so much time on the truck. It gives me tons of energy without caffeine and fills me up as an afternoon snack. When I’m cooking at home, I usually stick to traditional Italian food — like my mama used to make — or, I go for some new fusion blend that strikes my fancy. Recently, I tried making Mexican sushi and it was goooood. Yellow rice, cooked chicken, avocado, tomato, a leeeeetle onion, and some sour cream in a seaweed roll.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: I’m actually allergic to capsaicin, so no spicy food for me! I know, I know. How do I live without spicy food? Simple. I’ve never had it really. I’m also really lactose intolerant, so as much as I love to make people happy by serving them ice cream, I can’t really eat it myself. I try a bite of the special everyday to confirm its goodness and that’s about it. Other than that, I don’t think there’s much food I don’t like!

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch in Midtown: Oh boy, I could go on forrrrrever here, but I’ll tell you about the places I’ve been frequenting by my work spots recently:

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The Tray Can Only Take So Much (To Be Exact, 9 Times As Much As What You See Here.)

If you are a longtime reader of Midtown Lunch (and a lover of Korean food) you are no doubt aware of Woorijip’s by the lb buffet (on 32nd btw. B’way+5th).  My eyes and stomach are both large, so I have always found the “pay what your lunch weighs” a very dangerous game to engage in.  But Woorijip has so many amazing things to choose from and the buffet is only way to get a little bit of everything… or a lot of everything, as this lunch’er seemed to  do recently.  Naturally, his tale is a cautionary one…

“Just wanted to tell you and your readers an extremely important fact. I am sure many of us have put the per pound lunch table trays to the test on a hungry day. Recently I rolled by Woorijip, the Korean deli on 32nd at 11:45 am, the food trays were fresh, warm, and not picked over. I could not have been more excited.

The lineup was epic: The cold side featured heaping treys of: Pork Belly with Soy Ginger sauce, Kimbap, Pickled veggies, rice cakes, baby octopus. Half way through the line my tray was already full…”

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Chicken Souvlaki from Kefi (UWS)

We were pretty excited to read on Fork in the Road yesterday that Michael Psilakis (the chef of Kefi & Anthos) is planning on opening a Greek street cart by the end of the year. I’ve had his chicken soulvlaki sandwich at Kefi on the UWS (delicious!) and you know I how I feel about the lamb burger at Anthos. Sadly, his “people” were a little less optimistic about the prospects of a cart. “There are no immediate plans for a street cart in the works, it’s something he’s considering, but I wouldn’t say it’s imminent. His focus right now is Gus & Gabriel, and the release of his first cookbook in October, How to Roast a Lamb.” That’s ok, I’m still excited. (It’ll be in Midtown, right?)

Related:
My Lamb Burger Plea to Michael Psilakis
At Lunch Now: Birthday Splurge at Anthos

Photo courtesy of Lunch’er “Matt”

It’s good to see that a little heat doesn’t stop Midtown Lunchers from coming out for the schnitzel! (Considering it was the Schnitzel & Things truck’s first visit to Midtown, you know there was going to be a crowd.) By Noon one commenter reported that the line was ten deep, at it seemed to remain that way until at least 12:45. (Although 15 minutes seems to the be longest wait time recordeed.) Reports poured in from Midtown Lunchers, and were pretty much universally good. Here’s what Lunch’er Matt had to say (who also emailed the photo above):

Since the Schnitzel Truck made their debut in Midtown today and I promised myself I’d be there day one, today was the day. My partner in crime at the office Melissa and I showed up about 10 minutes after they had opened according to their twitter. There were about 8 people already there with 4 or so in front and the rest waiting for their food. The wait was very short, for everyone so it looks like they have this cooking/serving thing down to a science. Maybe staying away from Midtown for the first few weeks was a good idea. On to the food!

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Tonight is the second to last summer movie showing in Bryant Park, and since it’s sponsored by Time Warner Cable their $1 ice cream truck will be parked on 40th btw. 5+6th again from around 4:30pm until 9pm tonight. (Oh, and if you care about the movie, it’s The Magnificent Seven and starts at sunset.)