Midtown Lunch

What can I say?  I feel like if you are going to sin, you may as well do it up right.  I mean, if I’m going to eat on Yom Kippur- why not EAT on Yom Kippur, right? Two years ago I made a list of pork and shrimp dishes in Midtown that were worth going to hell for, and since that list still applies today- I decided to head over to Cafe Cello (on 46th btw. 5+6th).  Thanks to a lunch’er tip, I discovered that they are now serving a roast pork sandwich, made from their always amazing roast pork.  But don’t get too excited, it’s just pork on a generic looking roll with lettuce and tomato.  And they don’t press it or anything, so it’s not like a legitimate Cuban. I think I’ll just stick with my standard roast pork over rice and beans with plantains (and crispy pork skin of course.)  Like I said… if I’m gonna be bad, might as well be really bad. 

Bacon wrapped lobster for dinner anyone?

Got another great tip from the commenter who goes by the name of “Bossman”:

You want to talk about crazy ass shit? There’s always been this Halal cart on 55th and Mad (Southwest corner) that had a fryer setup. Convenient when the urge strikes for fries along with your street meat. Aside from that there’s nothing that stands out about the place. I used to frequest it because they’ll throw your gyro on a hero and I always found that held up better than pita. The guys are real nice and if I found myself getting lunch at 2:45 (like today) I’ll hit it up.

So today I see a sign saying Fried Chicken w/ fries (4 Pieces) $6.00. It’s all your fault Zach- prior to reading ML I would’ve ran for the hills, nowadays it just raises a bunch of questions:

Fried chicken truck, yes. But cart? Has Zach done that? How could they? Pre-cooked and just warmed through?

…and finally “how could I not?”

Anyway, what I got was 2 tenders, a wing, a drumette, and a thigh and fries all freshly fried (obviously they’re better at dishing the food than counting it). Of course, it’s not your Grandma’s chicken but it was pretty damn good for what it was (especially as a conduit for hot sauce). What will they think of next?

The photo he sent in, after the jump…  Read more »

Thanks to all the lunchers who emailed me about this one. Free coffee is nice, but free sandwiches is like hitting the jackpot. The new AQ Kafe on Broadway btw. 58+59th will give out free sandwiches on Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Available for eat in or take out, you’ll get a choice between their Turkey (w/ jarlsberg, lingonberry jam, and lettuce on wheat), Vine Ripened Tomato (w/ cucumber, farmer’s cheese, and sprouts on wheat), or the Tuna Salad (with tomato, pickled onions, and celery on wheat). Bummer that one of the choices isn’t from the hot sandwich menu (swedish meatballs anybody!?!) and the gravlax club probably would be too much to ask for- but whatever. You won’t hear me complaining about free food. Plus, the manager told me they plan on doing more of these kinds of giveaways in the coming weeks, so stay tuned…

Dean & Deluca seems to be opening more of more of these new lunchtime take out spots. At the end of last year they opened the branch on 48th btw. 5+6th (right around the corner from another Dean & Deluca location) and now another has opened on 55th 56th btw. 6+7th. But this one is kind of different… they’re serving burgers! Kind of exciting, and they looked pretty good being grilled behind the counter. Unfortunately, they are all over $10 so I think I’ll just stick with the Burger Joint or Five Guys. But there is a menu of under $10 sandwiches and hot panini that look kind of appealing- and completely different than anything they have the other Midtown locations.

For those D&D fans who work in the southern part of Midtown, there is a big Dean & Deluca that will be opening on the ground floor of the New York Times Building (on 8th Ave. and 41st Street) but no word on when that will be happening.

The new Magnolia Bakery on 49th & 6th Avenue is officially open, and take a good look at the photo above… because that is emptiest you will ever see this place.  Profiled Midtown Lunchers Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Cake, and Blondie and Brownie (from Blondie and Brownie) were there, so if you’re interested in how the sweets are I’m sure you will get a good write up on their sites.  I will however say this… fans of the Downtown Magnolia- don’t expect downtown prices.  This is Rock Center, and inflated Midtown pricing applies.

The other long awaited Midtown opening, Obika (the Mozzarella Bar on Madison and 55th) is still not open.  Photo, plus the latest news- after the jump… Read more »

After a few days down on Wall Street, the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck is back in Midtown today- parked on 52nd and Lexington Ave.  Ever since it was announced that the Rickshaw Dumpling Bar (which has two brick and mortar locations in the lower of half of Manhattan) would be opening a truck, there has been a lot of criticism in the comments.  And a lot of it is is warranted. The place is freakin’ expensive. And it’s fancy pants Asian food, not the sort of cheap, authentic Hing Won/Ying Du’ish chinese food we normally praise here on Midtown Lunch.  Who the hell would spend $6 on 6 dumplings, when you can go to Chinatown and get 5 better dumplings for the price of 1 dumpling at the Rickshaw truck. Even with the subway ride there and back it would still be cheaper! 

All of this 100% true.  And yet, it doesn’t mean that nobody will like the Rickshaw Dumpling Truck.  And that’s why we do the +/-

Read more »

From the NY Post: “Ray… the self-described ‘burger freak’ plans to open a hamburger joint in Midtown next year. ‘I’m going for a ’60s back-in-the-day Rat Pack-y kind of hangout, and I want the bar to be really central [and] the burgers to become a very social thing,’ says Ray. ‘I want people to come to the bar to see beautiful proper martinis being made and to enjoy some sliders while they’re doing business or sit in the dining room and have fine dining in ground form.'” Chance that a Rachel Ray burger joint in Times Square will be annointed a proper ‘Midtown Lunch’? Zilch. [via Eater]

I love it when Midtown Lunch places use my photos.  I guess real photographers would probably not like people stealing their work, but for an amateur like me it’s kind of an honor. Awhile back, the Biriyani Cart (which was recently nominated for a Vendy Award) used two of my photos on their signage, and now someone pointed out that Margon (on 46th btw. 6+7th) put one of my photos on their take out menu.  Don’t know how appetizing that looks in black and white… I think I prefer it in color.  Either way, anything that causes more people to eat at Margon is alright in my book. (Although it would be nice to get a free lunch out of it… hint hint.)