Midtown Lunch

Rasberry Chocolate Brownie from The Treats Truck
See all the Treats Truck Porn on the Midtown Lunch Flickr Page

MIDTOWN LINKS

• Pret getting set to Starbuckify NYC [NYSun]
• Fried Calamari is Not the Only Great Sandwich at Tuscan Square [Grub St.]
• Gothamist Hits Up Go Go Curry [Gothamist]
• Botox on Your Lunch Break!  What about lipo?  [Gothamist]
• Best Sandwiches in NYC… a few from Midtown [Gridskipper]

The new House of Pita opened yesterday on 46th btw. 5+6th.  The window on 48th btw. 5+6th will remain open with the same menu they’ve always had, but the new location will have an expanded menu, and places to sit.  They are only at about 60% right now, serving the same falafel you can get at the 48th St. window, an expanded bourakas menu, plus their new personal pizzas- but come Monday (6/18) they will be at 100%, with a full service salad bar, fresh fruit, fresh squeezed juices, sandwiches and more. 

The new House of Pita opened yesterday on 46th btw. 5+6th.  The window on 48th btw. 5+6th will remain open with the same menu they’ve always had, but the new location will have an expanded menu, and places to sit.  They are only at about 60% right now, serving the same falafel you can get at the 48th St. window, an expanded bourakas menu, plus their new personal pizzas- but come Monday (6/18) they will be at 100%, with a full service salad bar, fresh fruit, fresh squeezed juices, sandwiches and more. 

The new salad & fruit bar, PLUS the apple cinnamon bourakus- after the jump… Read more »

Awww yeah… The Treats Truck is in Midtown today!  What the hell is the Treats Truck you ask?  It’s a mobile bakery run by Kim Ima, who bakes a truckload (pun intended) of treats in Red Hook, and then drives them to a specific location in NYC.  The location changes every day (and often multiple times a day).  Find the truck and you’ll be rewarded with a wide selection of amazing looking cookies, brownies, rice krispy squares and more.  Prices range from $1 to $2.50.  

This past weekend the truck was in the Village, yesterday it was in the Upper West Side, and today it’s coming to Midtown!  The truck is so new, they are still scouting out locations- so they are not exactly sure where they are going to be today and at what time, but as soon as they know, they are going to let me know- and I will be posting updates to this page all day long so you can get your after lunch sugar rush.  You can also check their website, or call 212-691-5226.

UPDATED (10:54 AM):  The Treats Truck has landed on 38th & 5th Ave.

UPDATED (12:32 PM): I have been to the Treat Truck and it is good!  Highlights include Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookie, Rasberry Brownie… um- pretty much everthing was awesome.

“The Arepa Lady”. “The Dosa Man”. “The Dragon”. New Yorkers love their street food… and while most carts toil away in anonymity, there are a few street food vendors that have achieved legendary status. Singled out by magazines, posters on Chowhound and the Vendy Awards, these “destination” carts draw people across borough lines for some of the best food the city has to offer.  Like most of the great food in New York, most of these special carts are outside of Midtown, but there are a few we can brag about.  Hallo Berlin, Daisy May’s BBQ, and of course the Famous Chicken & Rice Cart on 53rd St. & 6th. (The one with the line at 2 in the morning.)

Now, we have one more to add to that list. The Jamaican Cart. While it may take a lot of time for most carts to build up a following, there was a line 15 people long on the second day The Jamaican Cart appeared. Serving up jerk chicken, and stewed meat, word spread quick and the lines never seemed to go away.  Unfortunately, it didn’t take a genius to realize the lines were more from the slowness of the service, than anything else… but it was still a line. And if people are willing to wait 45 minutes for food from a cart, then it must be good, right!?!

What they serve, food porn and a +/- after the jump… Read more »

Ressie Mae’s, the soul food place on 8th ave. btw. 39+40th with loose ties to Amy Ruth’s in Harlem has closed as of today.  I was just emailed these sad photos from Midtown Lunch’er “Jed”:

Apparently they were evicted after not paying their rent.  No word yet on what will go up in its place, but the landlord said he doesn’t want another restaurant in there.  Bummer…  I will miss you Fried Chicken & Waffles.

Do you have Midtown Lunch’ing news or photos.  Email them to zach@midtownlunch.com or post them to the Midtown Lunch Flickr Photo Group.

Every neighborhood in NYC seems to have a “Taste of” festival these days.  My favorite by far is the one in Chinatown which manages the perfect combination of price and variety.  Every dish is $1 or $2, allowing you to eat whatever you want without remorse.  It may not be a good indication of how good or bad a place is, but for $2, it’s not much of an investment.  If what you buy sucks, you don’t feel too bad- it only cost a couple of bucks.

It’s not a big surprise that the Chinatown one is cheap.  Chinatown is a cheap neighborhood.  In fact, I wonder if all the “Taste of” festivals fall into their neighborhoods respective stereotypes.  Do they make you feel un-cool at the “Taste of the Lower East Side?”  Maybe they only serve the beautiful people at the “Taste of the Meatpacking District” festival.  “Taste of Times Square” certainly lives up to its stereotype.  Super packed, full of tourists, really annoying and pretty overpriced.  Oh, and the food consisted of 5 places serving Ribs, and 284 places serving their version of pasta with red sauce.  Good times!

However, yesterdays Taste of Times Square was entertaining- and there were a few things worth mentioning.  Not much that would qualify as a Midtown Lunch, but entertaining nonetheless.  You had to buy tickets beforehand (a huge inconvenience), so I allotted myself 10 tickets ($10).  With most items costing between 3 and 5 tickets, you had to be pretty good about budgeting.

Coolest Part of the Festival: Utsav, the Indian place on 46 btw. 6+7th was actually cooking Naan right on the street in a giant clay pot. 

Pretty awesome.  Yesterday, a commenter mentioned you can get lunch there to-go for $8.  I think I might have to try that one of these days…

Biggest Rip-Off: Papa John’s Pizza.  One Slice – $3.  Are you kidding me?  You people must be high. 

The “Hey Look at Us!  We’re really a classy joint, despite our waitresses being in Bikinis” dish:  Pepper Seared Beef Carpaccio on Himalayan Rock Salt w/ Arugula Salad.  Didn’t I see David Burke use that rock salt on the Iron Chef?  Definitely my favorite use of Himalayan Rock Salt at any of the booths.  Although- I’m no expert, but doesn’t the food actually have to be touching the salt for it to impart any flavor?

Best Job of Admitting Your Food is Overpriced Halfway Through the Festival:  I guess Spotlight Live wasn’t selling many Tuna Tacos w/ Asian Slaw at $5 a pop.  A little impromptu price lowering may have helped.  The guy in the booth assured me that they “tasted better than they look”.  Way to sell the food buddy…

Dish That Almost Had Me Eating Food From a Restaurant I Would Never Eat At:  The Hush Puppies from Bubba Gump.  Those things looked pretty damn good… and at $2, they were a relative bargain.  Luckily I exercised self restraint, and my streak is still intact of never eating at any chain restaurants taken from over-rated 90s movies!

The most inexplicable line award:  The giant line at the Applebee’s booth.  Are you kidding me? 

Penne with red sauce #34 out of 485.  Rigatoni & Ziti were also an acceptable substitute.  Nothing says Restaurant Row like boring Italian food.

Biggest disappointment of the Day:  Speaking of boring Italian food, what was up with the Becco Booth.  Pasta with Red Sauce served by a guy wearing a “How Do You Like Your Sausage T-Shirt”.  I expected a little more from Lidia Bastianich.

Now… onto the food I ate- all of which happened to be good!  Pics and more, after the jump.

Read more »

Every Tuesday I turn over the site to a Midtown Lunch’er for their recommendations of places to eat lunch in Midtown.  After 3 women in a row (two of them Mets fans), I asked for a Yankees fan who was a guy- and got one. Meet Justin, an Accountant/Yankees Fan- neither of which is apparent from his picture…

Name: Justin

Age: 26

Occupation: Accountant

Where in Midtown do you Work?: My main office is on 51st between Park+Lex, but I worked for months at 47th between Park+Lex.

Favorite Kind of Food: Pretty much anything that will shorten my life span. I love Pizza, fried foods, pork, and steak. I love Chinese, Indian, Italian, and all the Hispanic goodies that I have learned about on your site.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Anything vegetarian. It is not a meal unless an animal dies. Though falafel can make a great side dish.

Favorite Place to Eat Lunch in Midtown: This is a tough one, I love a lot of different things and try to vary it up. During the winter I definitely hit up Menchenko-tei a lot. Mmmmm ramen, I fell in love with this stuff when I was in Tokyo. I also love my carts, nothing like a greasy combo over rice. There is a Jiannettos pizza truck right in front of my office, so if am still hungry a quick slice is always good. I mean I like so many things it is hard to say in this short blurb. Though I have to say my absolute favorite dish for lunch is probably roast pork (like all good Jews), and we have some great places to get it in Midtown- Sophie’s and Margon come to mind immediately

The “go-to” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often: I don’t really have a go to lunch spot. When I worked a little more south I went to the food court in Grand Central since there were a lot of options… I didn’t say good options but options none the less. There was a deli between Park+adison on 48th (I think) that had a really good chicken Bi Bim Bop, for $10 I use to get a lot. Also again Menchanko-Tei , but you can’t really go there enough. Also Pizza Rustico, it has a great deal in the back where you can get a dish, two pastas, and two vegitables for $7. It is great variety for the price.

Place you discovered thanks to MidtownLunch: El Rincon del Sabor, Menchanko-Tei, Margon, Ho Yip, The Jamaican Cart on 51st (really good, but who has an hour to eat at a cart).

Dream job location, purely for lunch purposes?: Somewhere in Italy where I can get awesome dried meats, cheese, and wine at lunch, not to mention great pizza, and chicken parm. Though if I was going to stay in NYC I would go downtown between Chinatown and Little Italy, good chinese food, good italian, and soho options if you are willing to walk.

If you love meats, and the Jamaican Cart you should check out the Golden Krust on 3rd Ave btw. 43+44.  Great stewed meats, and Jamaican patties.  For a more Latin flavor, La Strada is definitely the place to go (56th btw. 3rd+Lex).  For those of you on West side, and looking for an alternative to Sophie’s & Margon- I still think the best roast pork is at Cafe Cello (46th btw. 5+6th). It’s been almost a year since I’ve written about this place, so a lot of people might have missed it or forgotten- but if crispy skin is your thing, than their roast pork is to die for.  Roast pork porn after the jump… Read more »

Overshadowed by the Big Apple BBQ Block Party this past weekend (and most other food festivals in the city), A Taste of Times Square is happening tonight from 5 to 8:30pm. on 46th St. btw. Broadway & 9th Ave.  According to their website, it’s:

Your chance to sample signature dishes and a variety of international foods from Times Square’s finest eateries…

If Hard Rock Cafe, Planet Hollywood, Papa John’s & Applebee’s are some of the “finest eateries” in Times Sq. than I think we’re in trouble.  I’m gussing our Times Sq. favorites (Kati Roll, Minar, Margon, Yum Thai, and all the food carts) got priced out…

I do love food festivals though, so I will probably do a quick walk through after work.  It will be a cheap way to try some of the places a little expensive for Midtown Lunch’ing purposes… like Utsav, Becco & Virgil’s BBQ.  Plus, I do love Snapple!

For more info, including a full list of vendors, go here.  There is no information about how much the food costs (they’ll be selling generic “tickets” at booths throughout the festival), but if it’s a true “Taste” of Times Sq. I’m guessing it will be overpriced and packed with annoying tourists.

Applebee’s Photo courtesy of cmax on flickr.

After last night’s Soprano’s episode, I’m sort of in the mood for some onion rings.  The best Onion rings I’ve had in Midtown (by far) are the ones at Del Frisco’s (49th btw. 6+7th)… but if you don’t have $11.95 to drop on a plate of fried onions (yes, a side order of onion rings is Twelve Dollars), my pick for best onion rings in Midtown would have to be Prime Burger on 51st btw. Madison & 5th.

A picture of those, plus the worst onion rings in Midtown… after the jump Read more »

K.C. Rib-Ticklers does sound really good today.