Midtown Lunch is a fabulous resource for eating lunch in Midtown, obviously. Through them I have discovered my love for cart food and multiple more interesting lunch time feasts. Unfortunately, while they are right around my current office, they don’t stretch quite so far as my apartment, which is near Penn Station. Therefore, I put together my own wrap up that provides a smattering of the food we’ve eaten in the past few months from Penn Station up to Times Square.
I’m adjusting my Nom Points scale for this one to on a scale of 5. 1 being eating sewage, 3 being exactly what I’d expect from an order in midtown, and 5 being well above expectations.
Starting from the South and going North…
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A Seamless Web search for cheese steak (after watching the latest Man vs. Food episode I was craving) brought us to Kool Bloo. Upon writing this I realized how far out of the jurisdiction this is, however, they deliver to Penn Station so it’s going in. (There are 4, but I think the closest to us is on 22nd between 2nd and 3rd Ave… EAST side! Other locations are Ave A at 12th Stree, 6th Ave at Watts St, and 2nd Ave between 38th and 39th Streets… according to MenuPages anyway).
Mike started off with cole slaw, which I thought was quite novel in this beautiful purple shade. I actually tried it and liked it.
He followed that up with a Mr. Big Beef Burger. (Mr. Big from Sex and The City? hmmm.) This had a friend egg, American Cheese, and bacon (with lettuce, tomato, and raw onion). I took a bite and it was one DAMN good burger.
I went with the cheese steak, but I didn’t go classic. It was called Sinatra’s Philly Cheese Steak which came with provolone and marinara (I added friend onions). It was tasty but the bread just didn’t hold up. I like the bread on my cheese steaks to have some crunch (but not enough to cut open my mouth and make a mess) and this just had none. The steak was also just okay. I wonder if the regular cheese steak might have been a better choice.
Overall Nom Points: 3.5 out of 5 (3 for the cheese steak, 4 for the burger)
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This is also not quite in the district, but it does deliver to the Penn Station area, so I’m including it too… A craving for Italian had us ordering from Aleo (20th between 5th and 6th). I’m pretty sure this was a Seamless Web order (as many of our meals are at my apartment).
The Eggplant Parmigiano Starter was quite good. Great flavors.
I got the Half Order of Pumpkin Ravioli and was overall dissapointed. They weren’t really all that pumpkin-y and the sauce was just really just a bit of butter and some flavor that I did not recognize and did not like.
Mike got the Half Order of Pappardelle (pancetta, sweet peas, crimini mushrooms, onions in a parmesan cream sauce) and noodles were VERY tasty. I have a love for pappardelle and this one definitely satisfied.
Overall Nom Points: 3 out of 5
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Gardenia Deli is a very new “little bitta dis, little bitta dat” deli right near my apartment (8th Ave between 30th and 31st). It’s one of the few clean delis on that stretch without homeless people hanging out right by the door with the toy crane machine. We decided to try some of the hot food and found it pretty good for the type of place. I usually expect greasy and/or flavorless and/or overcooked food but the flavors were great for a quick pick up meal.
Chicken Parm with Ziti
“BBQ Beef” and Rice (the BBQ Beef was much more like pot roast… but they named it)
Overall Nom Points: 4 out of 5
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We ordered from Sandwich Planet (9th Ave between 38th and 39th) one night when we were craving burgers. I got the Parmagiana Hamburger, which was pretty good. Enjoyed the bread.
Mike got the Cordon Bleu Hamburger with Guacamole which we didn’t realize came on white bread, but still were overall satisfied with it.
Overall Nom Points: 3 out of 5
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One of my absolute favorite places to grab lunch is Just Salad (we got to the one on 37th Street between 7th and Broadway, however, they also have locations in Midtown East, the Financial District, Murray Hill, and 30 Rock). Now I’m not a huge salad fan, and will usually avoid it unless I’m feeling overly guilty about a meal the night before. Just Salad, however, is far from being just a salad. Their ingredients are really fresh and they have offerings that other places don’t (LIKE SQUASH!) I get basically the same salad every time I’m there and surprisingly can eat it every day. It consists of squash, apples, edamame, beets, barley, and pumpkin seeds with fat free raspberry dressing. DELISH!
Chopping my salad:
My favorite salad:
A close up with their delicious bread (glad they brought it back after going whole grain for a while):
Julia’s sald that was more normal than mine.
I will miss this place when I leave my company (this is my last week).
Overall Nom Points: 5 out of 5
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Baja Fresh(Broadway between 40th and 41st) just opened up across the street from my current office. On the first day they gave away $2 burritos for lunch and pretty much everyone that worked late that day went there. I returned the following day to find a line out the door and had the same problem the following day. One late night at the office, I stopped in around 8pm and found hardly any line at all. I debated with the guy behind the counter for a while on what I could and couldn’t eat (peppers allergy) and surprisingly all the meats were safe but they had no rice option without peppers. (Damn! I love rice!) So I got the burrito with lettuce, tomato, guac, sour cream, cheese, and pork. By the time I got home (10 blocks away) it was very cold. I heated it up in the oven for a few minutes and was glad for melty cheese. It was VERY tasty (the pork especially), however, it needed rice.
Overall Nom Points: 4 out of 5
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Cart food (AKA Street Meat) is a relatively new love of mine. I was terrified after a bad cart food experience that shall not be discussed, however, some coworkers convinced me that there were awards for cart vendors and the winner (2 years ago) had to be tried.
Kwik Meal(South West corner of 45th street at 6th Ave) did turn my opinion around. I had their lamb over rice (comes with an amazing white sauce, a small green salad with what seems like italian dressing) which contains REAL lamb (not gyro pieces like most). The combination of mixing the meal, rice, white sauce, and salad is fantastic.
In the past year or so, the Biryiani Cart(has gotten a lot of buzz (taking home the People’s Choice Award both last year and this year). I tried to go a few months ago, but after standing online for quite some time was told that I was in line on the spicy side and I had to go over to the cart next door (run by the same people) for anything without peppers. This cart, while having no line, also didn’t have a non-spicy version of what the cart was famous for (Biryani Chicken) nor eggs which top their meals (and that I was looking forward to). My lamb over rice that resembled my Kwik Meal purchase but with yellow rice was just so-so and not even worth writing about. Their Biryani Chicken, however, looked incredible and is a favorite among many of my coworkers. I only wish I knew what it tasted like.
Overall Nom Points:
Kwik Meal #1- 5 out of 5
Biriyani Cart- 2 out of 5 for their regular (non-spicy) food
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There are a few other places I enjoyed in the area that I didn’t get pictures of.
Cafe Zaiya(main location on 41st between 5th and Madison and on the top floor of Kinokuniya Book Store on 6th Ave between 40th and 41st, opposite Bryant Park. Also one in the East Village at 69 Cooper Square). I wish I had a picture of this place. The main location we went to first is a bit of a treasure find. It’s hard to navigate, busy, and labeled terribly. But it’s tons of fun. It’s hard to determine exactly what you’re eating, but it’s delicious. I usually get the beef bowl (which is similar to Korean Bulgogi over rice) and it’s probably one of my favorite meals. It’s fun to go to the upstairs cafe in the bookstore, however, they have less selection. 5 out of 5
Pret A Manger (corner of 38th and Broadway, amongst many other locations in the city): A standby chain I’ve always enjoyed. Very fresh food that you can pick up and leave with very quickly. A bit pricey, but still tasty. I hear their swedish meatball hot sandwich is great (I can’t try it due to the spicy sauce), however, I usually went with the balsamic chicken or one of the salads. 3 out of 5
Pad Thai (8th Avenue between 30th and 31st Streets). It’s a simple, unassuming restaurant on my way home, but it’s dependably good and pretty inexpensive. They don’t do much that’s fancy, but if I want some good, non-greasy, quick Thai near my apartment, this is my go-to. They deliver to my apartment in less than 10 minutes and the delivery man is always very friendly. 4 out of 5
Then there is the infamous, Cafe Duke, on the corner of 41st and Broadway. It was right next to my office, and seems to be a place that everyone that works in Times Square knows about. It’s the place everyone goes for lunch their first few weeks on the job, then gets sick of… even though they have EVERYTHING. Their salads are decent and their made-to-order asian noodle area and their flat bread sandwiches are the highlights. With that said, I think everyone has their own story or knows someone who has a story of a time they got sick off Duke’s food. I do not personally recommend the sushi… but I still go back for the other items. Their yogurt parfaits are especially delicious for breakfast. 2 out of 5
Overall, Penn Station and Times Square aren’t exactly highlights of the culinary world, however, there are some hidden gems in the area. What are your favorites?
