Top 5 Cheap Eats?

[Steve Plotnicki]

Okay here are my five favorites,

Mamouns on MacDougal for the best falafal and sharma

Katz's for pastrami

Yatagan on MacDougal for the best donor kebab or gyro if you like

The Taco Lady just off the corner of 97th Street and 2nd Avenue I give her a slight nod for masa snacks like gorditas and sopes etc. over El Paso Taqueria which is better if you want to sit down. In fact I had lunch there on Tuesday. But if you want to stand around and eat your tacos with Mexicans on their way to and from Metropolitan Hospital her location can't be beat.

Win Hop Noodle Shop on Bayard between Bowery and Elizabeth is my favorite of the chinese noodle shops.

I can list dozene more but you asked for five.

[jhlurie]

Yum Thai

129 W. 44th St.

New York, NY 10036-4012

Phone: (212)819-0554

Chinese Fast Food Prices, but its actually decent Thai food.

[foodgeek]

To name a few:

Sripraphai (Queens)

Malagueta (Brazilian in Astoria, Queens)

Taste Good (Malaysian in Elmhurst, Queens)

Grand Sichuan (51st and 9th)

Franklin Station Cafe (French/Malaysian downtown)

Vietnam Restaurant (a basement on Doyers street in Chinatown)

Hallo Berlin (german sausages, 51st between 9th and 10th)

Di Fara Pizza (Brooklyn)

Azuri Cafe (Israeli dive at 51st and 10th)

[Liza]

Glenn, it's Pakistani Tea House on Church at Reade. Exteme Ditto on the panini's at Ino, btw.

[glenn]

Glenn, it's Pakistani Tea House on Church at Reade. Exteme Ditto on the panini's at Ino, btw.

Yes yes, thanks Liza. Haven't eaten there since I left Spartina (now Harrison's)... is it still there?

I can list dozene more but you asked for five.

I wish my parrot was as obedient.

[cabrales]

On certain chefs' preferred cheap eats:

http://www.newyorkmetro.com/restaurants/ar..._eats/chart.htm

[schaem]

The nighttime Gyro cart on 6th Ave & (I believe) 53rd, it's the crowded one.

Great NY Noodle Town

Otafuku on 9th St

Pho Cong Ly on Hester

And of course this is an entirely seperate thread: The dearly departed house special sandwhich at Latticini Barese on Union St. in Brooklyn

[khao]

Ollie's, all over the place. Times Square Ollie's is on 44th and B'way. (Or possibly 43rd.) There's also one near Lincoln Center.

I find Ollie's truly bad. And Yum Thai, which someone else posted about, is not that great. You can get great Thai at about the same price at Sripraphai.

Skylight Diner? C'mon. It's maybe the best place in that totally dead neighborhood, but it's certainly nothing to go out of the way for, especially for somebody visiting NYC.

I also find Il Corallo to be pretty bad. If your friend wants to get an excellent, cheap Italian meal, head for Lupa. Pastas are around $10, mostly.

If I had to pick only five, very tough, I guess I would go with:

Sripraphai

Di Fara's

Bukhara (Pakistani place in Brooklyn)

'ino

Lupa

Although if I made a list five minutes later, it might be totally different.

[khao]

OK, I couldn't wait five minutes, but here are some more:

Malaysian:

Nyonya, Malaysian Restaurant or Taste Good (Chinatown)

Chinese:

Congee Village, New York Noodletown, Joe's Shanghai, Yeah Shanghai Deluxe, New Green Bo, Sweet 'n Tart, Saint Alps', Shanghai Cuisine, Mei Lei Wah, Hop Shing, Golden Unicorn (all Chinatown)

Vietnamese:

Chinatown: New Pasteur, Nha Trang, Vietnam (all Chinatown)

Brooklyn: An Dong (banh mi only, Sunset Park), Gia Lam (Sunset Park), Pho Tay Ho (Bath Beach)

Mexican:

Brooklyn: Torres Bakery (Park Slope), Los Pollitos II (Park Slope)

Japanese:

Manhattan: Sobaya, ONY, Otafuku

Greek:

Snack (Soho)

Indian:

Brick Lane (East Village)

Ice cream:

NYC Icy (East Village), Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory

Chocolate:

Jaques Torres (DUMBO)

Hot Chocolate:

Lunette et Chocolate (Soho)

Other Sweets:

Cupcake Cafe (Midtown), Ceci Cela (Soho), almost any Chinatown bakery, Payard Patisserie (Upper East), Marquet Patisserie (Carroll Gardens)

[khao]

Forgot:

Falafel: Rainbow Falafel (Union Square), Moishe's (cart in Midtown)

[Kim WB]

Hallo Berlin - Tasty German - 2 beers and the sausage platter - under 20 bucks - great home fries.

John

That used to be a pushcart in midtown, 5th and 54th...maybe in the mid 80's...did that guy open a place? He had great sausages, and long lines during good weather!

[Wilfrid]

The sausage cart was there last time I looked, which I admit may be a year ago. Yes, the same guy also has a restaurant called Hallo Berlin, over on 10th Avenue, serving the same stuff.

[LaNiña]

I love Waterfalls, too, for cheap eats. Syrian, family owned and run, on Atlantic Ave. near Clinton. One block from Sahadi's. I think it's the best baba ganouj in the city, among other great dishes. Check out the little older head-kerchiefed woman in the kitchen - she's doing the cooking. She's the mother of the Wa'afa, the owner, who serves as manager/waitress. Couldn't be nicer or friendlier. BYO.

[cakewalk]

I find Ollie's truly bad.

Ah, but did you try the steamed vegetable dumplings? It's just about the only thing I get there, but I also like the scallion pancakes. But the dumplings are great. I can't say much about the rest of it.