Under-$10 lunches: Tasty Turtle Bay

12/2/09
turtle bay
By Erin Lindholm

Under-$10 lunches: Tasty Turtle Bay

Noodle soups are all the rage at Menchanko-Tei. (Katya Pronin)

For an area known for non-descript, Irish-inspired pubs, Turtle Bay offers a surprising number of lunch alternatives with nods to food cultures from far-flung corners of the globe.
Here are our suggestions for a week’s worth of lunches that will take you there — all for $10 or less.

Borders:
Lexington Ave. to First Ave.,
42nd St. to 53rd St.

Barros Luco
300½ E. 52nd St., btwn First and Second aves.,
212-371-0100
The early-20th-century Chilean president, Ramón Barros Luco, isn’t remembered for politics so much as for the sandwich named after him, and at Barros Luco it’s easy to see why.
The oozy, gooey sandwiches ($6-$8) — grilled chicken or steak, molten cheese and assorted Chilean toppings, such as string beans and banana peppers, piled onto homemade bread — will fill your thoughts long after the last bite. Also on the menu: empanadas and Chilean-style frankfurters.

Menchanko-Tei
131 E. 45th St., btwn Lexington and Third aves.,
212-986-6805
At Menchanko-Tei, you can doctor up a bowl of the restaurant’s namesake Menchanko noodles (which loosely translates as “sumo wrestler stew”) with everything from kimchi ($2) to fried chicken ($3).
But the best part is that the original order ($9) comes so laden with goodness — chicken, shrimp, fish balls, tofu, rice cakes and vegetables — that adding anything else is a luxury, not a necessity.

Güllüoglu
982 Second Ave., at 52nd St., 212-812-0500
While the impressive selection of baklava deserves every one of its accolades, save some of that lunch money for the Turkish chain’s savory fare. Whatever you order — whether a sampling of traditional boregi ($2-$4.50), small meat- and cheese-stuffed pastries, an overstuffed baked potato ($6.50-$7.50) or an outstanding grilled sandwich ($6-$8) — you’ll have enough change left over for at least one sweet treat. Sold by the pound, each piece of baklava costs between $1 and $2.

Mee Noodle Shop & Grill
922 Second Ave., at 49th St., 212-888-0027
The quickest way to get in and out at Mee, which does a brisk lunch service, is to stick to the menu’s front page, which features the signature Cantonese-style lo mein and noodle soups ($5-$7). Each dish begins with one of seven kinds of noodles and the options are infinitely customizable from there, ranging from the soulful (noodles and Cantonese wantons for $5.30) to the fragrant (pickled cabbage and pork noodle soup for $5.50), and everythng in between.

Grill 44 NYC
160 E. 44th St., btwn Lexington and Third aves.,
212-949-0245
Unassuming, Grill 44 NYC (look for the awning that reads “Mediterranean & Indian Fast Food”) stands out from the other no-frills Indian options in the area with its specialties from South India, a region that’s known for its delicately-seasoned vegetarian fare.Dosas, Indian-style crepes ($7-$10), are stuffed with everything from spicy chutney to paneer and masala (cheese and potatoes). The Uthappams, plate-sized rice and lentil pancakes ($7-$9), are a heartier winter option that is sure to please many palates.
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Under-$10 lunches: Tasty Turtle Bay

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