Last Friday, I headed into the city for a quick lunch with a buddy of mine… who we’ll call Nosey (hah!)… at Chelsea Market. Being a very, very unadventurous eater (I’m not sure Nosey will read this, but either way: doesn’t eat rice, doesn’t eat pasta – that right there my friends will tell you…), he chose Friedman’s Lunch, where he’s apparently been eating lunch 2x a week since he started working in the building (one guess which company… oh, the friggin’ irony). He finds the food consistent and reliable, though, he joked “everything on the menu is about $15… I got a burger and it’s $15, I got a breakfast sandwich and it was $15.”
After asking if they had root beer, the server explained that they’d recently switched over to the Boylan’s all natural line of sodas. Ummm… this one above is not part of the all natural line… and there IS a root beer in the natural line. Whatever, I drank my soda without much comment though I’ll remind myself here: you do not like Boylan diet anything. Ick. Very fake tasting.
Nosey ordered a chicken parm sandwich and made no comment about it, though he ate it all so I imagine it was sufficient for him. I took some of his pickle and found it not sour enough, and way too much dill.
I ordered a side of the Brussels sprouts and made Nosey try them. I didn’t really want to after I took a bite- these were sliced up, sauteed in butter and honey, then topped with a bit of Pecorino Romano, and in a word, simply amazing. I could eat bowl after bowl of these and die a happy woman. Sweet like Brussels sprout candy… the only thing that would make them better is if they were a little less wet and a little more crunchy. So good.
The other side dish I added was homemade potato chips, and these were the crunch I was looking for. Crunchy, salty, perfect. I happily munched away on these without complaint, and Nosey mentioned having had a sandwich there once that contained these within and enjoying it. I could see that working. I love when chips are extra crunchy…
My own order of fish tacos completed our lunch.
Deciding I didn’t want to be messy was the obvious choice here, so I wound up eating these with a fork and ignoring the tortilla (I don’t like corn tortillas anyway, because I’m weird like that). The fish was white and flaky, and while there were some spicy bites, overall it was pleasantly balanced with the crunchy slaw on the bottom, a few segments of grapefruit, and a lightly spicy Sriracha aioli squirted on top. I wouldn’t say these were amazing fish tacos, but certainly would satisfy in a pinch – say, if I worked in the building and just wanted fish tacos that were decent. Not a bad choice at all, I would say…
Yvo says: As Nosey says, it’s perfectly suitable for standard lunch fare, and everything is about $15. The Brussels sprouts wow’ed me, and I enjoyed the chips, but the two main dishes were alright. I wouldn’t be unhappy if this were my go-to lunch spot – aside from the price.
recommended if you’re looking for this type of food (bear in mind, you’re inside Chelsea Market and have a LOT of other delicious options from which to choose)
TT says
tacos look great! too bad you defeated the purpose of them. 😉
how much were the sides?
Feisty Foodie says
$2 added onto your meal, $3 separately, I believe! Not bad at all, right?
TT says
cheap considering the $15 base cost
Feisty Foodie says
Ooh, it’s not a $15 base cost, just that no matter what he gets, it appears to add up to $15! The fish tacos were like $12 or 13… then you add on the sides and it’s $15! My bad.
T.C. says
Cool. FISH TACOS look good. I’d eat them with my hands. I go messy. lol.
No Boylan root beer? Boo. And no pasta and no rice? Double boo. I can live with just pasta but not when both options aren’t available.
Oh, extra crunchy chips. Homemade kettle chips?
Living in the Weeds says
The grapefruit on the taco sounds amazing. Also, eating the taco with a fork is weird, thank you for admitting that. It sort of reminds of the Seinfeld episode where people start eating Snickers Bars with a knife and fork.
Feisty Foodie says
Ha, I’m not against admitting I’m weird, but I didn’t eat a taco with a fork. I ate a taco’s innards, basically a fish salad that just happened to be laid on top of corn tortillas. I didn’t eat the tortillas at all! 😛
Living in the Weeds says
Impromptu tostada, hold the tortilla. Excellent.
Connie says
What? You don’t like corn tortillas? A taco is not a taco without a corn tortilla. Don’t try to convince yourself that a flour tortilla will do. Oh no, no, no! LOL. Maybe if they were on handmade thick corn tortillas rather than the premade thin ones, you’d enjoy them more. The potato chips and chicken sandwich look good, though 🙂
Feisty Foodie says
Ha, I’ve had corn tortillas in many incarnations, and I don’t like the raw taste to them. I vastly prefer flour tortillas. A matter of preference, m’dear 🙂
skippymom says
I have to agree with you here Yvo. I can’t do the raw taste of soft corn tortillas.
I so want those potato chips now. YUM
tracy @ladyleet says
Mmm those tater chips look delish! Great photography and thx for the tip!
Hungry says
What are you going to do when brussel sprout season is over?!
TeeJayBee says
you obviously have no idea what you are talking about. This is the problem with New Yorkers and Latin/Mexica/TexMex/Baha food. You wouldn’t know amazing if it hit you in the face. These were some of the best fish tacos I’ve ever had.
Feisty Foodie says
Hi TeeJayBee! The beauty of this world is that everyone has their own opinion. And… these may have been the best fish tacos YOU’VE ever had, but they were definitely not the best I’VE ever had. Thanks for stopping by to share your experience!