Hot and Cold Heaven

Tuesday's are the days that I may eat out rather than bring in leftovers to heat up in the staff kitchen. Today my lunch consisted of an avocado half, Caesar salad, roast pork, fried chicken wings, General Tso's chicken, blackberries and pasta salad. Because the weight of this was 1.08 pounds, the bill came to exactly 8 dollars and because it went over a pound I got a free bottle of water. Most of those items if ordered as an a la carte item in a sit down restaurant would run twelve dollars, even in Tribeca. Welcome to the world of Manhattan's hot and cold buffets. They may exist in other boroughs, but I've never seen them.

When I started work here a year ago, the first "Hot and Cold" to win my heart was at the Chambers street exit on the A and C line. They are one of the cheapest at $6 a pound with a can soda thrown in if you go over a pound. Then I found a rich vein of them on Broadway - From Leonard Street to Duane Street there is one every block. At the moment, the one that I most prefer is Roma, just south of Worth. They are $7 per pound but their meats are superior. Just north of Worth is the Variety Foods - the newest addition. North of Leonard is Fancy Foods, a long-standing tradition. Their only problem is that they don't serve avocado halves. Several of the Broadway places don't label their foods much or at all. Two blocks to the west at Church and Duane, Bouley is the class act in all of this. Theirs is 10 per pound but they have entrees like Long Island Duck and beet with walnut salad. If you're going there, be sure to hit the place before noon. For the other Hot and Colds, be warned that they start phasing down after 1:30 and the offerings after that can look pretty unappetizing to say the least.

There are Hot and Colds in midtown and uptown as well. If you are in town for a brief visit, I'd strongly recommend these to a Prix Fixe 35 dollar lunch in midtown.
You'll thank me.