Lunch Break: Beat The Heat With These Chill Eats

In hot, sticky weather like this, who wants to eat a big, heavy meal? Try to cool down with these cold lunches in today's Lunch Break. By Yvo Sin.

Chop't

Six locations around NYC, check website
choptsalad.com

See Also: NYC's Best Salads

Salad is the obvious choice for such weather; it is swimsuit season, afterall. Light, waist-friendly, and cold, a crisp salad might be just the thing. At Chop't, they certainly put a new spin on it: after you pick out your toppings and mix-ins, they take the time to chop the salad up into smaller, bite-sized pieces to make it easier to eat. How often have you eaten a salad, forking a slightly larger leaf, only to have it suddenly flip and fling an oily dollop of dressing right onto your shirt before a big meeting? Not an issue here. The ingredients are fresh, the dressings are light, and it won't drastically raise your body temperature. Win.

Pho Bang

8290 Broadway
Elmhurst, NY 11373
(718) 205-1500

In cold weather, Vietnamese pho can't be beat. But in this suffocating heat, the Vietnamese have another solution: bun, or a cold noodle salad bowl. Each bowl is layered with shredded lettuce and assorted vegetables, then topped with a cold pile of vermicelli noodles. On top of the vermicelli is your choice of protein - grilled chicken, pork, rolled beef, spring rolls, and more, and on top of everything, you pour a small bowl of dressing comprised mostly of fish sauce. Mix everything together, and take a bite - making sure your spoon has some vegetable matter, some noodles, and some protein - and enjoy what has to be the perfect summertime meal. As you eat, the vinaigrette slowly starts to break down the vegetables, almost pickling them, and each bite tastes like heaven. Cold, refreshing heaven.

Koto Sushi

67 6th Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11217
(718) 230-3881

Eating sushi in steamy weather may seem counterintuitive to some, but it's one of the few foods served cold that everyone seems to enjoy. Koto Sushi is your neighborhood sushi joint, bumped up a few notches by superb service and excellent lunch specials. Two or three rolls will run you $6.95 and $9.95 respectively, with miso soup and salad. But perhaps most impressive is that on the same lunch menu, twelve pieces of sashimi costs a mere $9.25 (also served with miso soup & salad); and the eel don (broiled eel over rice)? That sets you back $8.50. Sounds like a great lunch plan!

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Yvo Sin is the founder and head writer of The Feisty Foodie.