Today's Lunch Break: 2 For $8 Thai Dishes In Queens
Enjoy Thursday's lunch: Explore New American in Princeton, an inexpensive Thai option in Forest Hills, or a Belgian bistro with multiple locations across Manhattan. By Yvo Sin.
elements
163 Bayard Lane
Princeton, NJ
(609) 924-0078
elementsprinceton.com
Celebrate the start of spring with the new 'pick two for $22' lunch menu from elements: choose from four sections of the menu, including 'the beginning', 'the middle', 'the end' or even wines by the glass. With a menu that changes daily based on seasonality and what's fresh at the market, you'll never be bored with the innovative and creative menu at elements. Try the red snapper with local spinach, hedgehog mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and saffron (pictured), flavors melting together to create the perfect bite. Don't miss dessert, either - housemade ice creams and sorbets are a specialty of the house.
Mint's Thai Kitchen
70-15 Austin Street
Forest Hills, NY 11375
(718) 268-1470
It isn't really clear who Mint is, but you don't need to know that many details about a place that offers above average Thai food for below average prices: consider their two course lunch menu for $8, which is made even cheaper if you take advantage of their "pay cash" discount. With ten choices for a starter and eleven choices for your entree - each of which can be customized with your choice of beef, chicken, shrimp or vegetable/tofu with no upcharges - you will certainly have plenty from which to choose. For your starter, your choices include three varieties of soup, two types of dumplings, and more. Try the shrimp pad thai (pictured), which comes arranged neatly on a platter, the peanuts and bean sprouts kept separate so you can add as much or as little as you like, along with the lime that, once squeezed over the noodles, livens up the dish. Bonus: whoever Mint may be, s/he is definitely vegetarian-friendly.
Petite Abeille
134 W. Broadway
New York, NY 10013
(212) 791-1360
44 W. 17th Street
New York, NY 10011
(212) 727-2989
466 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10014
(212) 741-6479
401 E. 20th Street
New York, NY 10010
(212) 727-1505
petiteabeille.com
Perhaps most widely known for their evening specials such as Wednesday night's all you can eat mussels, Petite Abeille also has a lunch menu worth considering. With four locations across the city, you can certainly find yourself wandering in on a random weekday for a reasonably priced, lovely lunch. Belgian specialties make up the majority of the menu; croque monsieur (pictured) et croque madame are there, alongside frites, omelettes, rillettes, and of course the famed mussels in a lunch-sized portion. The beer menu is quite extensive as well: enjoy a Saison Dupont or even a Hennepin with your lunch, and go back to work happy.
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Yvo Sin is the founder and head writer of Feisty Foodie.