One pleasant afternoon, I ordered the Brick Lane lunch special to-go, and brought my meal out to a bench on the East River, so that while I contemplated the curious spices of India, I was able to enjoy peaceful views of oily seagulls perched on tires, and the owners of Peking Dragon China House fishing for their nightly special (I’ll blog about that later!)  A boat passed, and was it just my imagination, or did I hear gunshots?  And I could have sworn I saw two Russians dump a body overboard before paddling away, but alas I was too engrossed in the texture of my paneer to know for sure.  How does it stay solid on my fork but then melt so perfectly in my mouth?  My curry was gone, so were the Russians, and anyway dark clouds were beginning to roll in from the north.  I stood up, glanced at the river one last time and let out a deep deep sigh.  And I thought to myself, Life is Good.

Aside from their feast of a lunch special, Brick Lane is also home to the infamous Man vs Food challenge, “The Phaal,” apparently one of the spiciest curries in the world.  If you manage to finish, you get a beer, an official certificate, and your picture on their website- woop woop!

I’m a superfan of all-you-can-eat meal deals, as you can imagine.  And Dakshin does not disappoint.  With several different dishes: chicken, lamb, potatoes and veggies all with different sauces and curries, it’s yummy in da tummy.  The quality is what one would expect with an Indian buffet, but the quantity is what’s important.  Unlimited. And that goes for the naan and rice, and all the chutneys as well.  You’ll eat so much that curry will be seeping through your pores for a week.  You’ll eat so much it would make Ghandi blush.  You’ll eat so much that strangers will come up and rub your Buddha belly for good luck.  So hop on your elephant, and ride over to one of the three NYC locations! (P.S.- I’ve dined here several times, but never had my camera.  So I popped in today and took a picture, causing quite a stir among the staff and the patrons.  Oh, the life of the anonymous blogger!)

Earth NYC
116A 10th Ave (between 17th and 18th St)
Time: Every day, 12-3
Price: Half-off menu

Question: How special is lunch at Earth NYC? Answer: As special as you want it to be. The lunch menu features half-off of all menu items, so unlike many lunch specials, you can order more or less depending how hungry you feel. You are seated on plush pillows in a large room with absurdly high ceilings, upbeat music and a massive video screen. This modern Indian restaurant could easily turn into a rave at a moment’s notice. ‘Lollipops’ were my appetizer; a scrumptious chicken wing with meat cut off so it looked like a lollipop. I ordered naan bread and my favorite Indian entrée, Zafrani Rogan Josh, a lamb dish that definitely did not disappoint. My bill came to about $20 including tip. It’s definitely not the cheapest special you’ll find here, but great food and ambience for a great value.

For a factory, maybe they should take a little tip from Henry T. Ford, and set up some assembly line action, because the service here is extremely slow. On the sign outside, Kebab Factory advertises a lunch special of unlimited kebab and curry for $6.95. But the reality is, if you want chicken you have to pay a dollar more. Misleading advertising: something that really grinds my gears. The chicken is tiny (maybe 1/3 the meat you’d expect on a kebab), but it is spicy and pretty tasty. The naan is standard, and served with four pretty good dipping sauces, my favorite had chick peas in it. Unfortunately, the service is horrendous. I continually asked for more naan and kebab, and they were extremely slow. They never offered to refill my water (rusty tasting tap water even, another thing that grinds the ol’ gears), and the server would disappear for ten minutes at a time. I finally had to go refill it myself from the server’s station. That being said, if you are really hungry for unlimited Indian food, and could are more patient than I am, don’t mind eating in a Murray Hill basement, and you bring your own bottle of water, this isn’t a bad place.

Milon (up and to the left)
93 First Avenue (between 5th and 6th street)
Time: Every day 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Price: Your dreams come true, $5.95

This is one of four almost identical restaurants all located at the same address, each with hosts trying to convince to come to theirs. If you go any night of the week, this building is a crowded bring-your-own-liquor hullabaloo. Each has a cluster-fudge of decorations including crazy hot pepper Christmas lights, Sponge Bob ornaments and giant lizards. At each, there is cheap and tasty cuisine. At each restaurant, a server might randomly turn off the lights, turn on a disco ball and sing you a happy birthday song and bring you mango ice cream. What makes Milon different? It is upstairs and to the left, and that makes all the difference. Although is this a fun and raucous evening affair, if you are looking for something more quiet, come for the incomparable lunch special. It comes with papadum and dipping sauces, naan, rice, soup, cabbage, an appetizer (samosa or vegetable dumpling), and your choice of entrée (chicken, lamb, beef and vegetable with curry masala, kurma masala or tandoori sauces.) And on top of that, they give you a dollop of their signature mango ice cream for desert. AND all of that for $5.95. Although you definitely need to experience Milon at night, come by and take advantage of this unbeatable lunch special.