(5 out of 5 hot dogs)

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Rhong Tiam
87 2^nd Ave (at 5^th)
Time: Weekdays 12-4
Price: Entrée, rice, salad, spring roll, $5

To appease my recent craving for Thai food, I stopped by Rhong Tiam (formerly Curve), which happens to be two doors down from another great Thai lunch special. Apparently it has a Michelin Star (almost as prestigious as 5 hotdogs rating).  The design of the restaurant involves hot pink walls, TV mirrors, and a giant bouquet of fake flowers (I checked).  At night, it all looks fun and sassy, but during the day it looks like a once-glorious-but-now-run-down-since-Suki-Suki-Chai-Chai-the-star-hoooker-caught-the-clap-Thai-brothel.  I ordered the drunken noodle, because I liked the name.  And also so I could showcase my talent of making drunk faces when completely sober.  It was delicious, and the fried tofu was crispy and perfect.   All hooker jokes aside, this is one of the best lunch specials I’ve had in the city.  Good time five dollah!

(4 out of 5 hot dogs)

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Yum Yum Too
622 9^th Ave (at 45^th)
Time: Monday-Friday, 11-4
Price: Noodle dish and two sides, $6.95

9^th Avenue has about six Thai restaurants, all in a row, all called Yum Yum (I suppose a better name than Yuck Yuck).  I saw a lunch special advertised outside (!), so a friend I went in and were seated by the hostess. A couple minutes later, she came back and said, “You no eat heel go other Yum Yum same food!”   And with that, we were shooed outside and into another restaurant with the same lunch special and slightly different décor.  It was empty, except for an angry theatre-producer type who was complaining that his meal was undercooked and he was NOT going to pay (Pre-Tony jitters?) I ordered some sort of noodle dish with vegetables (luckily not undercooked), and had dumplings and a Thai iced tea for my sides.  Other side options included soup, salad and spring rolls.  It was a good value, and everything tasted fine, although if I were in the restaurant naming business, I probably would have just called it Yum, not sure if it deserves the second Yum.

Note: As there are approximately six Yum Yums on 9^th Avenue called Yum Yum, I was unable to figure out which Yum Yum I ate at (Yum Yum Too seemed a solid guess) but since they all apparently have the same menu, I’d recommend going to whichever one doesn’t kick you out.

(5 out of 5 hot dogs)

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Thailand Café
95 2nd Ave, (Below 6th St.)
Time: Everyday Noon- 3:30
Price: Vegetable or Tofu, $6.00
Chicken, Beef or Pork, $7.00
Shrimp, Vegetarian Duck, $8.00

The Thailand Café is a cute, cheap and delicious must-lunch locale. The lunch special comes with unlimited hot tea, and appetizer and entrée of your choice. I have tried all most everything on the menu, and they are all great. Appetizers include amazing Thai wings, fried tofu, salad, and others. Entrees include a long list of curries, pad Thai and other Thai classics, all satisfying. My favorite is the massamun, a milky and spicy coconut curry. A matron-type (pictured to the side), who I take to be the owner, oversees the restaurant like a hawk, and always appears seconds away performing some form of painful and/or sexually-humiliating Thai torture on the customers in the back room if they are not enjoying the meal (luckily not a problem.)