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Lunch Break: Around the World

Enjoy German street food favorite, dabble in Bukharian cuisine or stick with good ol' American barbecue in today's edition of Lunch Break! By Yvo Sin.

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Wechsler_german
(credit: Wechsler's Currywurst & Bratwurst)

Wechsler's Currywurst

120 1st Avenue
New York, NY 10009
no phone
currywurstnyc.com

The name of the game at Wechsler's is definitely currywurst: a German fast-food snack that consists of sliced pork sausage topped with curry sauce or curry-spiced ketchup, generally served with frites, currywurst is immensely popular in Germany.  So popular that it has its own museum dedicated to it?  Yep.  All you really need is one bite to convince you why it's so popular; crisply cooked sausage drowned in curry-laden ketchup is familiar enough and yet just exotic enough to keep you wanting more.  Wechsler's stays true to the street food roots of the dish and keeps prices down; $6 will get you currywurst and frites, while it's just $4 for those watching their carbs who don't want frites.  You'll want to add a side of sauerkraut; Wechsler's addition of juniper berries to the German-imported sauerkraut makes it unforgettably tasty.

Fortuna Kosher Restaurant

Fortuna
(credit: foresthills.patch.com/)

64-06 108th Street
Forest Hills, NY 11375
(718) 896-6661

See Also: NYC's Best Kosher Grocers & Delis | Best Jewish Delis

For $8.49, the lunch special at Fortuna shouldn't be missed: mix & match soup, salad, kebobs, fries, even pilaf.  The kebobs themselves are the real draw here, however; lamb, lamb ribs, chicken wings, boneless chicken, beef tenderloin, and veal liver all average around $3-4 per skewer.  Grilled to juicy perfection, the kebobs pair well with the fries, but even better with a bit of Korean-style carrot salad, which comes dotted with the red chili pepper paste for which Korean cuisine is known.  Another specialty of the cuisine?  Lagman, a tomato-broth based beef vegetable soup that arrives with chewy strands of white noodles, perfect for soothing yourself from the up&down weather.  Fortuna delivers and accepts credit cards, so you needn't worry yourself with finding them or going to the bank beforehand.

Smokin' Al's

Smokin' Al's
(credit: http://azrihaeatsworld.xanga.com/)

19 West Main Street
Bay Shore, NY
(631) 206-3000

4847 Merrick Road
Massapequa Park, NY
(516) 799-4900
smokinals.com

See Also: NYC's Best BBQ

Excess is the American way, something that is extremely apparent here at Smokin' Al's.  The combo #4: Ribs! Ribs! & more RIBS! (pictured) for $33.99 will get you a veritable feast of ribs: half a rack each of baby back ribs, St. Louie grand backs, and monster beef bones, plus your choice of two sides and cornbread.  That will easily feed most people for both lunch, dinner, and the next day's lunch.  If you're less than enamored of leftovers, though, there are certainly smaller platters from which to choose; half racks of any of the ribs clock in at $15.99, also with two sides and cornbread, and are still more than enough to leave you stuffed for lunch.  Come here with coworkers and be sure to split an appetizer of the BBQ wings; some claim they are the best in all of New York State.

For the latest on where to eat in the Tri-State, follow us on Twitter!

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

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