Spice - Union Square

Here's a great lunch deal: $7 for an entree and appetizer in Union Square. Awesome. Ignore the cone of rice--I don't know why either.

Spice really knows what they're doing--failing economic climate, people don't want to spend a lot on food, but there's a lot of competition in such a densely populated city with so many restaurants. The trick is to just get people in the door and a lunch special like this one capitalizes on all of the people on their lunch breaks looking for something other than a sandwich or fast food.

At Spice, they can keep their cash and still sit down in a relatively nice restaurant and get some decent Thai food. I got the chicken with cashew nuts--it was pretty good, most certainly with $7, and the portion was adequate. The chicken was tender and the sauce was mild, but not bland. A heaping amount of mixed vegetables accompanied the plate and it was lovely--a lot of onions, which some may not like--but I love me some sauteed onions.

Here's the small plate of shumai that I got as well. It was a nice snack before my entree arrived and I'm certainly not complaining about the portions since it came together with the chicken and cashews for $7. Nothing special here, tiny shumai with some garnish--just a little extra bang for your buck.

I would recommend Spice to anyone looking for a cheap lunch spot, especially with friends. The service was fast even though the place was packed at the peak of lunch hour. Our bill for three people came to exactly $21.

39 East 13th St., New York, NY 10003, 212 982 3758, www.spicethainyc.com