Neither a market, nor really a cafe, the Bread Market Cafe is an odd amalgamation of burritos, sandwiches and salads. Oh wait, that’s actually the norm for Midtown these days. We’re not sure who the marketing geniuses were who thought that a burrito bar somehow fit with the other lunch items here. In fact, burritos have nothing to do with bread in any way. And if you’re going to try to sell tortillas as bread, you have another thing comin’. Meanwhile, their namesake is decent, plentiful and varied. Of course I got some pre-made pressed sandwich that came on plain-old sourdough. I guess any time you load up a sandwich with chicken and enough fat inducing items, it has a half-way decent chance of being good. What isn’t good, though, is their nasty 1980s logo. Another non sequitur, it features a cup of coffee and actually contains an ampersand, which would technically make the name of this joint Bread Market & Cafe. Somebody fell asleep at the switch with their brand identity, but certainly knows how to bake a loaf–and I guess that’s what counts for non-anal-retentive freaks like myself who just want a damn sandwich to choke down between soul-sucking meetings. [MF]
1290 Ave. of the Americas
212/957-5677