Late last year, new owners gave this space a much-needed renovation.  Springfield, your new supermarket is now open. Seabra Foods opened in November, with bright, wide aisles and the same friendly service—in some cases, the same faces—that staffed the old Food King. In the center of the store sits dozens of lunch options—a deli, salad bar and bakery case. It's no secret that we were never huge fans of the old Food King on Morris Avenue. Some places acquire character as they age. This grocery store was downright depressing – but the deli did make a decent sandwich, which they served with …

Comfort food by definition isn't healthy. But at Muscle Maker Grill on Morris Avenue, the hot soups are both comforting and easy on the calorie counts.  At a time of year when we're bombarded with excess—large holiday meals, trays of cookies and little time to go to the gym—a place known for its healthy menu makes an attractive lunch option. Now a national franchise with local roots, Muscle Maker Grill is quick, healthy, tasty and not too pricey. Though difficult to find on the menu above the counter, the soups here are prominently advertised on the front door as well as on every napkin …

Diego Rivera prints and colorful pottery adorn the walls at Picante Taste of Mexico on Morris Avenue. Mexican music is piped through the speakers, and the menu, thank goodness, is void of wannabe Mexican dishes like chalupas, salmon burritos or BBQ tacos. This place is the real deal. Even the Coca Cola at Picante is authentically Mexican. Served in bottles, it is made with cane sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup. The temperatures in Springfield have been anything but chilly and brisk lately, but we're not letting the warm weather derail our sampling of soups in town. Picante offers a …

Springfield may only have one diner, located on Route 22 near the Mountainside border, but hidden behind a tiny storefront on Morris Avenue, our downtown has a luncheonette, with a menu as diverse as a diner's -- and lots of character. The cryptically named Campus Sub Shop II may lead you to picture a Blimpie-like store behind the facade, but instead, the tiny shop is deli, diner and convenience store rolled into one. Want a Western omelete at lunchtime? Breakfast is served all day. A corned beef sandwich? It's on the lunch menu, along with steak parmigiana, baked ziti, hot roast beef platter…

Taco Bell, home of the chalupa, gordita and chirping chihuahua (who was euthanized in 2009 after suffering a stroke) serves 2 billion customers each year, many of them on our own Morris Avenue. Last March, my Patch editor persuaded me to visit Taco Bell and write a review. This year, NoonEats made another run for the border, stopping in briefly to sample more items off of the lengthy menu. Last year, I started with a Fresco crunch taco and was embarrassed to actually enjoy some of it: With 7 grams of fat and 180 calories, it consists of a crunchy, corn taco shell filled with seasoned ground …

While burgers, pizza and sandwiches may be the usual fare for this space, we're open to all Springfield has to offer during the workday, from quick breakfasts to fancy lunches. This week, we opted for the latter – a plate of orecchiette and sausage from Echoqua, the Italian restaurant in Echo Plaza, where Mountain Avenue meets Route 22. The dining room here is long and usually quiet at lunchtime, filled only with the sounds of Italian American music (think Frank Sinatra or Sinatra's songs covered by Michael Buble) and the conversation of a few tables of people in business attire. The walls …

Stone-fired pizza in Springfield? Though a sign at the Barnes and Noble Cafe procliams such a lunch option, the pizza is prepared like everything else at the cafe--in an industrial microwave. No worries, Saporito, Cioffi's and Prima Pizza, this isn't competition. The last time we visited the Barnes and Noble Cafe, we ate a Mediterranean chicken sandwich and a caprese sandwich. The first reminded us of hot pockets, the second was at least redeemed by an aromatic pesto. In both cases, we knew that no bread, chicken, tomatoes or mozzarella were sliced in-house. But that is understandable. This …

In many urban areas, food trucks have become a culinary phenomenon, enjoyed, written about and embraced by high-brow food lovers. The township of Springfield has its own food truck, parked daily on front of Meisel Field. Though it won't be featured on the Food Network any time soon, J&M Curbside Cafe serves some quality, inexpensive hot dogs, as well as chips and drinks. We gave the food truck a brief shout out two weeks ago in our rundown of Seven Spots for Outdoor Lunches. With summer officially under way this week, we thought it a good opportunity to remind you of this lunch option. Some …

There's a new burger in town, and it comes with Guinness barbecue sauce and the best French fries in Springfield. Several weeks ago, we reported on the opening of Emerald's Pub, adjacent to Hotel 304. Formerly an underwhelming Mexican joint, new owners Dominick Glynn and Elizabeth Garofalo pulled the sombreros off the walls and replaced them with Celtic crosses and golden shamrocks. Their menu blends favorites from their respective businesses, Dillon's Publick House in Mountainside and Mario's Tutto Bene in Union. The result: Shepherd's Pie ($13.95), Guinness stew ($17.95) and chicken …

The summer solstice and the end of the school year are still a couple weeks away, but as far as we're concerned, it's time to enjoy the outdoors. This township isn't blessed with a ton of outdoor dining options. Chances are, the most satisfying outdoor meal you will enjoy this summer will be in your own backyard or in a neighboring town. Still, if you're willing to inhale some Route 22 fumes or brown bag your lunch, we offer you six outdoor lunch options to enjoy while the weather is warm. No.1. Meisel Field. When we ran this list last year, we suggested picking up a turkey sandwich from …

Hidden in the back of a Mountain Avenue strip mall, Prima Pizza Cafe serves a lot more than what its name suggests. About a half a dozen pizza options greet you as you walk in the door, but pick up a menu, and you'll find everything from a chicken milanese entree to stromboli, all served with an Italian accent. At lunch time, you place your order at the counter, in front of a large map of Sicily. The owners here may be Sicilian, but there's little about the menu that is specifically from the small island off the toe of Italy's boot. It covers almost every Italian American dish you can think …

Located just a few storefronts down from a shop with a similar name, Bagel Chateau serves a full lineup of deli favorites and breakfasts. Its Mountain Avenue neighbor, Bagels Supreme, is known for making some of the best bagels in the county. While Bagel Chateau may not receive that recognition, it offers a few things that make it worth the trip: indoor seating, ham and a good slice of Springfield. Bagel Supreme is strictly kosher, and I am a huge fan of its whitefish salad on a sesame bagel. It's a somewhat healthy, filling way to start a morning. The staff is pleasant, they know their …

It's no secret that we're a fan of Hunan Spring on Morris Avenue. With Cathay 22 a close second, Hunan Spring is our favorite Chinese restaurant in town. On our last visit, we raved about one of the healthier options on the lunch menu: spicy garlic chicken with brown rice. This week, with the season for comfort food fading fast, we chose some heavier fare. The interior of Hunan Spring was redecorated a few months ago. Gone are the light greens and whites, replaced by new black booths and dark wooden tables with a shiny finish. I still miss the white tablecloths, but the dining area looks a …

We know we've been on a fish kick lately, and we promise it won't last forever. But as long as our grocery stores continue to advertise seafood sales and television commercials sing jingles about filets of fish, we're going to keep on it one more week. Fish is a good source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids, and we should all be eating it twice a week. There's a new burger in town that we're dying to try, and you can read about it here in two weeks. But in the meantime, here are five places in town for a seafood lunch. Marino's Fine Foods – This Italian deli and fish market at Route 22 and …

Sit-down restaurants and fast food joints aren't the only places in town for lunch. Our grocery stores offer salad bars, made-to-order deli sandwiches, even soup, sushi and fried chicken—not to mention a freezer section with meals you can take back to the office and heat. And you can do your dinner shopping while you're there. My gold standard for lunch time salad bars in the area is not Whole Foods on Springfield Avenue in Union, but King's on Morris Avenue in Short Hills. Whole Foods may have a host of ethnic selections as well as separate bars for antipasto, dessert and trail mix, but King…

It's that time of year again, when McDonald's filet of fish ads run constantly and my coworkers do Friday runs to Marino's in Echo Plaza. Yes, it's the season of Lent, when Catholics are expected to abstain from meat on Fridays. Regardless of your faith or level of adherence to it, it's a good time to start eat more fish. When I arrived at Open the Sesame to try its sushi last week, I had already been on quite a fish kick. It started on my weeklong vacation in Southern California, when I ate giant crab legs at the Harrah's buffet, fish tacos at the San Diego-based Rubio's chain and swordfish …

Perhaps the most appealing place in town to pass a lunch hour is Barnes and Noble on Route 22. Though displays of its Nook e-reader are taking more and more of the store's space, it still offers enough real, old-fashioned books and magazines to keep a good reader consumed for hours. However, lunch options in the Barnes and Noble Cafe are limited and overpriced. Not willing to pay $6 for a premade sandwich popped in the microwave by a Starbucks barista, we found a Plan B just around the corner: Krauszer's on South Springfield Avenue. With dim lighting, low ceilings and a stale vibe, this is …

With green carpet, chairs and placemats, and thick, frothy Guinness on tap, it's always March inside McLynn's. But as the season for pipes and drums, and corned beef and cabbage approaches, this Morris Avenue pub is even more festive. Green shamrocks bearing the names of three Irish beers – Harp, Guinness and Smithwicks – crisscross the dining room and bar area at McLynn's, and the staff are decked out in green and white t-shirts. The menu here, however, is not straight out of the Emerald Isle. You won't find lamb, stews, or boiled ham. But you will find a good lineup of comfort food: potato …

This place is so Jersey. Several signs in and outside of Saporito Pizza confidently state that this place serves “the best pizza in town.” Do I have a problem with that? Stick to the right slices, and Saporito beats Jolly's on Morris Avenue and Tom's on Mountain Avenue. But a side-by-side comparison is needed before we can judge whether it tops Cioffi's, the family owned deli on Mountain Avenue. (Have an opinion on that? Scroll down and leave a comment. We might use it when we do a roundup of township pizza options.) Saporito is bustling, confusing and takes a few visits before one can …

Oddly situated between Macy's furniture and Goodwill on the right side of Route 22 Westbound, Cathay 22 has served Sichuan cuisine in Springfield since 1985. It is almost buried among the warehouses here, in an unlikely spot for a restaurant. And don't confuse it with Chen's 22, about a mile down the road. Once inside, the dining area flows with green carpet and peach-colored walls. Vertical blinds on the south side of the restaurant let in natural light while partially shielding a beautiful view of Route 22 and the newly opened Dunkin Donuts in the median of the highway. “Would you like a …