Queens: A Culinary Passport: Exploring Ethnic Cuisine in New York City's Most Diverse Borough

ASTORIA

(photo by Janis Turk)

Astoria

One of the zippiest subway rides from Manhattan, Astoria is probably the first neighborhood in Queens a Manhattan resident might get a taste of, an experience that usually takes place in a beer garden. But Astoria’s cultural beauty is far deeper and more complex than what you might find in a beer garden. When I first moved to Astoria, I held a special fondness for the European feel of the neighborhood. In nice weather, the outdoor tables at Athens Café are crammed with Greeks and non-Greeks sipping frappés. In the summer, elderly Italian ladies dig through the sale rack of the fruit and vegetable stands across the street looking for less-than-perfect tomatoes for their sauces. The checkered outdoor tablecloths and straight-from-Greece carafes usher in a Mediterranean feel at Gregory’s 26 Corner Taverna. While slowly devouring the restaurant’s divine octopus appetizer one day, I chatted with two girls who were visiting New York City (and Astoria) just because they had heard it would be so similar to the tavernas they had frequented in Greece. And it was, they swooned, as they ate gyros and sipped the strong Greek coffee.

But Greek isn’t the only ethnicity represented in Astoria. A stretch of Steinway Street is referred to as Little Egypt due to the North African concentration. Astoria’s Little Egypt is highlighted by Kabab Café, opened by chef Ali El Sayed in 1987, whom Anthony Bourdain described as a legend among hard-core foodies; reason alone to go to Queens. The area is also home to many Italians, who flock there for homemade mozzarella, homemade sausage, and imported Italian goods at Sorriso Italian Pork Store and Italian sweets from Gian Piero Bakery across the street.

Athens Café

Greek Frappé

Yield: 1 serving

(photo by Janis Turk)

Hailed as the national coffee of Greece, the frappé is a frothy concoction of coffee granulates and water, made foamy thanks to a frappé machine. The drink can’t exactly be replicated without the machine, but you can come close by putting the drink into a container and shaking it, a lot! The Greek Nescafé Taster’s Choice is stronger than its American counterpart. If you can find it, Athens Café suggests using South African Nescafé, which also has a more robust feel. Instead, I just use more of the easier-found American version. If you find yourself verging on a frappé addiction like I do, machines can be bought at the Greek mecca, Titan Foods. Recipe adapted from Athens Café.

1 tablespoon Nescafé Taster’s Choice Instant Coffee

½ cup water

Sugar (optional)

3 to 4 ice cubes

Milk or heavy cream, if desired

In a 2-cup or 4-cup container with lid, add coffee, water, sugar (optional), and ice cubes. (I’ve found a 2-cup Mason jar ideal for making these.) Tighten lid, and shake, shake, shake until the ice cubes are mostly dissolved. Pour into an 8-ounce glass, and serve. Note that the larger the container you use to shake, the more foam you will have.

ATHENS CAFÉ

Info: 32-07 30th Ave., Astoria; 718-626-2164; athenscafeny.com

See You There: Take the N or Q train to the 30th Ave. stop

(photo by Janis Turk)

Taverna Kyclades

A quick way to begin an argument between Astorians is by asking them to choose their favorite Greek restaurant, a difficult task since Astoria is the Greek food capital of New York. With so many Greek restaurants to choose from, when I’m forced to pick between neighborhood faves like Agnanti and Stamatis, just to name a few, I’ll profess to being a Kyclades gal.

The restaurant name is derived from the Cyclades, a group of Greek islands south of the mainland. With its turquoise interior and seafood-heavy menu, this restaurant has an authentic Greek vibe. Restaurant patron Larry Finkelstein said it best when he labeled Kyclades as the BMW of restaurants due to the huge portion sizes, the fact the restaurant runs like a well-oiled machine, and the owner’s magnificent character in customer interactions.

Owner Ardian Skenderi thinks the key to the restaurant’s popularity is its consistency. Well, this is quality food, and the portions are big enough. Every time you come, it’s the same. You come here six months later, and we always keep it the same. People like that and appreciate it. The portion sizes are indeed huge and, in fact, Kyclades is one of the best examples I can use to illustrate the superiority of Queens portions to Manhattan portions. (Expect lots of leftovers!)

Popular menu items, according to Ardian, are the grilled octopus, calamari (grilled or fried), and the ever-requested Greek salad, which is also one of Ardian’s steadfast daily eats, along with chicken kebabs, and something from the ocean, like fresh sea bass or scallops. And who can argue with the healthy appeal of the Mediterranean diet? Ardian thinks it adds to the restaurant’s popularity.

Another not-so-secret slice of their success is high-quality ingredients that aren’t barraged with non-necessities—jumbo shrimp or whole fish like branzino are grilled and drizzled with nothing more than Greek olive oil, dried oregano, and sea salt. You have to make sure the fish is fresh all the time. That’s why I go to the market myself, he says. Ardian also believes in another fundamental to the success of the restaurant, which I think is a good motto for life (as well as the restaurant business). I love what I do, he says. Basically you don’t have to know too many things. If you know how to do two or three things, and you do them correctly, you’ll be successful.

TAVERNA KYCLADES

Info: 33-07 Ditmars Blvd., Astoria; 718-545-8666; tavernakyclades.com

See You There: Take the N to Queens to the last stop, Ditmars.

For an Authentic Experience: Ardian recommends a Greek Salad, Grilled Octopus, and the Pan-Fried Greek Cheese for appetizers, finishing with whole fish as the main course. Don’t bother asking what the fresh fish of the day is because if it’s in stock that day, it’s fresh.

Greek salad appetizer at Taverna Kyclades. (photo by Janis Turk)

Greek Salad

Yield: 4 servings

You’ve got to understand how to work with the salad, advises Kyclades owner Ardian Skenderi. When you make a Greek salad you start with the lettuce, red onions, and tomato, so the color is right there. But don’t get the wrong idea—the iceberg lettuce is only a small component of the salad rather than the overriding ingredient. Also, the restaurant uses feta straight from Greece. Ardian says the organic grazing of the sheep make for a better cheese product, and that it’s best to buy feta cheese wedges instead of the crumbled varieties. When the cheese is crushed up, you don’t know how good it is, he says. This recipe is adapted from Ardian Skenderi’s.

2 cups chopped iceberg lettuce

2 large cucumbers, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces

4 medium tomatoes, sliced

½ cup pitted Kalamata olives

¼ small red onion, sliced

8 to 10 pepperoncini peppers

½ teaspoon dried oregano

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 (¼-pound) wedges feta cheese

In a large bowl, add lettuce. Then, top with a mixture of tomatoes and cucumbers. Decorate with olives, red onion slices, and peppers. In a small bowl, add ¼ teaspoon oregano, salt, pepper, and vinegar. Using a fork, whisk together ingredients as you pour the oil into the dressing to emulsify. Pour dressing over salad. Top with feta wedges, and sprinkle with remaining ¼ teaspoon oregano.

Broiled Whole Fish with Oregano and Lemon

Yield: 4 servings

Enter my new favorite way of cooking fish, thanks to this recipe from Taverna Kyclades: Just slap it on a baking sheet with spices and lemon, place it under the broiler, and dinner is ready in mere minutes. Ardian stresses that the key is buying good-quality fish. He can walk into a fish market and tell what is fresh, simply by looking at it. For less experienced fish buyers, he recommends asking to touch the fish: If it’s fresh, it will be firm. If it’s not, it will be mushy and your finger will sink when touching it. The whole branzino is the most popular fish request at Kyclades, but any whole fish of the specified size (1½ pounds) will do. For this recipe, one fish feeds two people. Recipe adapted from Ardian Skenderi.

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 (1½-pound) whole fish (like branzino, red snapper, or trout), cleaned, scaled, rinsed, and dried with paper towels

Olive oil, as needed

6 garlic cloves

2 lemons, sliced

Broiled Whole Fish with Oregano and Lemon. (photo by Janis Turk)

Preheat the broiler. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, and oregano.

Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with foil, and then coating it with cooking spray. Place both fish on the baking sheet, positioning the fish so the head is to your left and the cavity opening is facing you. On the top of the fish, make 3 to 4 diagonal slices down the length of the fish, about ½- to 1-inch deep, and about 1½ inches apart. Generously drizzle oil inside the fish cavities and on the top of the fish. Then, divide each oregano-salt mixture between both fish, sprinkling it inside the cavity and on top of the fish again. Stuff each cavity with 3 garlic cloves and as many lemon slices as will fit. Reserve remaining lemon to serve with fish.

Place the fish under the broiler, and cook 3 minutes. Turn the baking sheet 180 degrees, and continue to cook until skin is browned and fish flesh can be flaked with a fork, about 3 to 4 more minutes. Remove from oven, use a spatula to transfer fish to a plate, and serve with the Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes.

Substitution Can’t find whole fish? Just substitute with another Kyclades favorite: jumbo shrimp. Sprinkle 1½ pounds of cleaned, butterflied jumbo shrimp with salt, pepper, oregano, and olive oil. Place on a foil-lined and greased baking sheet and broil for about 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes

Yield: 4 servings

With a lemony flavor that walks the line of almost being too tart, creating these potatoes became an obsession of mine when I first moved to Astoria. I marinated, roasted, and boiled the potatoes in a hefty amount of lemon juice, never happy with the subpar results. So when I started this Queens cookbook, I knew I had to delve into the secret of the lemon potatoes. In talking to a few Greek restaurants, a couple common denominators became apparent. The first is that the potatoes must cook in an even layer of the lemon juice mixture, almost braising in the liquid.

Overcrowding ruins the results because the potatoes can’t soak up the lemony goodness, which I realized had been one of my fatal flaws. The second factor was that everyone agreed chicken concentrate (vegetarian or not) is a must, although I couldn’t ever get a reason why. This recipe, based on the Taverna Kyclades’ recipe for lemon potatoes, is to be served with the Broiled Whole Fish with Oregano and Lemon. For intensely lemony potatoes, use the high end of the recommended lemon juice amount—¾ cup (which is my preference); for a less lemony flavor, go for the lower end of ½ cup. Sometimes I crank the oven to 450°F during the last 15 minutes to ensure extra-browned potatoes. Recipe adapted from Ardian