Restaurants
Mar 09, 2011

Two Mystery Restaurants Coming to Astoria

Just a short note about a couple places under construction in Astoria that we hope are opening up sooner than later.  We’re pretty curious, as I’m sure are the neighbors. (…)

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Just a short note about a couple places under construction in Astoria that we hope are opening up sooner than later.  We’re pretty curious, as I’m sure are the neighbors.

The first place is the old Aphrodite Restaurant (which used to be called Ditmars Gyro) on Ditmars.  I noticed at least a month ago that it was shuttered, and that the windows have paper on them.  However, I was able to look through a little slit in the paper and saw that whoever was messing around in there totally gutted the place!

From C-J on Astorians, “According to my barber Alex (who is next door), the owner of the gyro place packed up and moved back to Greece as his kids here are now grown up and on their own.  The people who own Flo on 30th Avenue are taking over the space and making it into a small cafe.”

Does that mean a Greek style cafe is coming to the Ditmars nabe?  Some wish it were so. I hope the people working on the site have cleaned up their act, as the city posted a sign in late February stopping work due to unsafe conditions.  I’m super curious to see what goes in there.  Will go check on it soon.

The second place in question is on the corner of 34th Street and 31st Ave (AKA food nexus Astoria).  It’s on the southwest corner, and you can’t miss the construction there.  Word on the street is that it’s going to be “a chicken place”, which is either curiously promising or horrifyingly boring. That part of the neighborhood has some heavy hitters: Bare Burger (who has recently expanded – nice), Pachanga Patterson, Il Bambino, Djerdan, Brick. I am hopeful that this new place can live up to the neighboring competition because it will be creamed if it doesn’t.

We’ll keep you updated.

About Meg Cotner

Meg Cotner was trained as a harpsichordist and now works as a freelance writer and editor. She is the author of "Food Lovers' Guide to Queens," and is a skilled and avid home cook, baker, and preserver.

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