A lot of people think of Astoria, Queens as being synonymous with good Greek food. But the truth is that, like a lot of New York City, Astoria is a little bit of everything. Queens’s status as the most diverse county in the nation is on display no matter which way you turn. Take, for example, the block I walked around when I first stepped off the Q line: a Chinese acupuncture place across the street from the Thai restaurant that was next to the Spanish café that was just a few steps from the Cuban bakery (Havana Express) where I stopped to get coffee and biscotti. And that was all before I even set foot on Ditmars Boulevard, where everything about Astoria becomes squared.
It’s hard not to stand on Ditmars without thinking the word “bustling,” so I decided that the Bay Ridge strategy of taking a lunch spot survey would work well here. For an hour, I zigzagged around the surrounding residential blocks, soliciting lunch recommendations. While my methods were hardly scientific, I did speak to a lot of people: white people, brown people, Greek people, Italian people, grumpy people, talkative people, dog-walking people, frat boy-looking people, tattooed hipster people, and lots of elderly people.
Their responses, of course, were no less diverse. Here, in no particular order, is what they said: Sumonti’s, Kyclades, Alba, SoHo Café, El Forno, Brooklyn Bagel, Portabella, Okeanos, Buon Appetit and Just Burgers. And those are just the ones with a single vote. In the multiple-vote category are Tasty’s Diner, Watawa, Igloo Café and Martha’s Country Bakery.
So how to choose? I’ll admit that I remain slightly scarred from my last Japanese dining experience, so even though Watawa had some fervent fans, I crossed it off the list. Martha’s Country Bakery almost lured me inside with its cuteness and its $4.95 spinach pie lunch special, but I liked the fact that the three people who told me about Igloo had all mentioned two important things: 1) they liked it specifically for lunch rather than dinner and 2) it’s steps from the Astoria-Ditmars train stop, literally at the end of the line. Plus, I was intrigued by why it was called Igloo. Really, in this neighborhood, it wouldn’t have surprised me if it turned out to be Inuit food.
In fact, the name Igloo comes from the fact that there was a small ice cream counter near the door, but behind it lay a sizable restaurant with a pleasant back patio full of customers. The menu was mostly salads (which many people were enjoying out of cartoonishly huge bowls) and sandwiches. I went with the Goat Cheese Wrap with olives, walnuts, sun-dried tomatoes and raspberry vinaigrette.
After such an extensive survey, I expected to be wowed by the wrap, and I wasn’t. The sun-dried tomatoes were in huge chunks that had to be chewed for long minutes to prevent choking. I immediately had salad envy. I will say this though—there were a few waffle fries on the plate as a garnish, and they really were perfect specimens.I longed to order a whole basketful of the beautiful waffled goodness or the onion rings or the crispy deep-fried green beans, but by then I felt over-full on rich clumps of goat cheese. Another time, perhaps. There’s too much to eat in Astoria for me not to come back soon.
Igloo Café. 2226 31st St., Astoria, NY 11105. (718) 726-7700.
Want me to take you to lunch? Send your End of the Line suggestions to Submissions@Pitchknives.com.