MAMA LIKES TO DRINK ON THURSDAY - "Altos de Luzon"

Altos de Luzon Is a red blend with a deep, bright inviting color with red berry on the nose.  This wine was well rounded with sweet raspberry and cherry flavors.  It is a wine I like to call my “Wednesday Wine” which means you can drink it any day of the week with or without food.  My “Wednesday Wines” are my favorite because sometimes you just feel like kicking back and having a glass while watching Scandal (Which is a new episode tonight I might add for those Scandal Lovers).  Mrs. D enjoyed it so its high on my list.  If the wife is happy I am happy and we both enjoyed this wine.  We loved it even more being its under $15.

INDUSTRIAL SPACE, ARTISINAL TASTE: COFFEED

 

 

I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into COFFEED. I was already under the misconception that it was yet another cookie cutter coffee shop, but I was completely wrong.  Upon walking in with my lovely wife, Mrs. D, I was greeted with smiles from the incredibly chill staff. Despite the warehouse feel and high ceilings, COFFEED has a welcoming, warm embrace.  My eyes were immediately pulled to the far right wall, dedicated to their support of Brooklyn Grange Farm.  COFFEED supports fair trade growers and also helped to sponsor the Brooklyn Grange Farm new compost system.  You can find many artisanal products for sale from the Brooklyn Grange Farm and it was wonderful to see a restaurant truly standing behind local organization.  As the warm weather hopefully quickly approaches, COFFEED will be sourcing much of their produce from the Brooklyn Grange farm and will also be the host of the first-year round Brooklyn Grange farm stand.  Ok I admit I was being sucked in and I had not even tried their coffee yet! I am also the first to admit I am hard to please when it comes to a cup of Joe.  However right there on the front of their menu it states in their mission statement “To provide the best cup of coffee in New York by sourcing some of the world’s best single origin coffees roasted by, Giorgio, one of the most experienced roasters, in the tri-state region”.  With that said I was up for the challenge.  I sadly did not get the lovely women behind the counters name who eagerly offered me so much wonderful information on COFFEED.  She was obviously proud to be part of which was really great to see.  I ordered a cup of Jamaican Blue Mountain and she asked if I was open to trying a similar blend.  Being I had never had the Kona, which she suggested. I was up for it and I am so glad I did since it was a fabulous cup of coffee.  What made the cup even more fabulous is that 10% of all coffee & drink sales as well as 5% of food sales go directly to the local charity City Growers.  For those of you not familiar with City Growers, it connects the urban communities with agriculture & food through farm education and advocacy.  Being that Mrs. D and I were pleased, we decided to stay for lunch.  I ordered the Turkey & Swiss and Mrs. D ordered the Turkey Club.  All sandwiches are made with the wonderful bread of Tom Cat Bakery in Long Island City.  All I can say is simple, classic and tasty. Mrs. D and I had a wonderful experience at COFFEED and we are both looking forward to going back.  Being they have free WiFi in addition to amazing coffee and tasty food I might have found a new place to work from.  With that said congrats to COFFEED and I will see you soon.

COFFEED

37-18 Northern Blvd

Astoria, NY 11101

(718)606-1299

www.coffeednyc.com

@COFFEEDNYC

*Accepts all major Credit Cards

 

ALSO MENTIONED

BROOKLYN GRANGE FARM
www.BrooklynGrangeFarm.com
@BrooklynGrange

TOM CAT BAKERY

www.TomCatBakery.com

@TomCatBakery

CITY GROWERS

www.CityGrowers.org

@CityGrowers

CEDAR HOUSE RULES

Shawerma where have you been my whole life?  The Cedar’s Fresh Meats is wonderful Lebanese cuisine on 30^th Avenue between 41^st & 42^nd Street.  I never thought a sandwich could change my life but it did.  No I am not always an adventurous eater.  It is not because I am not open to branching out but sometimes my stomach protests my decision and my brilliant ideas are vetoed.  But gratefully, I plunged into Cedar’s Fresh Meats.  I tried a Steak Shawerma, which had hints of clove and spices that perfectly melded together leaving my mouth watering.  I also sampled my wife’s Chicken Shawerma, which was equally as scrumptious.  The adorable guy behind the counter was so proud of the food he was preparing and was beaming when I said it was the best sandwich I had eaten in a long time.  We had lunch there on Saturday afternoon and was craving it all weekend.  We journeyed down 30^th Avenue last night to pick up dinner and we greeted by the same young man who recognized us and smiled welcoming us back.  AND yes they deliver so you can secretly order as many times as you would like without feeling judged. They know it is just that good.

CEDAR’S FRESH MEATS

41-08 30^th Avenue
Between 41^st & 42^nd Street
Astoria, NY 11103
718-606-1244

*Accepts all major credit cards

WELCOME!!

I want to welcome you all to The Queen of Western Queens blog.  I am thrilled to be sharing my journey through the community I love with all of you.  The idea of starting this blog came about around the holidays when I asked the cyber world of Astoria what restaurants were open for Christmas.  Most responses were the usual suspects of Chinese food and/or diners. I knew that those couldn’t be the only options and that we weren’t the only folks not going away for the holidays.  On Christmas day, while in search of our perfect holiday meal, my wife and I drove up and down the Avenue’s of Astoria to see who was open and in fact several restaurants were.  I want to be able to offer this kind of information to people.  What restaurants are open on Christmas and have special pre fix options?  Who has New Years Eve seatings available?  Where could you go for the perfect New Years Day brunch to help with the absorption of all the champagne you consumed?  Where could you have the best Valentines Day dinner with out being subjected to the Manhattan mark up?  Who has the best Karaoke? Who has the best wines by the glass?  Where is the best cup of Joe? What Bodega has the best craft beer options? What local non profits are available in Western Queens and have volunteer opportunities? How do I help keep Astoria Park clean? This is all information I would like to be able to provide in one place and I hope you will find all the information as useful as I do.  I would also like to stress that any opinions posted in my blog are simply my own and of my “loves” of Western Queens.  It doesn’t mean they are the best or better then your favorites.  That your top Pizza joint isn’t quality it just means we all have different palates, tastes and passions.  If you have a favorite that I haven’t mentioned and you would like me to check out, by all means let me know.  I love trying new things.  This blog is meant to be fun resource, a place to share information and to bring those together that also love living in Western Queens.

QueenofWesternQueens@gmail.com

 

@LanaLauriano

Xoxo

Lana