5 Boro Pizza Tour: Astoria and Beyond

Do you like pizza? Are you adventurous? Are you free on Sunday, July 26th? Jeffrey over at iwantmorefood.com is organizing a 5 boro pizza tour, and he's starting things off in the borough of Queens, and at Rose & Joes in Astoria at that! Here's his intro:

The 5-Boro Pizza Tour starts Sunday, July 26th. It will continue for 4 Sundays this summer, each Sunday touring a different borough.

We will sample a slice or 2 from each shop, ordering by the pie. Extensive research, networking and legwork has been done to find some of best and most intriguing pizza in NYC. Each tour will have a variety of styles and will last at least a few hours. Expect to make some new friends.

This is an ambitious tour, one not for the general public. But I am sure we can find enough freaks in this city of 10 million to satisfy a proper pizza eating group. This is not meant to be a feat of strength, we leave that to AYCE and IFOCE. This is a tour de pizza. Many of the places I haven’t been to (Staten Island), and I would be surprised if anyone has eaten at all of the pizzerias mentioned, even all the pizzas for one of the boroughs.

Contact him (do not contact us!) for more info and to reserve your spot.

Astorian Weekend Edition 09.04.09

With Passover this week and Easter on Sunday, there are plenty of interesting happs and offerings, guaranteed to spice up the weekend.

Enjoy a delicious Italian Easter feast at Vesta. Their offer includes a mix of brunch and dinner dishes such as hangover pizza and delectable braised lamb shank (pictured above). There’s no prix-fixe, which is probably better on the wallet. 21-02 3oth Ave, Astoria. 718.545.5550.

The Beer Garden will also host an Easter celebration this Sunday from 1pm – 5pm, complete with an Easter egg hunt, egg painting and live entertainment. Feast on traditional Czech dishes for $19.95 per person. 29-19 24^th Avenue, Astoria. 718.274.4925

Are you looking to treat your family and friends to some Easter yummies? Check out Rosario’s Deli, an Italian specialty foods shop with tasty sweets such as giant hazelnut/chocolate Easter eggs. They feature weekly specials—and I just bought dark chocolate Baci truffles there for a very good price. 22-55 31^st Street, Astoria. 718.728.2920

Besides at Rosario’s, you can get your Easter dessert at the various bakeries in Astoria. Some of the better ones that feature Italian-style treats include Frank’s (36-02 30^th Avenue, Astoria. 718.726.7813), La Guli (29-15 Ditmars Blvd, Astoria. 718.728.5612) and Rose and Joe’s (22-40 31^st Street, Astoria. 718.721.9422).

Aside from Easter festivities, you can attend LIC Bar’s Sunday Social with free live music and $4 beers. This weekly event is hosted by Irish songwriter, Niall Connolly every Sunday from 5pm – 8pm. 45-58 Vernon Blvd, LIC. 718.786.5400.

St. Joseph's Day Brings Deliciousness

FYI, today is St. Joseph's Day. I have a friend named Joseph, so I send him good wishes today!

It being St. Joesph's Day and all, know that Rose & Joe's bakery (home of the very tasty pizza) has St. Joseph's Bread today. It is believed by some, that if St. Joseph's bread is kept in the home, the family will never starve. What I know, is that it's delicious!

Sfinge/zeppoli are also tasty St. Joseph's Day baked items. Totally worth it. Check it out at Rose & Joes. In fairness, neighboring La Guli probably has some pretty kickass St. Joseph's Day goodies, too.

Where else in the neighborhood do you find your St. Joseph's Day sweets?

Astorian Weekend Edition 22.11.07

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Joey in Astoria! We hope you're having a great day with family, friends, and loved ones. If you're still looking for a place to have dinner, you can try Neptune (31-05 Astoria Blvd) and Bel Aire (31-91 21st St) as far as diners go, or Brick (30-95 33rd St) for something more upscale. Also Zenon Taverna (34-10 31st Ave) is having Thanksgiving dinner, with a few Greek items thrown in.

Friday after Thanksgiving is often referred to as Black Friday, the start of the Christmas shopping season. The term was coined in the 70s, indicating the period where retailers are in the black. Not interested in partaking in the shopping storm? Read JIA friend John Roleke's take on avoiding Black Friday in town. And Friday night at sunset, check out dj onda Skillet at AeroTropic: World Series upstairs at Mezzo Mezzo (31-29 Ditmars Blvd). That place has all sorts of things going on, it seems.

This weekend is a fantastic one for classic films at the MOMI (35 Avenue at 36 Street) Saturday they're showing Meet Me In St. Louis (2pm), The Wizard of OZ (4:30), and Singin' in the Rain (7:00). Sunday is the magnificent Gone With the Wind (2pm) and Brokeback Mountain (6:30). Every single one of these is worth seeing! Note that the Museum is closed on Thanksgiving.

For something a little different, movie-wise, head to Hellgate Social (12-21 Astoria Blvd) on Sunday at 8:30pm to see Jingle All the Way, starring California's own Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger as a frazzled dad. I was there for movie night last Sunday and it was awesome. Loved the relaxed vibe and the Polish beer I had was excellent. Stop by Saturday night for DJ Lo-Fi, who will undoubtedly be spinning great tunes.

Great recent eats include Guacamole (38-07 Broadway), Rizzo's Pizza (30-13 Steinway St), and I hafta say - check out the coffee at Cafe Expresso (not a typo) on Steinway (25-51 Steinway St). I had a cappucino there recently and it was really good! Oh, and by the way - Rose and Joe's Bakery (22-40 31st Street) is making little baby cream puffs that are extremely tasty.

Enjoy your holiday weekend!

Rose and Joe's and Rizzo's.

Over on Grub Street, they've noticed my penchant for Rose and Joe's Sicilian slices. So much so, that they wanted to know if they are really that amazing. Well, they got some responses! The result:

There was a bit of volatile reaction from our readers to the quality of Rose & Joe's Sicilian pies: “Any self-respecting pizza eater in Astoria will know that going anywhere but Rizzo’s for a square pie/slice is absolutely maniacal.”

I have to say, even though I love Rose and Joe's, I do love me some Rizzo's. Whenever I'm in that part of town and I'm hungry for a snack, Rizzo's tops my list. I love their slice with ricotta and tomatoes. Square slices are tasty, too. I think Rizzo's has some of the best pizza in Astoria. Oh, they are one of the few places around that sells RC cola "on tap".

Joey likes Rizzo's too! So does flooz, I believe.

FYI, though, I had a Sicilian slice from Rose and Joe's this weekend, this time topped with pepperoni, and it was crazy delicious!

Astorian Weekend Edition 06.09.07

Show your love for our wonderful Astoria Park and get out your cameras! From now until October 8, submit your best shots and win bragging rights (and some real prizes, too) for A Salute to Queens Parks Photo contest.

Hey, we're post-Labor Day. Get in your kayaking time while you still can!

Saturday is Temperature Check '07 at Astoria Park. From 3:30 to 7:30 p.m., hit the raffles and science experiments all about global warming. Help look for answers and solutions to power needs and hopefully end the threat of Astoria blackouts while you're at it! No pressure... No cost to attend, just enjoy

presents two shopping extravaganzas in three locations at one place! Got that? There will be the Arts & Crafts Show AND a Vendor Market on Sunday at the Community Rooms at the Queensview Houses (rooms #7 & 14 & courtyard @ 21-15 34th Ave). Shop over 30 vendors worth of paintings, collectibles, antiques, memorabilia, & hand-made items all afternoon, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. There are door prizes - a $50 cash prize even!

Still need something to do, go grab a slice or two at Rose & Joe's (2240 31ST St)!

Rose and Joe's Spells Delicious

I made a number of visits to Rose and Joe's today, because they are all too convenient for a quick snack before jumping on the subway there at Ditmars. They are one of my favorite bakeries in Astoria. Here are a couple pictures, one of the delicious cookies and one of the awesome sicilian slice. Enjoy!: