“For me, New York cuisine has always been Italian American, Chinese takeout, and fast food burgers,” D’Alessio says. While his poetic patties have steadily maintained their own corner of the menu, Donnie recently shared with BORO that he plans to open a new location devoted to these gourmet griddle gems, called Flattopp Burgers. He recently debuted a few of his brawny beef burgers with a pop-up on Queens Comfort’s night off to showcase the new concept. “We will be serving elevated greasy spoon fair like brisket dry aged beef blend burgers, deep-fried sour cherry apple pie, milkshakes and cheese fries,” D’Alessio explains. He affectionately compares his bad boys to New Jersey’s White Manna Hamburgers, but with wild toppings. One of the burgers, “The Flying Guillotine,” is marinated in Hoisin BBQ, topped with an egg roll stuffing of shrimp, duck bacon and a l’orange reduction. Another burger, “The Schnook,” is topped with fried mozzarella, grilled pepperoni and vodka sauce. But the standard Flattopp classic is all it takes to get hooked. “These are the burgers I grew up with,” D’Alessio says. “My dad would pan-fry them for us. And when you cook those onions in the actual burger fat, something magical happens.” Magical, indeed. The menu for the pop-up featured only a handful of Flattopp’s brick and mortar menu, but was a certifiable great time, complete with old-school Shaw Brothers kung fu movies playing on the back wall, and a DJ spinning old-school ‘80s and ‘90s hip-hop. Most of the menu won’t be unveiled until closer to the opening of the permanent location, coming this fall at a soon-to-be-revealed site. But besides the great menu, there will be 20-plus vintage arcade games and pinball machines, 20 craft beers on tap and a full cocktail list. “At Queens Comfort, we have developed our own style and aesthetic,” D’Alessio says. “But now we can grow and expand with something a little bit different.” QUEENS COMFORT 4009 30th Ave, Astoria, NY 11103 (718) 728-2350 Ring of Fire JUNE 2015 | BOROMAG.COM | 19 Sugar Hill Peanut Butter & Jelly BURGERS
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