52 THE QUEENS COURIER • EASTER DINING • MARCH 29, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
easter dining
Queens is just hopping with fun Easter events this weekend
BY ROB MACKAY
Queens Tourism Council
Special to The Courier
Talk about a busy bunny!
Organized, non-religious Easter events
will pop up all over the borough this
weekend, and the fun includes everything
from traditional egg-coloring to
rock-climbing.
Queens Botanical Garden will go
fi rst with Evening Cocktail & Craft
in Flushing on Th ursday, March 29,
at 6 p.m. An adults-only event with
spring-inspired alcoholic drinks, participants
will learn about plant-based
dyes and craft ing botanical patterns.
Admission is $18 and RSVP is required.
Th e next day, March 30, is rather quiet,
except for Bunny Photos at Queens
Center, where a well-dressed hare will
be on the third fl oor between Champs
and Pretzelmaker from 1 to 9 p.m. Th e
event will repeat on March 31, but the
Rego Park shopping center will be closed
on April 1.
Th e Flushing shopping and dining
complex Queens Crossing will host
Hoppy Easter on March 31 at 3 p.m. Th is
annual spring festival has a competitive
aspect with an Easter Egg painting contest
with prizes for the winners. Th e local
AKF Dance Studio will perform as well.
Admission is $10 and includes painting
kits, gift bags and coupons.
Th e Shastye Art Gallery and Play Space
will off er a creative celebration on March
31 from 9 a.m. to noon. Instructors at the
Astoria venue have made papier-mâché
eggs and hidden them at local businesses.
One ovoid contains a coupon for a $550
birthday party at Shastye.
Meanwhile over in Flushing Meadows
Corona Park, the Queens Zoo will organize
hunts, photos, and craft s in halfhour
segments on March 31 and April 1
from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Th e Connection Church will organize
two Hunt the Egg events — at Astoria
Park and the Woodside Houses — on
March 31 from noon to 1 p.m. Th e free
events will include rabbit photos, coff ee
and an infant comfort station.
And then for something totally diff erent,
a bunny squad will be at Brooklyn
Boulders Queensbridge to help participants
complete climbing and fi tness
challenges on March 31. Th e $20 price
tag entitles purchasers to eggs, prizes,
surprises and tote bags.
Th e fun will wind down on April
2, when the Lewis H. Latimer House
throws its traditional egg hunt in its garden
at 3:30 p.m. It’s free, but RSVP is
required.
Lewis Howard Latimer, who lived from
1848 to 1928, was an African-American
inventor who draft ed the patent drawings
for Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone.
He also helped found the New
York Unitarian Church. His landmarked
wood-frame Flushing home features
Queen Anne style architecture.
Photo: Lewis H. Latimer House
A Tough Ticket
Th e borough’s biggest event, the annual
Barnyard Egg Hunt at the Queens County
Farm Museum, is set for March 31 from
11 a.m. to 3 p.m., when the 47-acre Glen
Oaks property fi lls with basket-carrying
youngsters. Th e hunts will be divided
into age categories and will unfold in the
orchard throughout the aft ernoon, along
with egg-tossing and egg-rolling games.
Th e perennially popular Whiskers the
Bunny will bounce around, looking for
photo opportunities. And of course, the
farm animals will be there. Admission is
$10, but tickets are sold out. Th e best way
to gain entry is via info@queensfarm.org.
Winning treats to please kids and adults
When you think of Easter goodies
there’s a good chance the fl avorful jelly
bean comes to mind - a big hit with kids
young and old. But, because fl avor preferences
change with age, it stands to reason
that not all Easter gift s are created equal.
With more than 100 fl avors of jelly
beans under their belts, Jelly Belly Candy
Company has an idea of what types of fl avors
will be more popular with both kids
and grownups.
“When we talked to kids, we learned that
the more complex or exotic the fl avor, the
less likely they were to enjoy it,” said Lisa
Brasher, executive vice chairman and a fi ft h
generation candy maker for company.
As a renowned candy expert and author
of “Candy: Th e Sweet History,” Beth
Kimmerle added, “Classic fl avors like
apples and berries are typically the most
popular with the younger crowd. Adults
crave the more adventurous fl avors.”
Understanding age
and preferences
Flavor innovation keeps a company like
Jelly Belly on its toes. As people age, their
taste buds mature and become more open
to those complex fl avor profi les children
shy away from. Th e coconut fl avor is a
great example of this.
Flavors for everyone
By taking the feedback from children of
all ages into consideration, the jelly bean
company assembled its youthful Kids
Mix, a collection of 20 fl avors kids love.
Th e mix makes it easier for anyone to pick
winning fl avors like cotton candy, berry
blue and watermelon for Easter treats.
More adult-friendly fl avors like licorice,
cinnamon and buttered popcorn are purposefully
absent from the mix.
One sweet agreement
Despite their palate diff erences, kids
and adults can agree on one thing - very
cherry is their top pick. It’s the most popular
Jelly Belly bean fl avor in America,
placing among the top two since its debut
almost 40 years ago. For a brief period, it
was upset by buttered popcorn and fell
to the number two position, but it’s been
consistently the winning fl avor since.
Treat tips
When it comes to giving the best Easter
treats, keep these tips in mind:
• For the little ones: Give them what
they want. Stick to tried and true fruity
fl avors and other kid-friendly tastes like
cotton candy and toasted marshmallow.
• For the grownups: Go with complex
fl avors and new fl avor experiences, such
as the unique off erings of chili mango,
draft beer and cappuccino.
For other fl avorful ideas, visit www.jellybelly.
com.
Courtesy Family Features
/www.jel-lybelly.com
/www.jel-lybelly.com
link
/www.jel-lybelly.com
