62 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • SEPTEMBER 19, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Photo by Jessica Militello/BORO
New Astoria eatery satisfi es
late-night cravings
BY JESSICA MILITELLO
Astorians can fi nally satisfy their latenight
cravings for delicious comfort food
with the opening of Food Struck on 35th
Street, the newest addition to the neighborhood
brought by two former co-workers
turned close friends and now business
partners. What started as a late-night conversation
at a bar called Diamond Dogs
in Astoria resulted in indulgent delights
at their brand-new shop, which offi cially
opened on Aug. 25.
Business partners Ravi Th apa, 29, and
Eric Bayron, 32, had their soft opening
throughout August to introduce their
menu to the community and show off the
tasty dishes they have to off er, like their
soy garlic glazed chicken thighs and their
dirty fries and tots, dripping in cheese
sauce, topped with ham, and garnished
with rosemary and garlic. With hearty
dishes like this, Astorians should stop by
soon before they sell out for the night.
(Th eir hours are generally 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.,
but they might be open later some days,
the owners said.)
“Right now the menu is comfort food,”
Th apa said. “But it’s infl uenced from all
other cuisines. Th e chopped cheese is a
classic from Harlem and the chicken is
Korean style, so it’s Asian. We did have a
spam rice bowl, which is inspired by the
Philippines. Bayron has a lot of French
cuisine techniques as well, so there’s some
French too.”
Th apa and Bayron are both locals in the
Astoria area who have had much of their
career in the hospitality industry as a bartender
and chef, respectively. Th ey met
each other about fi ve years ago when they
both worked at Mar’s, another local spot.
Th ey initially aimed to create a food
truck but ended up with a storefront aft er
looking at several local spaces.
As the neighborhood gets more familiar
with what Food Struck has to off er,
there are already a few favorite go-to items
on their menu, like the chopped cheese,
made with beef, cheese sauce, and caramelized
onions on a garlic buttered roll.
Th e result is a hot and tasty sandwich that
oozes in melted cheese sauce on warm,
toasted bread that is satisfying and fi lling.
Another popular item and for good reason
are their chicken thighs. Th e fourpiece
item is hot, crispy and perfectly
drizzled with their in-house soy garlic
glaze sauce. It’s certainly fi lling enough to
eat alone or for hungrier patrons, perfectly
paired with fresh tots.
Also noteworthy is their grilled cheese
sandwich, melted with a triple threat of
delicious cheddar, swiss and mozzarella
cheese, with an onion marmalade on multigrain
bread.
Now that Food Struck is offi cially open,
it is certainly worth it to stop by for their
delicious comfort food and the positive
attitudes of the hard-working entrepreneurs.
Ultimately, the young men would
like to off er some more variety and livelihood
for the area with their business.
“Th ere’s already so much cool stuff in
the area,” Th apa said. “We want to off er
a diff erent take on certain foods that you
don’t expect to be able to come into.”
dining out
Food Struck
3106 35th St., Astoria
foodstrucknyc.com
Instagram: @foodstrucknyc
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BUBBLE WIZARDRY.”
-THE NEW YORKER
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For groups or birthdays call 866.642.9849
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