This morning I awoke from a food coma brought on by trying to eat every meal for the last two weeks at the now shuttered M. Wells. Stepping outside I noticed a dirigible lazily traversing the skies above and I knew it was that time of year. Time to talk about what to eat during the U.S. Open. Here then, a list of Seven Things to Eat During The U.S. Open. Most of these places lie along the 7 line or are a short walk from the stadium. For a complete guide of where to eat along the 7 line be sure to check out World’s Fare 24/7 in the fall issue of Edible Queens. You'll find plenty there to keep you busy long after the Open ends.

Anyone for crawfish?

1.  Ma la xiao long xia at Sliced Noodles in New World Mall No. 21, New World Mall Food Court, 40-21 Main St., Flushing
Fresh lobster can be had at the stadium, but when’s the last time you ate a lobby at a sporting event? For a championship level crustacean experience take the 7 train to Main Street. Head over to Sliced Noodles in the New World Mall Food Court and order the ma la xiao long xia, or spicy little lobsters. Just under $10 buys a small mountain of crawdads bathed in chili sauce shot through with ginger and Sichuan peppercorn. If you simply must have lobster an outfit aptly called Live Seafood will gladly oblige with whole lobster prepared in a variety of styles, including spicy and ginger scallion.

A Colombian kitchen sink burger will fuel hours of tennis watching.

2.  Super Especial Hamburger at La Dulce Vida
107-22 Corona Ave., Corona, 718-271-3033
Skip the stadium's burgers and take a trip to Colombia instead. That country takes an everything but the kitchen sink approach to the humble hamburger. Find La Dulce Vida not far from the action in nearby Corona. The Super Especial Hamburger ($7) is topped with all manner of things. Some are conventional: bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mayonnaise. And some are not: ham, garlic sauce, pink sauce, Russian sauce, and potato chips.

Why get just lemon ice, when you can have spumoni.

3. Spumoni at the Lemon Ice King of Corona
52-02 108th St., Corona, 718-699-5133
If you have room for dessert after that burger cross the street to the Lemon Ice King of Corona. Get a signature lemon ice. Better yet, try a spumoni new for this season. Head over to William F. Moore “Spaghetti” Park where locals play bocce late into the night. Watch a few frames and feel lucky to have had the chance to take in two great sporting events in one day.

4. Mixed Grill at La Porteña, 74-25 37th Ave., Jackson Heights, 718-458-8111
Cowboy steak can be had at the stadium’s Champion Bar & Grill. For a cowboy experience Argentine style take the 7 train to 74th St. and dine at La Porteña. Order the mixed grill ($18.95 for one, $29.95 for two). It’s a carnivorous combination of skirt steak, short ribs, pork sausage, blood sausage, sweetbreads, and tripe.

Perfect for a midnight snack.

5. Sandwich de media noche at El Sitio
68-28 Roosevelt Ave., Woodside, 718-424-2369
This Cuban spot—with its sunny orange counter—is as old school New York as it gets. Get the sandwich de media noche ($4.40), essentially a Cuban sandwich on darker, sweeter bread. With a cup of café con leche ($1.50) it makes for a perfect midnight snack or prematch meal.

Game, set, crunch: Crispy papaya salad.

6. Thai home Cooking at TCP
63-19 39th Avenue, Woodside, 718-651-6888
Sure you could go to the wildly popular (and excellent) Sriprapahi just down the street along with dozens of other tennis fans. Instead head to TCP or Thailand’s Center Point, a mom-and-pop outfit that recalls the old days when Sripraphai was but a humble hole-in-the-wall. Aom “Annie” Phinphatthakul prepares such dishes as crispy papaya salad ($8.50), a riff on the classic som tum and crispy thousand egg with basil sauce ($10), three batter-fried preserved eggs were set atop ground pork in basil sauce. Shop for Thai ingredients afterwards at TCP’s adjoining grocery store.

Mixed khatsa combines the flavors of Tibet and with those of Sichuan.

7.  Tibetan-Chinese at Phayul, 74-06 37th Rd., Jackson Heights, 718-424-1869
There are so many Tibetan and Nepalese restaurants in what’s still known as Little India that I’ve taken to calling it Little Tibet. Phayul, where the chef offers what he calls Tibetan-Chinese, is one of the best. There are excellent momo here ($4.99), the crescent-shaped beef dumplings that are Tibet’s national dish. Tibetan-Chinese offerings include mixed khatsa ($8), wobbly strips of tripe and creamy bits of tongue dressed with chili, garlic, cilantro, and sesame seeds, and Sichuan peppercorns. If you’re lucky you’ll get to watch a few Tibetan hip hop videos while dining.

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Served on a Frisbee-sized loaf La Cancha’s lomito is a formidable sandwich.

Blame it on Tortas Neza. Ever since my first visit I’ve become obsessed with heavyweight Latin American sandwiches. Today’s contender is the lomito ($7), or steak sandwich, from La Cancha. The Argentine pizzeria is being overly modest by merely calling it a steak sandwich. At the very least the menu should read, “served on a pillowy, hubcap-sized roll.”  

A closer look at the mighty lomito.

Who knows from whence South American’s love of topping steak with fried eggs comes. All I know is it’s a good thing. And it’s even better when ham is added. The protein-packed lomito is a brunch fit for a champion gaucho. The yolk coats the not unpleasantly chewy tenderloin. That gigantic discus of bread does a good job of holding it all together while soaking up the juices.  Mustard and mayo work well enough, but garlicky chimichurri would be even better. A pomelo-flavored Pasa de Los Toros cuts right through the heaviness of this sandwich. Like many Argetineans the owner of La Cancha and his customers are fond of watching soccer. The lomito seems like ample sustenance for all that running around the field. Or it might just fuel an afternoon nap.

La Cancha, 90-07 Elmhurst Avenue, Jackson Heights, 718-651-7452

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It all started with steak heroes and sausage and pepper submarines.

“Oh, now you want to put me on the war path against my brothers from Philadelphia,” Franco Mattei said with a laugh when asked to compare his shop’s signature steak hero to that city’s namesake sandwich. “Ours is fresh, you can taste it,”  he elaborated when pressed.

Franco’s take on the cheesesteak has an Italian-American accent.

Franco’s brother, John, makes each steak sandwich the same way he has since the shop opened into 1974. First he cooks up “tender cuts from the chuck and rib” along with peppers and onions.  These are then placed in a hero roll and topped with American cheese and mushrooms. Add a slather of barbecue sauce and this hearty hoagie is complete. At $5 a pop it’s a bargain too.

Franco’s slogan is “From the Butcher Block to the Grill.” Pretty fitting for a place that got its start as a butcher shop that served steak heroes and has since expanded to include such daily specials as meatballs, lasagna, and bracioles (available Tuesdays). Which reminds me I might have to go see the Mattei brothers later this afternoon. Today’s special is roast pork.

Franco's, 47-17 104th St., Corona, 718-699-1981

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New Park Pizza, my favorite for old-school slices, was one of many places mentioned by the panel of esteemed eaters at the Edible Winter Warm-up on January 24.

Sunday’s first annual Edible Winter Warm-Up at L haus was a hit with music and plenty of local restaurants and purveyors representing. I enjoyed everything I tried—especially Testaccio’s pasta e fagioli—but the highlight of the day was the food for thought served up by the panel on The Queens Food Scene. Joining me were Lee Anne Wong, a former Top Chef contestant who now consults for the show; Josh Ozersky, food writer and founder of Ozersky.TV; Zora O’Neill, co-author of Forking Fantastic! Put the Party Back in Dinner Party; and Dave Cook, the man behind the wonderful blog Eating in Translation. Cook provided a slideshow with photos of everything from Malaysian food festivals to taquerias. Before things got started I asked by show of hands how many people in the packed room lived in Queens and practically everyone proudly raised their hand. A lively discussion featuring everything from the borough’s best burger to Thai groceries that sell crickets and a Venezuelan snack shop that specializes in shredded beef sandwiches served on fried plaintain buns ensued. 

The slideshow sparked a debate about the borough’s best pizza. My pick was New Park Pizza in Howard Beach. Sure, it’s old school, but it’s great. Both Wong and Ozersky cited Sac’s Place in Astoria for its great coal oven pies. Ozersky also called out Nick’s Pizza in Forest Hills. O’Neill lauded Rosario’s Deli in Astoria as having the “pizza of her youth.” Never been to that one, but it’s now on my to-eat list.

Then we chatted about Astoria for a bit. Wong called out Ali el Sayed of Kabab Café for his Egyptian home cooking and Bistro 33 for its refined French-Asian cuisine. I enjoy the fiery fare at Poodam’s, Cook’s pick for Thai, but his mention of the Halal Sandwich Shop on Steinway Street stumped me. O’Neill tipped the audience off to Agnanti for Greek and Djerdan for its bureks. Meat maven Ozersky mentioned Greek Cypriot restaurant BZ Grill for its utterly delicious pork gyro. He also cited Joe’s Best Burger in Flushing as Queens’ best. To be honest, I spend so much time eating regional Chinese food in downtown Flushing that I scarcely notice the fast-food looking place that shares my name. For steakhouses, Ozersky’s pick was Argentine meat specialist La Portena in Jackson Heights, particularly for its mixed grill. He also called out Café Arzu, which lies literally around the corner from World’s Fare HQ, for its Bukharian-style lamb and beef kebabs.

 On the subject of street food I pointed out the Ecuadorean vendors on Warren Street off Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights and Ozersky kvelled about the dollar kebabs from the Traditional Xinjiang Barbecue cart located near Kissena and Main Street, or as he likes to call it, the Mutton Man. Patacon Pisao, a spot in Elmhurst serving carne mechada patacón, a shredded beef sandwich that I like to think of as Venezuela’s answer to the Big Mac, was Cook’s pick. And O’Neill raved about the Egyptian kebab guy on 30th Avenue just west of Steinway.   

 The Q&A session with the audience also unearthed some gems, including the row of Korean restaurants known as Eater’s Alley, located in Murray Hill on 149 Street on the south side of Northern Boulevard, which I can’t wait to explore. When an audience member asked about vegetarian fare, EQ’s publisher, Leah McLaughlin, suggested Sripaphai’s separate vegetarian menu. My pick was the Temple Canteen inside the Ganesh temple on Bowne Street in Flushing for its gigantic dosai, or rice and lentil flour crepes. A question regarding Italian food yielded the following list of faves: Manducatis, Sapori d'Ischia, Parkside, Manetta's, Don Peppe's, Manducatis Rustica, and Trattoria L'Incontro.

Even though some 20 restaurants were mentioned during the hourlong panel, we barely managed to scratch the surface of the food scene in Queens. Next year I’m holding out for a daylong seminar.

Keep on eating,

Joe DiStefano

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