Day Tripping For Greek Treats and Provisions: Astoria, New York

I was staring at the selection of pites, cookies and pastries at the baked goods counter in Mediterranean Foods when it finally sunk in that a “quick” visit to Astoria was a foolish thought. Why come all this way and not allow Astoria to absorb us in to its unparalleled selection of Greek goods? “If we leave by 10, we can get there in time for some coffee and pites, hit a bakery to pick up some pastries, then grab groceries at Titan. We should be back by 5.” And I really believed this when saying it to my sister Evelyn over the phone several hours earlier.

If you find yourself in need of an authentic Greek item, whether it be food, drink or one of cultural or religious significance, chances are you will find it in Astoria, NY. This northern Queens neighborhood, situated on the East River directly across from Manhattan’s Upper East Side, has been home to a large number of Greek immigrants from Greece and Cyprus since the 1960s. Because of this, it is also home to a large number of Greek restaurants, cafés, bakeries and Greek specialty shops.

Greek groceries were the main inspiration and reason behind this trip up the turnpike and down memory lane. The last time I was in Astoria was over eight years ago to buy baptismal clothes, candles and favors for my niece. But as far back as I remember, side trips to Astoria were for picking up groceries and tasty pastries, before, during, or after a visit with family on Long Island. I have vague recollections of shops where everyone spoke Greek. If any of our South Jersey family members would be making a trip up to Astoria, they would be sure to call the rest of the family to get their grocery wish list. Still, these treats didn’t make it down to South Jersey often enough.

I remembered that Astoria had a lot of really great shops and restaurants. So I thought a curated list would help me avoid the hassle of navigating Astoria’s elevated subway segmented streets, in traffic, in an SUV loaded with coolers for too long. Coolers to stash groceries for the trip back to Philly, and maybe as far as South Jersey. The first stop would be for a mid-morning snack and a cup of strong Greek coffee to fuel me through the rest of the day. Then pastries, then groceries. And out. Titan Foods is legendary in my family, so that was a given for groceries. And I could picture a modern bakery that stood out in my mind from previous visits, but I couldn’t remember the name. I wanted to have one more place to visit in hope of finagling a pita challenge win here, somehow.

Many of Astoria’s Greek businesses have caught up with the digital age, but even some of the more modern shops, like Artopolis Bakery, don’t have much of a web presence. Most likely because they don’t need to in order to survive in Astoria. Greeks talk. And they are not shy to share their disapproval or their hard-earned approval. I recognized Artopolis as my bakery from Yelp and Google images. I also found a promising café on the web that listed an assortment of pites on their menu. I enlisted my sister Evelyn to join me on the trip. Not only did she help me navigate the tricky Queens streets, her Astoria recollections changed up the itinerary a bit.

Our first stop was Artopolis Bakery, located in Agora Plaza, a small strip mall. A Greek café and bakery with an extensive selection of sweet and savory items, you are instantly transported to Greece as you walk in and are greeted with case upon case of Greek cookies. A selection of fresh breads, pites, and coolers of fancy cakes line the back wall. You will also find a large selection of koufeta (Jordan almonds) in interesting flavors like mastic-choco-almond. Sometimes referred to as “tears of Chios” mastic is a resin made by sun-drying the sap from a species of mastic trees that only grow on Chios, the island my family is from. Its flavor profile hints of pine and cedar. Popular Greek pastries like galaktoboureko, baklava and kataifi are available in large and mini pieces. Mini baklavas come in several variations including pistachio, coconut, chocolate and kataifi. Kataifi is shredded phyllo, so this mini version is shredded phyllo mixed with a little almond rolled in phyllo, then soaked in a honey simple syrup. It was a tasty, yet less crunchy alternative to traditional baklava. The mini chocolate baklava contained just the right amount of chocolate to keep this already indulgent treat from becoming too sweet. The fresh-out-of-the-oven galaktoboureko, potato pita and halloumi pita were all delicious as well. 23-18 31st St, Queens, NY 11105.

The stop in Omega Wines and Spirits was decided solely upon its proximity next to Artopolis in Agora Plaza. It quickly turned out to be a great decision. Omega is a family owned business, and we spoke with brothers Alex and Billy about their selection of Greek wines and spirits. From Alex, we learned that Omega may have the largest selection of Greek wines for sale anywhere in the world, including Greece. He explained that some of the higher end wines made in Greece are for export only. While most wine shops may have a few token bottles of Greek wines, Omega has several large aisles of Greek wines from all over the country to select from. Alex recommended a red and a white wine from Chios and Billy recommended a Mastica liqueur, also from Chios. We picked up another two Greek reds highly recommended by Alex. One made from Nebbiolo grapes, which are most notably grown in Piedmont, Italy for Barolo and Barberesco, and one Xinomavro, a red grape varietal grown in northern Greece. Xinomavro translates to “sour black” and its high acidity wines are often compared to Nebbiolo wines from Piedmont and Pinot Noirs from Burgundy. 23-18 31st St, Queens, NY 11105

We stopped in at Mediterranean Foods because my sister remembered hearing about it from a former co-worker. We maneuvered into the barely existent parking lot located under the elevated subway tracks. In addition to being a fully stocked Greek grocery store, Mediterranean Foods has a large selection of pastries and pites, including “sausage,” pumpkin and tahinopita (tahini pie)! Their selection of pites, and those in the other shops we visited are worthy of a separate blog entry in the pita challenge, coming soon. In hindsight, all of our grocery needs could have been met at Mediterranean Foods, but that’s just something to keep in mind for the next Astoria visit. 22-78 35^th St., Long Island City, NY 11105.

Titan Foods claims to be the largest retail Greek food and grocery store in North America. This is not a small specialty store. It is a full-fledged Greek grocery store. The only thing missing is fresh Greek produce. What you will find is a large selection of frozen Greek vegetables, a freezer aisle devoted solely to tiropites and spanakopites, three large freezer cases of assorted phyllo doughs, and a dizzying number of Greek olive oils (one retailing for $190), amongst many other items. There is a large prepared foods and bakery section. Where Titan Foods really rocks though, is the cheese case. I counted at least nine fetas from Greece, ranging from soft to hard with mild and tangy options across the hardness spectrum. We sampled three kefalogravieras, an aged, semi-hard sheep or sheep and goat’s milk cheese that can be used for saganaki. We tried livadi, metsovou and dodonis, which ranged slightly in salt content and hardness, in order from lowest to highest. We also sampled vlahotiri, an aged semi-hard sheep’s milk cheese similar to kefalograviera, but with a lower salt content. 25-56 31^st St., Astoria, NY 11102

We got to the spot I originally scoped out for assorted pites too late in the day to grab any for dinner. Not up for a lengthy sit down dinner, we started searching for take-out options. Greek food truck King Souvlaki, happened to be on the opposite corner of where we were parked at 31st St & 31st Ave. The gyros at King Souvlaki are made from individual cuts of meat piled high and roasted on spits. This is not the pressed gyro meat you may be used to (though I would argue that is also delicious stuff). Greek fries are topped with hand-crumbled feta cheese. For convenience of eating in the car, I begrudgingly passed on the Greek fries and opted for a pork souvlaki sandwich. The pita was fresh and soft, and the souvlaki was well seasoned with lemon juice, oregano and salt. 31^st St. & 31^st Ave., Astoria, NY 11106

Koroni Souvlaki and Grill is a brightly lit corner spot on a dark side street away from the main drag. It had caught my eye as we drove past it earlier. From the car, I could see that most of the tables were taken, and the diners, at least those by the large front window, where enjoying themselves. We decided to go back and give it a try. I initially ordered the mixed grill for two, but balked when I was told it would take 25 minutes. “We cook all our meats to order,” I was told. So I opted for a pork souvlaki, chicken gyro and fries. Both sandwiches were wrapped in incredibly tender and fresh pita bread. Koroni also makes their gyros from individual pieces of pork piled high on a spit. The thinly shaved pork slices were perfectly grilled after slicing, topped with tomatoes and a tangy tzatziki sauce, making it one of the best gyros I’ve ever had. The chicken souvlaki meat was tender and juicy, topped with tomatoes, razor thin red onion and tzatziki for another stellar sandwich. 29-37 Newtown Ave., Astoria, NY 11102