(This venue is closed. As of December 2020, however, the venue that supplanted it is very similar in look and feel.) Like the few other eateries in Willets Point, the Queens neighborhood best-known for a symbiotic combination of unpaved, potholed streets and auto-repair companies, Master Express relies on an almost exclusively male blue-collar clientele.
Many hail from Ecuador, but the luncheonette's owner hails from Colombia, as does his recipe for albondigas de arroz (platter; $5) — literally, "rice meatballs." They're very moist, loosely knit, and knobbed with bits of egg, bell pepper, and peas.
Master Express Deli & Restaurant
126-96 Willets Point Blvd., Willets Point, Queens
718-424-8207
