Eating In Translation

Pera Ždera: Burgers (and more) by way of the Balkans

Excellent fries cradle a Karađorđeva (Kah-rah-JEOR-Jeh-vah), a schnitzel-like pork cutlet rolled around kaymak, breaded, deep-fried, and ultimately topped, improbably but compellingly, with tartar sauce. Read about the Serbian specialties served at Pera Ždera (aka Peter Eater) in Glendale, Queens, on Culinary Backstreets.

Queens Lanka: Small Kitchen, Big Flavors

"Staten Island, a ferryboat's ride south of Manhattan, is home to New York's largest community of Sri Lankans and most of the city's Sri Lankan restaurants as well. A smaller Sri Lankan community can be found in the Queens neighborhood of Jamaica. In recent years people might have needed to drive an hour — braving the airport traffic near JFK, swinging down to the Belt Parkway that girds southern Brooklyn and crossing the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge into Staten Island — for a taste of Sri Lanka.

"Lately, however, those cravings can be sated closer to home at Queens Lanka in Jamaica, a specialty grocery that also boasts a small but mighty kitchen and a few seats to accommodate dine-in customers. There’s no room for the weekend buffet that figures prominently in several of Staten Island’s Sri Lankan restaurants, but for curry, kottu roti and banana-leaf-wrapped lamprais, there’s no need to leave the neighborhood.

"Rasika Wetthasinghe is the chef; Suchira Wijayarathne runs the market. A helper assists with preparation in the kitchen a few days a week, and a number of the kitchen’s bespoke spice blends are prepared elsewhere, but by and large this is a two-man operation." Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Maxi's Noodle: Just Like Mom Would've Made

"We're always glad for a second bite at a wonton. At Maxi's Noodle, in Flushing, this Hong Kong delicacy is notably larger than its Chinese forebears. The dumplings and fish balls at Maxi's are hefty, too, each large enough to require two delicious bites, if not three. The size wouldn't matter, however, if the wontons weren’t wonderful — the pale pink of fresh shrimp, combined with a little pork, gleams from within their translucent wrappers.

"The restaurant’s namesake, Maxi Lau … keeps a framed photo of her mom at the restaurant … and has her portrait tattooed on one arm. Maxi's mom didn't have time to open a place of her own, but now, in spirit, whenever Maxi is at her restaurant, her mom is right by her side." Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Cerasella: Italian Delights

"In Italy, 'we would call this a bar,' Caterina Pepe tells us. We're chatting inside Cerasella (pronounced 'Chair-ah-Sell-ah'), the small pasticceria e caffetteria she owns with her husband, Luca Schiano, not far from their home in Long Island City. In New York, of course, a bar is typically adults-only, and rarely known for its food. Using that name for Cerasella, Caterina adds, would lead New Yorkers astray — but happily so, once they found themselves in front of the pastry case." Shown here: an exquisite sfogliatella riccia made with Neapolitan semolina, Calabrian orange and Apulian buffalo ricotta, coupled with an espresso. Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Varenyk House: Taste of a Ukrainian Childhood

The owner of Varenyk House, Stepan Rogulskyi, "lives with his wife, Natalya, and their two young daughters in Maspeth, the Queens neighborhood just north of Ridgewood. His first home, however, was the city of Truskavets, in western Ukraine; his two brothers, his parents and his paternal grandmother still live there, or nearby. Stepan, 33, has returned to Ukraine many times since he first came to the United States, in 2008, but his most recent visit, wife and daughters in tow, was during the summer of 2021.

"During the first weeks of the war, Stepan called Ukraine several times each day to check in on his extended family. Thankfully, he now feels able to call less frequently (though still more often than before the war). Maintaining reliable connections with his Eastern European suppliers, on the other hand, has become increasingly challenging, Stepan tells us: 'The situation changes every day.' " Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Beyond the Courts: CB's U.S. Open Eating Guide 2022

"Each year in late summer, some of the best athletes on the planet converge on Flushing Meadows Corona Park to compete in the United States Open Tennis Championships. ... The tournament site does provide hungry fans with several cafés and casual bar-restaurants as well as a pair of 'food villages.' But when in Queens — where some of the best food in the city is so close at hand — why would we confine ourselves to the boundaries of the tennis center?" Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Nhà Mình: Vietnamese, Re-envisioned

"Birdcage phở" at one of the many picnic tables behind Nhà Mình, Ridgewood, Queens. In sweltering weather, of course, you might favor the intimate front room — a Vietnamese cafe that doubles as an art gallery. Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Wheels Down, Surf's Up: A JFK Layover in Rockaway Beach

Between bites: buskers on the boardwalk (Tim Otto & Free Ride, for the moment, minus their drummer). For more, boogie on over to Culinary Backstreets.

969 NYC Coffee: Japanese Snacks in Jackson Heights

"While onigiri have a centuries-long tradition in Japan, onigirazu have been around only since the early 1990s. As the name might suggest, these are larger, grander relatives of onigiri in the shape of sandwiches, but with pressed vinegared sushi rice, wholly wrapped by nori, in lieu of bread. Oda fashions a dozen or so varieties, including onigirazu with chicken or pork tonkatsu; corned beef or spam; mango with avocado and a corn croquette [shown], okra with avocado, and seafood such as salmon or mackerel, soft-shell crab, shrimp and — our favorite — fried oyster.

"Proudly presented by Oda, each onigirazu — sliced in two with cut edges facing outward, snugly fit to a clear plastic carry-out container — feels like a jewel made just for us." Read more on Culinary Backstreets.

Super Heroes: Our Favorite Italian Sandwich Shops in Queens

After we carried off our Godfather hero, "we found a place to spread out nearby at an out-of-service 'streetery' — one of the ad hoc dining areas that allowed New York restaurants to serve customers outdoors during the pandemic, when indoor dining was prohibited. That's where we learned that the Godfather could literally stop traffic. As we posed ours for a photo, a car pulled up alongside, and a fellow leaned out the window to ask where we'd bought it. We pointed back up the street, and his car made a U-turn in that direction. Evidently, this was a sandwich he couldn't refuse." Read more on Culinary Backstreets.