What to do in Queens?

I%26#39;m coming in for 3 short days May 09-12. The first two days we are staying at the Hampton Inn Times Square. On Friday, we will be moving to the Pan American hotel in Queens. We fly out Saturday afternoon from LGA.

So...once we move over to Pan American on Friday late morning/early afternoon...what can we do over in that area of town for the rest of the day, rather than go back into Manhattan?

We are NOT big into museums. Sight-seeing? Attractions? We like food :). Any good bars/lounges to visit in the evening?

Thanks!

What to do in Queens?

If you like food you will love Jackson Hts.

This thread goes into further detail regarding the food in the area.

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k904025-鈥?/a>

The neighborhood mentioned (Jackson Hts/ East Elmhurst.) is where LGA is, and you could actually even walk to Pio-Pio from where you would be. But I would obviously suggest a taxi since you won%26#39;t know the area.

What to do in Queens?

The PanAm on Queens Boulevard is within walking distance of two rather large malls both also on Queens Blvd. The first mall has a Target Store, Daffy%26#39;s (clothing store), Best Buy (electronics), DSW (discount shoe store) and an Outback Steakhouse. The other mall called the Queens Center Mall is much bigger and it has a Macy%26#39;s, Banana Republic, JC Penny , GAP, Foot Locker, Bath %26amp; Body, Express, Club Monaco, Forever 21, H %26amp; M, Armani Exchange, Lane Bryant, Model%26#39;s, Swatch, Urban Outfitter and dozens of other small shops and eateries. Still further down Queens Boulevard is also another complex with a SEARS, Marshalls, and Old Navy among it%26#39;s anchor tenants. You could also take the Q60 bus whicvh runs along Queens Boulevard if you don%26#39;t like to walk.

You%26#39;ll be close to The Queens Center, a decent shopping mall, by NYC standards. It just expanded about a year ago.

http://www.shopqueenscenter.com/

If you go early in the day, how about a trip to the Panorama at the Queens Museum? (Closes at 5pm). Perhaps from the Pan Am Hotel, you can just get a taxi or have the hotel call a car service to take you to the museum? This is one of my favorite things about NYC, and a must for repeat visitors.

It is a scale model of NYC featuring every single building in the city. (As I like saying...Every. Single. Freakin%26#39;. Building.) Tiny airplanes fly out of the tiny La Guardia airport and the lights dim for nighttime views.

';The Panorama occupies 9,335 square feet. It includes miniature cars, boats and an airplane landing at and taking off from La Guardia Airport. There are more than 895,000 individual wooden or plastic buildings on the model; 25,000 were custom-made to approximate major landmarks such as skyscrapers, colleges, museums and major churches.';

Here are some pics:

queensmuseum.org/education/鈥ano-sum.html

Here%26#39;s what it looks like if you could stand in it:

www.queensmuseum.org/information/mission.htm

Re: dining/nightlfe

You%26#39;ll be equidistant between two small scale ';nightlife'; areas: Long Island City/Hunter%26#39;s Point and Forest Hills.

Forest Hills:

If you take the R or V train further INTO Queens, AWAY from Manhattan, the last stop is 71st Ave-Continental Ave - Forest Hills. (10 minutes) Stay in the middle/front of train. Exit the SOUTH side of Queens Boulevard. Walk one block AWAY from Queens Boulevard and you%26#39;ll be on Austin Street. This is ';the strip'; of Forest Hills.

This area was one of NYC%26#39;s very first upper class suburbs, so it has a mix of city and suburb feel to it. It%26#39;s also one of the highest-rent areas outside of Manhattan, so even though it%26#39;s Queens, prices are lower than Manhattan, but higher than they should be, IMHO.

It%26#39;s kinda downscale-upscale. E.g. there%26#39;s a restaurant called The Wine Gallery that%26#39;s been around since the 1970s, but all the wines are Concha y Toro, Yellowtail, Woodbridge, etc.

But, the highlights of Austin Street are:

The 5 Burro Cafe - a fun yet cramped Mexican Restaurant,

Rouge - a tasty French bistro, off Austin St on 70th Road.

Piu Bello Cafe - an Italian gelato/pastry/cappucino place, young crowd.

Austin Thai - delicious Thai at great prices (below ground).

The Irish Cottage - local pub that%26#39;s been around ';forever';.

I%26#39;m more familiar with F.H. since I grew up nearby and hung out a lot there as a teen.

Long Island City/Hutner%26#39;s Point:

This is one of NYC%26#39;s latest and newest hot neighborhoods. It is a mostly working class and industiral area with ex-factories and storage buildlings where restaurants, bars and performance art troupes are popping up like mushrooms on a wet day!

A couple ways to get there:

Take the V train TOWARDS Manhattan - but DON%26#39;T GO INTO Manhattan. Get out right before at 23rd ST-Ely Ave.

Or take the R or V TOWARDS Manhattan to Roosevelt-Avenue-Jackson Heights. Switch upstairs for the #7 train. Take it TOWARDS Manhattan - but DON%26#39;T GO INTO Manhattan. Get out right before at Vernon Boulevard-Jackon Avenue station.

Sorry I can%26#39;t give exact walking directions, but the idea is to get to Jackson Avenue. There is a small growing strip there of restaurants and bars. There%26#39;s a nice Thai restaurant called Tuk-Tuk, and a couple of Italian places (can%26#39;t remember names.)

You can walk to the water to get GREAT views of the Manhattan skyline!! You%26#39;ll see people walking dogs, teens skateboarding, etc, so mellow but not dangerous.

You%26#39;ll find more specifics at these websites:

http://www.licnyc.com/

鈥bout.com/od/longislandcity/Long_Island_Cit鈥?/a>

鈥bout.com/od/鈥unters_point.htm

In addition to those areas, and the food-fest of Jackson Heights, you can also try Astoria, but it%26#39;s a pain to get to, intra-Queens.

Astoria has lots of Greek cafes and restaurants, and busy streetlife.

Thanks for the tips so far...what about a bar and/or lounge that is nearby the Pan American to go to on Friday evening?

Are you guys big beer people..? Astoria has the Beer Garden, which is like one of those old time beer temples, with long tables and such. (Kinda like in National Lampoon%26#39;s European Vacation.)

In the springtime it%26#39;s wildly popular because it%26#39;s outdoors, particularly on a friday evening. Even though I%26#39;m not particularly into beer, I have been known to throw back a pitcher or two when there. It%26#39;s quite fun.

You can cross Queens Boulevard and walk down the street a little to the left of the hotel to Albion Avenue. Just set off the street off QB is the enormous Chinese restaurant, East Manor (79-17 Albion Ave, eastusa.com/). You can have lunch there (all you can eat dim sum is a big local favorite). It is an gigundo size place with an interior waterfall, quite spectacular.

For dinner and Friday night action, you could go to a place that is just a year old a block or two away from the hotel, Nuves (nuvesnyc.com/). It is the most ';Manhattan'; style place in the area. It serves tapas and has a lively crowd on Friday and Saturday nights.

For a beer and sports on TV, Bill%26#39;s Post Time, 86-34 Broadway.

We are defintely ';beer'; people. Just want somewhere fun to spend some time in the evening, maybe with some music...live, preferably. Not into dancing or anything, the more laid-back the better.

Here is the website for the Beer Garden...

http://www.bohemianhall.com

It%26#39;s extremely laid back, basically it%26#39;s a bunch of people drinking beer by the keg, and then in the summer time they fire up a grill and serve Burgers, Hot Dogs, French Fries, etc. It fills up very quick after work hours on Fridays during the warm weather months.

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