BY MELISSA MOTT
The diversity of food in Flushing brings credibility to one of its many nicknames: “The Food Capital of Queens.”
According to Dian Yu, executive director of the Flushing Business Improvement District, the high population density area, especially downtown, is “definitely known for the food.”
“We have a new name,” he said, “food, fun and Flushing.”
Hungry diners — including celebrities and tourists from all over — travel far and wide to visit Flushing’s award-winning Joe’s Shanghai at 136-21 37th Avenue. The restaurant, with two other locations in the city, is widely recognized for its New York favorite, soup dumplings.
The downtown neighborhood also boasts a number of diverse and reasonably priced restaurants, Yu said, and Main Street is a hub of restaurants and shops.
Flushing also has the second biggest Chinatown throughout the boroughs, according to Yu.
“We have Chinese supermarkets, which have farmers’ markets and regular sections [full of] fresh produce, fish and Asian products,” he said. “It’s fun to shop in Flushing.”
However, there’s more to Flushing than unique food experiences, Yu said. The neighborhood offers a variety of stores to meet any shopper’s needs at very reasonable prices.
Shoppers can find Macy’s on Main Street, and only a short distance away — at 40-24 College Point Boulevard — Sky View Center stands as the newly built regional mall. The area’s largest mixed-use, multi-level shopping destination hosts stores such as Target, Old Navy and Bed Bath and Beyond.
“Not many people know it, but this is the place to be,” Yu said. “We’re the diamond in the rough. Not everyone knows how good we are, but the people who do won’t go anywhere else.”
