April 2, 2015 By Michael Florio
A Turkish immigrant has opened a Mediterranean restaurant right next to the Ditmars Blvd subway station.
Truva Café & Grill, located at 22-41 31st Street, offers traditional Greek and Turkish fare—from gyros to lamb chops.
The owner Rahyi Aydin said that Truva is his first restaurant. He said that he has plenty of experience as a chef–having worked in restaurants in Turkey as well as in New York. His last employer was Deniz, a restaurant located in Brooklyn.
Aydin said that he was instantly drawn to Astoria when he decided to open a restaurant. He checked out 30th Ave, Broadway and Ditmars Blvd, before finding his 31st Street location.
“There are no Mediterranean options here,” he said, referring to the Ditmars Blvd area.
Aydin immigrated to the United States 11 years ago. He spent two of those years living in Astoria.
“I’m very familiar with the neighborhood,” he said. “I saw a need for Mediterranean food and wanted to fill the void.”
He said that there was no great buzz about his restaurant prior to its opening. However, people are now coming inside and checking it out, he added.
“A lot of Greek and European people live in the community and will enjoy it,” he said. “We just want to offer another option to people.”
The menu includes gyros, kebabs, falafels, lamb saute, lamb chops, pasta, salads, soup, wraps, Turkish-style pizza and sandwiches.
The restaurant can seat more than 40 people and is open from 8 am to 1 am, seven days a week. It also offers free delivery from 11 am to midnight.
For deliveries, customers can call at 718-932-6400.
