Restaurant Row Proposal for Vacant Elmhurst Lot Sparks Controversy
Plans to build three chain restaurants on a 100,000-square-foot parcel of land next door to the Queens Center Mall in Elmhurst aren’t making everyone happy. DNAinfo reports that Council Member Daniel Dromm is speaking out against the project, dubbed Queens Way Plaza, due to the lack of involvement with community officials. Community Board Four also…
Plans to build three chain restaurants on a 100,000-square-foot parcel of land next door to the Queens Center Mall in Elmhurst aren’t making everyone happy. DNAinfo reports that Council Member Daniel Dromm is speaking out against the project, dubbed Queens Way Plaza, due to the lack of involvement with community officials. Community Board Four also believes that the developers, The Mattone Group, handled the details “in secret.” The Mattone Group previously planned to build a large movie theater complex at this site but never found an operator. Plans for a restaurant row emerged two years ago and the Mattone Group expects to open an Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and a Joe’s Crab Shack here this summer. While the project did receive Community Board approval, it hasn’t received extensive community vetting.
According to DNAinfo, the Borough President’s office will hold a meeting for the developers, Council Member Dromm and the Community Board to address the Council Member’s concerns.
Tensions Boil Over About Plans to Build ‘Restaurant Row’ Near Mall [DNAinfo]
Three Chain Restaurants Coming to Vacant Lot Across from Queens Center Mall [Q’Stoner]
I think many people can agree that Fridays serves mediocre food but despite that, it is always packed.
Just because a restaurant is packed doesn’t mean it automatically serves good food. I wish FHGuy didn’t get so offended every time someone offers up some criticism of anything Forest Hills related.
In any case, anyone have any opinion on Jack and Nellie’s? Worth the price?
Kat, I’m not offended at all by anyone’s criticism of restaurants or other businesses in Forest Hills. I don’t see how you came to this conclusion. All I did was to give my opinion about several independent restaurants in Forest Hills that I think have great food. And then when some here replied with statements that were factually incorrect, I simply pointed out that such statements were incorrect. If someone here says something that is ridiculous (e.g., there their opinion is the same as “common knowledge” or that Fridays is the only restaurant in Forest Hills that is packed on the weekends), I’m going to point out that I think their statements are ridiculous.
FHGuy I must say that you are always defensive about any negative remarks made about Forest Hills. It’s almost funny how predictable you are when it comes to this. Everyone is entitled to voice their opinion without you criticizing them. It could be they are right and you are wrong about restaurant reviews for example, lol.
As a almost lifelong Forest Hillian I can tell you that 90% of the restaurants here past and present stink! And by stink I mean the food served is generally not very good. But here is a reason no one else has yet pointed out: the rent is too damn high!! The rents the landlords in Forest Hills command for restaurant space is so damn high, it forces the proprietors to overcharge for subpar quality food. Not being able to pay top notch salaries for gourmet chefs causes mediocre meals to be served. This situation will never change until rents are lowered, which they won’t be. That’s why you may as well as eat in a chain like Fridays, they may not be that good but at least the constant business means there is turnover and no stale food that will cause you to get sick. And it’s probably the cheapest of the sit down restaurants to boot.
Of course everyone is entitled to voice their opinion. I never said people don’t have a right to state their opinion. But when someone says that his/her opinion is representative of everyone in Forest Hills or that his/her opinion is the same as “common knowledge”, I am also entitled to disagree with their statement.
While you don’t like 90% of the restaurants in Forest Hills, there are obviously many, many Forest Hills residents who disagree with you. That is why all of the restaurants I mentioned are packed every weekend. And yes, if a restaurant is packed with people, it usually means that the restaurant serves good food. Most people don’t keep going back to a place that serves mediocre food. And as I said before, I’ve never seen a mediocre restaurant become so successful that they’ve had to double their space–which is what has recently happened with Tuscan Hills and Bareburger.
A packed restaurant is usually a sign it serves good food, yes. Not rocket science. Another sign is if you go there and eat and think the food is good, which describes Banter and Tuscan Hills and several other new restaurants in Forest Hills. People seem to really like Jack & Nellie’s in answer to your question.
A packed restaurant does not guarantee great tasting food. Most chain restaurants are packed because they offer value and consistency, upon which people come to rely on. In. Forest Hills, yes, both Fridays and McDonalds are both always packed because they both offer tasty, cheap food, not because they are gourmet. Now, the rather recently opened Chipotle is also pretty packed for the same reasons.
With that said, there are NO gourmet restaurants in Forest Hills. Most people who live in FH travel outside of the area for upscale dining. Since the major drag where all the restaurants are on in FH are adjacent to so many subway lines, a lot of the patrons who are dining in these restaurants are not even from FH. I do agree that a great deal of local residents do not eat in their own area. A lot of this also has to do with the many immigrants who live in FH, and prefer to travel to areas where they can find their own authentic ethnicity food.
And those needs would be…?
Me, I only go to Olive Garden when I can’t get a reservation at Le Bernardin or Momofuku Ko, as my sophisticated ways demand.
These restaurants seem about right for the area. What, do you expect Michelin stars and four-star Times reviews?
It’s better than a vacant lot, anyway. I’m not sure what would be gained by “extensive community vetting” or why a council member would speak against it, other than perhaps he didn’t get his kickback?
FHGirl, you obviously don’t know the difference between your own opinion and “common knowledge”. Just because you don’t like any of the restaurants in Forest Hills, that doesn’t mean your opinion is representative of everyone who lives in Forest Hills (or even a majority of FH residents).
And your statement that Fridays is the only restaurant in FH that is packed on the weekends is ridiculous. If you really believe this, it’s obvious that you haven’t been to any of the restaurants that I mentioned recently on the weekend. All of the places I mentioned are packed with people every weekend. These places are all extremely popular and successful because they have great food. Two of them (Tuscan Hills and Bareburger) have been so successful that they both recently expanded by taking over the stores next door and doubling their square footage. I’ve never seen a “mediocre” place become so successful that they needed to double their space.