A Whole Lot Of
History &
Some Incredibly Good Food
Waterfront Crabhouse:
2-03 Borden Ave., Long Island City, 729-4862
Cuisine: Seafood specialities, and a
bit of whatever you like.
Hours: Mon. & Tues. noon-10
p.m.; Wed. & Thurs. noon-11 p.m.; Fri. noon-midnight; Sat. 1 p.m.-midnight; Sun. 1-10
p.m.
Credit: All major cards accepted.
Parking: Valet
If the Boston pub "Cheers" that
exists in T.V. land were to land in Queens, it would have an outstanding restaurant
attached to it and they would call it the Waterfront Crabhouse.
The Crabhouse is a place you go to eat,
because the food is wonderful, but just as importantly you go there to meet old friends,
movers and shakers of Queens that you haven’t seen in years, and a collection of
memorabilia that is literally hanging from the rafters (not to mention the walls) with all
things Queens history. It is the consequence of opening a restaurant in a building that
has been a social center for the borough for a hundred years.
Now operated by the ever-generous Anthony
Mazzarella and his ever gracious wife Tony, the Crabhouse began life in the late
1800s-early 1900s as a "favorite watering spot for New York’s theatrical,
political and sporting elite," as the building’s history will tell you. Check
for a copy resting just near the bathtub full of peanuts in the bar area. It’s by
Joanne Gerber and runs from the day’s of "Miller’s Hotel," through the
leadership of the colorful local mayor Patrick "Battle Ax" Gleason, and on
through the blow dealt to the place by Prohibition.
But in much more recent history, I took a
bunch of friends out for a dinner on me and good food that, week’s later, we are
still talking about.
The Mushrooms Stuffed with Crabcake from
the "Before Din Din" list ($6.95) has long been a favorite of mine, but I dared
to try the Escargo Dumplings In Scampi Sauce ($9.50) which was highly unusual and very
tasty little dumplings.
Among the specials of the day was the Stone
Crab Claws ($17.95), another first for me and delicious — but don’t be surprised
. . . they’re served cold.
One of my dining companions tried the
Waterfront Bouillabaisse Our Way and added a one pound lobster ($22.95) which lead to our
waiter producing a mountain of seafood including shrimps, scallops, mussells and clams,
and the most adorable little lobster cooked to perfection (they do mean it "their
way" . . . this bouillabaisse is a bit out of the ordinary, but delicious).
And I stuffed myself with another old
favorite . . . the Chicken Breast Stuffed with Shrimp and Crabcake ($13.95).
I don’t know how we had room for the
dessert, but we found room (American cheesecake, pecan pie, rice pudding) over friendly
conversation and time well spent ogling their wonderful collections.
– Tamara Hartman |
