The Many Museums of LIC
What this foodstroll is
Our guide to the museums and parks of Long Island City, and the best Brazilian food in Queens.
Why this foodstroll works
Long Island City, a once thriving industrial center turned wasteland in the 1950s, is now one of NYC’s fastest growing neighborhoods. Along with that growth, the product of a 2001 commercial and residential rezoning, has come the construction of two NYC ferry terminals, a multitude of bike paths, and the upgrade of several cultural institutions and parks. Amidst all the action, straddling the border between LIC and Astoria, is a small Brazilian enclave where you’ll find some of the best food in Queens. Everything is nearby and connected via Vernon Boulevard, and in theory you could ride the NYC Ferry, visit multiple museums, eat Brazilian food, and bike all afternoon long in a single day. But if you do only a few of these things, a visit to the area still makes for a great NYC day trip.
Strolling
LIC and Astoria are relatively large neighborhoods and the ideal way to explore them is by bike. There are excellent bike paths throughout the neighborhood and bike racks for locking up on every block. If on foot, you’ll probably want to Uber/Lyft from place to place.
Our favorite mode of transportation to LIC and Astoria is the NYC Ferry. Connections from ferry to ferry are free, and there are ferry terminals throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. LIC is on the NYC Ferry Astoria route or the East River Route. Fares are $2.75, or $3.75 with a bike. Young kids are free.
The LIC waterfront, including the massive new Gantry Plaza State Park and Hunters Point South Extension, are beautiful places to spend some time. Unobstructed views of Midtown, including the UN, Chrysler Building, and Empire State Building are all around. The bike path along Vernon Boulevard starts here and goes north all the way to Astoria.
The Museum of the Moving Image is a Queens family favorite. Appropriately situated next door to Kaufman Astoria Studios, the former Paramount Pictures Studio in NYC, where dozens of notable film productions have occurred over the years. A massive expansion was completed in 2011, and they currently host several screenings daily during their Fri-Sun hours.
They always have interesting artifacts, like facial prosthetics from Star Wars and The Mask. Other exhibits change regularly. Currently they have a huge area dedicated to the life and work of Jim Henson, and an entire floor on the production of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Queensbridge Park beneath the 59th Street/Queensboro Bridge (1909) is a lesser known but spectacularly beautiful green space just blocks away from the food spots and along the Vernon Boulevard bike path. It’s worth a detour if you have the time.
The Noguchi Museum opened in 1985, and received several renovations throughout the 2000s. The entire building is dedicated to preserving the work of Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi. We are far from sculpture aficionados, but the works on display are pretty amazing. Our kids are really into it, but to be clear, you are not allowed to sit on the sculptures.
If you make it to Noguchi with time to spare, check out the former Sohmer & Co. Piano Factory Building two blocks north on Vernon Blvd. The German Romanesque Revival Style building (1886) is one of the few remaining 19th century industrial structures in Queen’s, and a vestige of Gilded Age America. Piano consumption boomed from 1870-1910, when “civilized” young girls would play piano to entertain their family, prior to the advent of phonographs and radios.
If you need more reasons to visit Noguchi, the outdoor museum Socrates Sculpture Park is across the street. But if all you want is somewhere to park children for an hour, Rainey Park is also across the street, with a rock climbing wall, mini-mountain, and waterfront views of Manhattan. Both parks and the museum are right along the bike path.
MoMA PS1 is one of the only institutions in America dedicated solely to contemporary art. Affiliated with MoMA since 2000, it recently received some upgrades, like an indoor/outdoor restaurant and soundstage. It has rotating exhibits, and if overtly political art is your thing, you should definitely go inside. Our favorite part of the museum is its neo-classical building dating back to 1892, when it was LIC’s first and only school.
Don’t make the trip without visiting the tiny Hunters Point Historic District. The one block long stretch of row houses was constructed between 1870-1890, predominantly in the Italianate style. The district is reminiscent of a prosperous past, when the the Long Island Railroad terminus was moved from Brooklyn to LIC in the 1860s, and the neighborhood became the Queens County Seat. The railroad terminus still exists today, beneath the busy I-495 Expressway!
Food Spots
1. Beija Flor
Newark’s Ironbound district aside, Queens is the epicenter of Brazilian food in the NYC area, and Beija Flor is one of the best examples. It’s a top notch restaurant in Long Island City that hosts live music Fri-Sun after 6pm, and you won’t hear anything but Portuguese spoken inside, which is a good thing!
The Picanha à Palito is a starter at Beija Flor, but it could deservedly be a main. It consists of Picanha, Brazil’s famous cut of beef, alongside fried yucca.
Frango a Passarinho are deep fried chicken wings. Brazilians use garlic and lime instead of the American preparation of Frank’s Red Hot and butter, but the results are equally delicious.
Salgadinhos, like Pastel de Queijo (cheese), Pastel de Carne de Sol (cured beef), and Coxinha de Frango (chicken) are classic snacks. Our kids can never get enough.
Feijoada is a pork and beef stew typically eaten with collard greens, orange slices, and rice. Normally eaten on weekends for lunch, it’s Brazil’s national dish, and Beija Flor does it well.
Moqueca de Peixe is a famous Brazilian seafood stew made with coconut milk and palm oil. It’s served with Pirão, a traditional fish gravy thickened with manioc flour. This is our favorite thing on the menu.
2. Rio Market
Rio Market is the best Brazilian supermarket in NYC, and one of our favorite spots in Queens for lunch. The list of traditional products, like Pimenta Malagueta (Brazilian hot chilis), Azeite de Dendê (Brazilian palm oil), Pão de Queijo (cheese bread), and Catupiry (common in Brazilian pizza and coxinha), goes on and on. It also has a fabulous buffet.
The market sells everything from fresh Picanha and Chicken Hearts to imported frozen fish straight from the Amazon River. They even have a travel agency in the back where you can book flights to Rio or São Paulo, and a section full of Havaiana flip flops so you can travel prepared.
They have rotating “kilo”, or by the pound selections, and a grill serving Picanha, Skirt Steak, and Linguiça, Brazil’s version of chorizo. From the buffet, the Salpicão de frango, or Brazilian chicken salad, is a must try. They also sell tons of Salgadinhos like Coxinha de Frango and Pastel de Queijo.
Rio Market has an entire refrigerator full of treats like Brigadeiros (chocolate fudge balls) and Beijinhos (Brazilian coconut candy), perfect to take home and a great way to end a fun afternoon.
Transportation
Our favorite mode of transportation is the NYC Ferry. LIC is on the NYC Ferry Astoria route or the East River Route. Fares are $2.75, or $3.75 with a bike. Once you’re there, we recommend exploring by bike. Vernon Boulevard has an excellent bike path that runs from Gantry Plaza State Park all the way north to Astoria. You’ll be treated to waterfront views all along the way.
There are lots of subways that stop in LIC, including the 7, E, M, R, F, N, and W. Streetside parking in LIC and Astoria near the Brazilian places is fairly easy. Parking near Gantry Plaza State Park is more challenging.