Public to Private

The Queens Health Network apparently didn't want to spend the extra money for an awning long enough to completely cover up the former identity of this Corona building. On the side, it's still clear as day that it was a branch of the NYC Department of Health. The wonderful bold lettering lends a certain amount of style to what is otherwise of boring brick building.

Getting Specific

No mistaking where this coffee shop is. Pretty heavy name for a hole in the wall joint. Is "Inc." really necessary? Imagine saying to the missus, "I'm headed over to the Queen Coffee Shop of Corona."

Nightime Bocce Ball

Bocce ball has all but died in Carroll Gardens, where I used to regularly see old Italian guys play the game in Carroll Park on the weekends. But it remains alive in the sliver of Corona that remains heavily Italian—that tight section anchored by the Lemon Ice King of Corona and the Parkside Restaurant. This well-lit, well-attended nighttime scene took place at around 10 PM on a Wednesday night. The players and crowd didn't show any signs of going home soon.

A Good Sign: 108th Street Lumber

In Corona. This corner business made good use of its wall space, and rendered an potentially ugly cinder-block wall something attractive.

The Lemon Ice King of Corona

The business with the coolest name in New York must be the Lemon Ice King of Corona.

This corner stand (they hand out the ice, you can't go in) has been on a fixture in Corona since 1944. It was founded by the Benfaremo family, and that clan still owns it. The farm-to-table and craft cocktail movements have got nothing on this joint. The Benfaremos have been squeezing fresh lemons and using fresh fruit since forever.

Lemon is obviously king here; I personally see no reason to order any other flavor, it's so good. But, just in case, the King offers dozens of other types of ice, in small, medium, large or super sizes. Don't be a wuss and ask for a spoon. And DON'T ask them to mix ices! Don't you see the sign?! (What an ice "exchange" is, I don't want to know.)

Their lemon ice is without a doubt the best I've ever had. The prices are cheap and the counter boys are very friendly, like lads you'd find at a summer-only ice cream stand in rural Iowa. And few businesses in New York City have given me as strong a feeling of what living in New York must have been like 50 years ago than this place. It's a beacon of good feeling and community.

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Corona, Kingdom of Neon Cows

Leo's Lattacini, or rather, Mama's (confusing awning), is part of a mini empire of Italian businesses along one block of 104th Street in Corona. There's a bakery, a ravioli store, and this, the lattacini. It's 80 years old, though it doesn't look it, and, being so close to Shea Stadium, there are all kinds of Mets stuff in the window displays.

There are also neon cows, which I love. Three in number, representing Salsiccia (sausage, which can also come from a cow, I guess, though most is pig-derived), Ricotta and just plain Lattacini.

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Queens Temple Goes to a Vote Feb. 12

Feb. 12, next Tuesday, will be judgment day for Congregation Tifereth Isreal, a temple at 109-20 54TH Avenue, Queens. The synagogue had its case for preservation heard on Jan. 15, and next week the Landmarks Commission will vote on its candidancy.

If it passes muster, Tifereth Isreal will be the first Queens landmark to be so honored. As previously noted, it was built in 1911 in Corona, and it very much resembles the kind of synagogues one finds on the Lower East Side. It serves about 50 Bukharian Jewish families. It's already on the National and New York State Register of Historic Places.

Speaking of which, when is the Landmarks Commission going to list the items on the agenda at its upcoming Feb. 12 meeting? It's only 8 days away, boys.