Around The World in Seven Days, Part I: A Week in Astoria

My companion and I haven't lived in Astoria for very long, but we've already eaten our way around the globe! Here are some preliminary impressions, organized by country. (Of course, our journey is not over; there are many countries left to visit!)

1. Afghanistan: Balkh Shish Kabab House. The fried scallion turnovers (bolanee gandana) at Balkh will neutralize any craving for those leaden scallion pancakes found at Chinese restaurants. But my companion was disappointed in the tough lamb kebab; the salmon was much better. The rice was nondescript but the basket of thick, dense bread was satisfying. (23-10 31st St., 718-721-5020.)

2. Colombia: Botero's Cafe. The walls of this small cafe are decorated with prints of the painter's famous Rubenesque muses. After spending a little time here, I might become a muse myself. Arepas, or grilled corn pancakes, are served with melted tropical cheese, or avocados and shrimp, or "ahogado" (drowned in sauce), and the tostones are perfectly fried. (45-01 Ditmars Blvd., I can't find the number!)

3. Greece: Taverna Kyclades (also, see Elias Corner). An appetizer at Kyclades is enough for around 47 people (I'm exaggerating, but you get the drift). The fried calamari, the skordalia, and the grilled salmon steak are enough to send me over the moon, and I think I've never eaten better fried fish. (33-07 Ditmars Blvd., 718-545-8666.)

4. Italy: Michael Angelo's II Pizzeria & Restaurant (also, see Trattoria L'Incontro). I like my pizza with a thin crust, so someone recommended that I order the "Sofia Loren" pie. It was loaded with pools of melted fresh mozzarella and sliced fresh tomatoes, I only wish I'd eaten it in-house instead of having it delivered, because I think the crisp crust got a little steamed inside the pizza box. (29-11 23rd Ave., 718-932-2096).

5. Japan: Linn Restaurant. What a pleasant surprise: sparkling sushi on Broadway! It's certainly not cheap, but if you're craving Alaskan salmon roe, Japanese striped yellowtail, or even something like a fried oyster roll with wasabi mayo, you've got it all right here. A wall has been erected inside to obscure the C-Town across the street and to show Japanese movies. (29-13 Broadway, 718-204-0060.)

6. Morocco (well, Moroccan-influenced): Cafe Soleil. Every neighborhood should have one of these cozy hangouts with mismatched chairs and free Wi-Fi. Authentic Moroccan mint tea is served from beautiful silver teapots, and did I detect a bit of harissa in the potato pancake that came with my "classic French" omelette? (37-14 Astoria Blvd., 718-777-1015.)

7. Thailand: WAVEThai. I'm not going to enter the fray that is the apparent rivalry between WAVEThai and Thai Elephant, but suffice it to say that WAVEThai's "street noodles" (pad see ew) are addictive. You can order them with chicken or veggie chicken, beef, roast duck or veggie duck, squid, shrimp, tofu, scallop, or mixed seafood. The vegetarian duck's texture is meaty, chewy and substantial instead of thin and flimsy. Curries are nice and spicy. (21-37 31st St., 718-777-6789.)

Elias Corner

My companion and finally heeded the siren call of Astoria and all of its culinary riches - we moved there. I spent the past few days stocking up the fridge with taramosalata and tzatziki from Mediterranean Foods (23-18 31st St., 718-721-0221), skordalia from Angelo's Food Emporium (31-27 Ditmars Blvd., 718-278-0705), and still-warm, freshly made mozzarella from Rosario's Deli (22-55 31st St., 718-728-2920). Then, it was time to celebrate our move in an appropriately bacchanalian way; we headed over to the legendary Elias Corner.

Were it not for the elevated train, one would think this was a seaside restaurant. A display of glistening fish and shellfish is the focal point of the entrance, and the dining room is painted a nautical blue. We sat down to a giant loaf of sesame bread and a plate of olive oil, and listened to our waitress rattle off the menu (there is no printed menu). Did we want jumbo shrimp, porgy, red snapper, Chilean sea bass, striped sea bass, branzini, wild salmon, soft-shell crabs? Grilled or fried? Oh, and appetizers? Saganaki, fried calamari, Greek salad? How about sides? Fried potatoes, broccoli, lemon potatoes...

To start, we ordered the saganaki, a large brick of slightly melted, firm cheese enveloped in a thin, crispy crust. We liberally squeezed it with lemon and soon there was none left. We also devoured a tomato-heavy Greek salad, which was sprinkled with plenty of feta. Then it was time for the main event: the fish.

"I think this is the best fish I've ever had," said my companion. digging into an herb-sprinkled Chilean sea bass steak. Wordlessly, I agreed, my mouth full of sweet, mild branzini (I'd ordered it whole so I could enjoy the grilled skin). There was no way we could even attempt to eat the lemon potatoes in their bath of warm olive oil, and we had to have them wrapped up.

Sighing with satisfaction, we paid the check - and then walked over to Artopolis Bakery (but that's a subject for another post).

Elias Corner: 24-02 31st St., Astoria, (718) 932-1510.

Barbounia

"How on earth did they get this octopus so tender?" I marveled. "It's blanched three times and then fire-grilled," said our waiter. The charred octopus appetizer, which also featured crunchy crystallized lemon zest, yellow grape tomatoes and fava beans, was the highlight of my meal at Barbounia.

I'd originally intended to try the restaurant's namesake appetizer (crispy barbounia), but due to weather conditions, the shipments of the little mullet had not arrived. So, in addition to the octopus, my companion and I ordered a picnic of starters: a board of sweet Italian salami with a tin of cornichons, and the trio of cheeses: olive-oil drizzled Parmesan and Taleggio with a terrine of pesto-topped ricotta. Oval cherry toasts, a branch of red grapes and some fig chutney accompanied the cheese. I wanted to order another serving and bring it to Central Park!

While we enjoyed the cheese, we sipped Abando Crianza, one of the excellent selections from the 20-page wine menu. (There was a rather long wait for the entree as the restaurant became increasingly full.) We shared the grilled dourade, which was crispy-skinned and redolent of thyme. Our sides were the herbed sunchokes and the creamy mascarpone polenta (yes, it's as good as it sounds).

Even though the cheese board was so dessertlike, we still ordered the special Moroccan chocolate pudding. This chocolate-cinnamon mousse was so dense that I could've eaten it with a knife and fork! It was topped with a healthy layer of whipped cream and served with churros. The fried donuts were not crunchy at all, but feather-light.

Barbounia: 250 Park Ave. South, (212) 995-0242.

Estiatorio Milos

I know there are much less expensive places to get a great piece of fish, but I've had a soft spot for Milos ever since I first visited about 7 years ago. Maybe it's the open-air market atmosphere... the diner can actually choose a clear-eyed fish right off of its bed of ice. Or maybe it's the loftlike, airy room festooned with parasols. More likely, it's the loukoumades. (More about that later.)

On Friday night, Milos was as packed as if it had just opened last week. Fortunately, my early reservation enabled my mother and I to sit at a lovely corner table.

We started with the Milos Special: a plate of potato-chip-thin fried eggplant and zucchini accented with four chunks of tangy saganaki (tangy melted sheep's milk cheese inside a golden crust).

The entree decision was more difficult than we'd anticipated. Naturally, we wanted whole fish, but there were at least 20 different kinds to choose from. Milos's fish menu is divided into North American and European varieties, and the flavor of each is described in detail. Some fish are only available for two diners to share. (By the way, for those "non-afishanados" among you, there's also a 26-oz. ribeye on the menu.)

I convinced my mother to forgo the Dover sole in favor of the loup de mer ("Europe's most sought-after fish," according to the menu). A whole fish for two and a side of potatoes may sound like a deceptively simple meal, but at Milos it is an explosion of flavor. The olive-oil-bathed potatoes, interspersed with a few sweet cherry tomatoes, were fragrant with garlic, scallions and red onions. The firm-fleshed white loup de mer was downright extraordinary in a light lemon-caper sauce, the meat sweet and the skin toothsomely crispy. I could easily go on the Mediterranean diet if I ate at Milos every day!

Of course, we did indulge in a decadent dessert. The aforementioned loukoumades, hot walnut-sprinkled dough fritters in a thyme-honey-cinnamon syrup, were garnished with a bit of mint. "Take them home so I don't eat any more of them!" pleaded my mother.

Estiatorio Milos: 125 West 55th St., (212) 245-7400.

Titan Foods

I now understand how the Titans earned their appellation; they probably lived on a luscious diet of deep-fried, honey-drenched pastries! I ballooned up to my own titanic proportions visiting Domna's Bakery at Titan Foods, a Greek supermarket in Astoria.

My shopping bags almost broke with the sheer weight of everything I had purchased. At Domna’s, I had loaded up on touloubakia, striated cylinders of sweet fried dough, and assorted soropiasta, delicious packages of filo wrapped around coconut, pistachio, and walnut fillings. I had also bought many jars of preserved fruit (kumquats, rose petals, candied citron, figs with cloves, sour cherries) to mix with creamy strained yogurt. There were bags of rusks, Greek cheeses, bottles of olive oil, some Cretan thyme honey, and a box of loucoumi souzouki, a jelled candy rolled in sesame seeds with walnuts inside. Grape leaves and quince paste completed my shopping list. Oh, and I forgot to mention the wonderful spinach feta pie.

Titan Foods: 25-56 31st St., Queens, (718) 626-7771.

Uncle George's

There were families milling about the front entrance, but only five minutes went by before we were seated. Our eyes passed over the rows of whole chickens roasting on a rotisserie. My partner remarked on the crowded room and the plain decor, feeling that Uncle George's must be serious about good Greek food.

We were not disappointed. I began with the poikilia, an assortment of popular Greek dips: tzatziki (yogurt cucumber with a nice kick of garlic), taramosalata (carp roe), and skordalia (very garlicky mashed potato). My partner ordered a Greek salad topped with a big white block of feta and scrumptious kalamata olives.

They were out of the smelts so I ordered the baby smelts; tiny flavorful whole fish fried in a light batter. My partner ordered more conservatively but was satisfied with his tender filet of sole. Other fish on the menu include porgy, pink snapper, and red mullet. Our only gripe with Uncle George's is that no coffee is served. But we truly ate enough to say "uncle"!

Uncle George's: 33-19 Broadway, Astoria. (718) 626-0593.