Photo: QueensPost
Oct. 23, 2014 By Christian Murray
An Italian restaurant will be opening in Sunnyside—at the very location where the New Post Coffee Shop was located for 50 years.
One of the two new owners is a Sunnyside resident who lives on the same block as the 40th Street/Queens Blvd restaurant. He is from Milan and has recently sold an Italian restaurant that he owned in Spain in order to focus on this restaurant. His business partner is from Puglia who manages an Italian restaurant in Manhattan.
The owners signed the lease Tuesday and plan to spend in excess of $200,000 on gutting the premises—from floor to ceiling—and rebuilding it. The establishment will have a new kitchen, floors, walls and bathroom. It will also come with a coffee station, pastry counter as well as a bar.
Construction is expected to take 3 months. The owners, who have yet to come up with a name for the establishment, are hoping to open the restaurant by February.
The owners also plan to provide outdoor seating on the 40th Street side of the property. The goal is to have it ready by summer 2015.
The Sunnyside owner, Valerio, who elected not to provide his last name since he is working at an Italian restaurant at present, said he wants to change people’s mentality of the location.”People know this place as dirty and I want to change that,” he said.
New Post had been closed by the Health Department several times in recent years.
The Italian restaurant will primarily be a café in the morning, offering coffee and pastries. It will sell items such as paninis, pastas and salads for lunch.
The dinner menu will be comprised of traditional meat, fish and pasta dishes, Valerio said. However, he said he is working on the finer details.
Valerio has lived in Sunnyside with his wife for the past 10 years—although he has spent most of his summers at his former restaurant in Spain. The 34-year-old has been in the US for 12 years.
Valerio said he wants to focus on Sunnyside. He has a 7-year-daughter who attends PS 150 and a 3-year-old daughter who will be going there soon.
“I love Sunnyside, the people make this such a great neighborhood,” he said.
He said the restaurant will be good for neighborhood. “It will improve how the corner looks and will offer great food.”
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37 Comments
This is great to hear. I was very fearful it would be yet another faceless corporate chain.
Good luck to the owners: If you build it we will come!
It is nice to see new businesses opening in Sunnyside and Woodside. I hope the new restaurant is successful. I remember when they were building Bella Via in Long Island City. They were having a little difficulty attracting customers. Then Valentine’s Day happened and people decided to try it and it took off They still have great pizza.
I hope this place has the same good food and the same success.
Overrated? When was Sunnyside ever known for its pizza?
Guilia’s pizza was some of the best pizza I’ve ever ate. The location was on queens Blvd & 42 street where coffee bean is located.
Sal’s on 44th and Greenpoint had some of the best pizza in the city.
Excellent. Glad that filthy disgusting coffee shop is being replaced with something good. Sunnyside Pizza is overrated!
Yep, love diner food, especially breakfast. Pete’s Grill and Skillman Pizza have great home fries and serve breakfast all day. Sometimes, that’s just what I want.
… Best of luck. Needed in area. Daisy’s ….whooooo So out dated!!!!
Great. Sunnyside now has it’s own Little Italy with Dazies, Sunnyside Pizza and this new place all within visual distance of each other. meanwhile, there isn’t a slice to be found near 48th Street. I ask you, is this proper community planning? At least it’s not a national chain.
Watch how long it takes before this place opens and runs out of money because of this city buildings department. And watch the scum bag landlord get richer because of it. GUARANTEE YOU!!!
Buona fortuna
Excellent news! A restaurant that is neither a chain nor a grease pit serving Frankenfood. It’s about time that corner gets a place that knows how to make Italian coffees. They will do well.
I’m very excited that the West side of Queens Blvd is being spruced up. Looking forward to this new venue.
Oh oh……….look out Dazies!,
It looks like Sunnyside, Queens is slowly getting a European makeover, and that’s a good thing. Thank god the place that used to be New Post Coffee Shop is not becoming a fast food chain.
Phew , I was sure it was going to be a Subway.
HAHAH proof that people just want to dislike my comments because they are ASShats on my nut sack.
You sound like an ASShat,that’s why your comments are disliked
Sounds great!
when they are ready to announce it, could we get a bit more info about the restaurants where these guys work in manhattan or the place in spain? would be nice to get a better indication of what is coming here. i fear its not a good sign that they don’t want their names printed, don’t have a name for the restaurant. february ’15 is around the corner and it feels like they don’t have their act together. i could be wrong, i hope i am. this is an important corner and i hope this place succeeds.
Maybe they don’t want to reveal to much information yet. With all the negativity on this board its no wonder why they want to hold back until they are ready. I would too
Woohoo! Brick oven “real” pizza is needed here too!
Best of luck!! I can’t wait to try it.
I’m just relieved it’s not another national chain franchise moving in.
My next birthday is in February. I wonder if I could go here to have a nice dinner? Anyway, I agree with that other guy who said “I look forward to some authentic Italian foods!” That Italian omelette from Pete’s sounds good, but I always think about how it doesn’t even seem like real Italian food to me. It will be nice have a place to go instead of Sunnyside Pizza because they are always keep talking about the Mets in that place.
Hi Ryan!!
Ah perfectoooo
Great news! I look look forward to eating there. I love diner food but The Post was too grubby for me.
You love Diner food? Really?
This is great! As an Italian living in Sunnyside, I look forward to some authentic Italian food!
Sounds great! We need more Italian restaurants in Sunnyside. Looking forward to February.
Malan? Really?
Excuse the typo. It has been corrected.
We desperately need good take out coffee in the neighborhood – Baruir is burnt and Bene is like water. I really hope he pays attention to making a good cup in the morning.
Try White Cake Bakery on 43rd Ave. They have fresh roasted beans from a local roaster.
Great coffee is served at any of the Colombian bakeries in the ‘hood. Some are better than others but they easily trump any of the current coffee establishments in the area.
Looking forward to the paninis and salads for lunch! Best of luck!