Nov. 5, 2015 By Michael Florio
Cyclists will take a tour of world cuisines within the borough this weekend on a bike ride from Long Island City to Flushing.
The Queens Bike Initiative will host a food tour along the 7-train called Cycle the 7, this Saturday at 11:30 a.m. It will start at John Brown Smokehouse (10-43 44th Drive) in Long Island City.
Joe DiStefano, a Queens food expert who has been presenting food tours in the borough for the past five years, will host the event.
“These locations showcase the diverse and delicious items that one can sample along the 7-line,” he said.
The group plans to stop at Resobox, a coffee shop located at 41-26 27th St.
The tour will run through Sunnyside, stopping at Turkiyem Market at 46-31 Skillman Ave. It will then go on to Phil Am, a Filipino food market located at 70-02 Roosevelt Ave.
Attendees will then eat momos in Jackson Heights’ Diversity Plaza and may stop for Ecuadorian food at carts along Roosevelt Avenue in Corona, before ending the tour at New York Food Court in Flushing.
DiStefano said he decided to include momos, which are Tibetan dumplings, in Jackson Heights because of their wide appeal.
“One of my favorite neighborhoods is Jackson Heights,” he said. “The Tibetan and Himalayan food scene in the neighborhood is so vibrant.”
Cycle the 7 is the latest of the Queens Bike Initiative’s monthly rides. The group hosts these rides to emphasize the need for more bike lanes in western Queens, while showcasing the neighborhood to attendees.
Laura Newman, a Queens Bike Initiative member and co-founder of Make Queens Safer, came up with the idea of combining a bicycle ride and a food tour. She organized the event along with DiStefano and fellow Queens Bike Initiative member Cristina Furlong.
“People love food,” Newman said. “It should be a lot of fun for those who attend.”
The group is capping the number of participants for the food tour at 15, according to DiStefano. Tickets are still available online and cost $30.
Those interested in attending can purchase tickets online here.
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