Green for Queens Earth Day Fair

2nd Annual Green for Queens Community Earth Day Fair
FREE Environmental Festival for everyone!
Sunday, May 15 – 1-4 p.m.
At the Central Queens YM & YWHA
67-09 108 Street, Forest Hills, NY

For a pdf of the event's flyer: please click here!

Earth Friendly Fun For Kids:

• Wildlife Children’s Theater of the Central Park Zoo
• Big Apple “Circus to Go”
• Music and cooking for kids!
• Create an edible eco-system & eco-crafts.
• Learn about worm composting!
• Snakes & Worms & Other Wild Animals!

Green Vendors, Exhibits, and Talks for Adults:

• Sustainable Food: local & organic cheese & coffee tastings, vegetarian cooking demonstrations, and more!
• Bestselling Author Anna Lappe speaking on Diet for a Hot Planet at 3:00 p.m.
• (Babysitting available during Anna Lappe’s talk.)
• Learn how you can save energy, save $ & fight global warming!
• Recycle: cell phones, rechargeable batteries, clothes & shoes.
• Sign up for a FREE energy audit or for clean wind energy. (Bring one year of your gas & electric bills along)
• Learn about neighborhood organic food coops, community gardens, white roofs, bike paths, and green walls.
• Free reusable water bottles, shopping bags, and CFL light bulbs!

And for all: Delicious, healthy snacks!

Presented by Queens Green Alliance & the Central Queens YM & YWHA, with: Ahmadiyya Muslim Center, Bamboomoves, Beyond Oil NYC, Cub Pack 96 & Venture Crew 96, Church in the Gardens, Forest Hills CSA, Forest Hills Jewish Center, Glendale CSA, Green City Challenge, Hillcrest Jewish Center, Israel Center of Conservative Judaism, Marathon JCC, Queens Community for Cultural Judaism, Queens Harvest Food Coop, Queens Holistic Moms, Queens Jewish Center, Queens Jewish Community Council, Queens Mamas, Reform Temple of Forest Hills, Rego Park Green Alliance, Solomon Schechter School of Queens, Sustainable Forest Hills, Transportation Alternatives, Tuv Ha’Aretz CSA

More information: www.centralqueensy.org/EarthDay
Get involved! 718-268-5011, ext. 151, or pkurtz@cqyjcc.org

Hot Time!

Who said it could be summer in April anyway? I guess this fits though with the recent pattern - it seems like all the seasons now start about a month earlier than they used to. So I guess like last summer we can expect August (maybe even July the rate this summer is going) to be pretty mild and most of the heat in May and June. We shall see.

Oh, and a pleasant development that would make Jerry Seinfeld quite happy! The smell of mothballs in my building's hallways which almost had me moving last summer has suddenly today been replaced by the sweet smell of Russian Babka! Delighful!


For lunch today, it was a delectable salad from Energy Green again. The best one I've had so far! A little grilled chicken and very tasty ranch dressing made this one another winner!


By the way, out during lunch this afternoon I walked past the site of the soon-to-be Old Vienna Cafe and noticed several workmen inside remaking the space from its former La Terrazza incarnation. At the pace they were working, and the number of workmen there today, this place should be opening sooner rather than later.

Restaurant Revisits

I've returned to two of our neighborhood's new restaurants in the past several days to see how they are faring a few weeks after they opened:

- Agora Taverna: I ate here over the weekend, actually for the third time. This time I ordered the Greek Salad, the Branzini (grilled, whole fish) with a side order of lemon potatoes and a Greek coffee for dessert. This is the second time I have had the Greek Salad and the Branzini and really liked them once again. So I can report Agora is consistent when it comes to quality - both times these were excellent. The small Greek salad I ordered was actually large enough to have for a main course if I had ordered a little something else to go with it. All the ingredients are very fresh and there is a great blend of different flavors. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that I absolutely loved the lemon potatoes as a side dish. The other sides I have had at Agora - the rice and the Greek fries - were ok, but nothing to write home about. I really didn't think I had the appetite to eat the lemon potatoes but they were so good I ended up cleaning the plate. The Greek coffee, like the last time, was very good as well. The only issue I saw at Agora is that they have a tendency to rush the food a little bit. I ordered the Filet Mignon kabob last time and I had to return it to the kitchen to get it a little more well done. When it came back it was really good. My friend last night ordered the grilled salmon and when it first came out, the middle was pretty rare! When it came back again, he really enjoyed it. But come on guys, even I can cook a salmon! Agora, if you are reading this: I know you just opened and judging by the crowds, you have a lot of people waiting to try you out, but take things a little more slowly and make sure the dishes are cooked to order.
Revisit Grade: A

-Marianella's Taqueria: As I reported last week, this place was actually worse the second time I tried it. Not only did I notice at the counter crusty, old guacamole that apparently hadn't been touched or refreshed in hours, but the lettuce was also still looking old and brown, just like last time. They've had a few weeks to get the freshness issues right, but no progress on that front unfortunately. (By the way, why do they cover your plate with lettuce when you order tacos there? Sometimes restaurants do strange things. This is one of them. Did the manager instruct the workers: 'Oh, and when you give them their tacos, make sure you cover the plate in lettuce!' Uhhh, why?? Give me a salad, sure I might eat it. But a plate filled of dry, bland lettuce? Am I a cow? Am I supposed to graze on this?) The grilled chicken burrito I had this time actually had little if any flavor, and I even found a small bone in it to boot. Unfortunately, It seems I have set my last foot in Marianella's Taqueria. This is one of the bigger disappointments here in Forest Hills in a looong time. Because ever since Green Cactus closed up shop a few years ago on Restaurant Row (70th Road), I have really missed good Mexican takeout food here in Forest Hills!
Revisit Grade: D