Corona Food and Culture Walking Tour

Corona is the culinary epicenter of New York’s Latin American community, a place where you can find regional specialties ranging all the way from the Tierra del Fuego up to Mexico’s northern border with the United States. On this tour of Corona’s culinary essentials, we hit the streets on a Saturday, when the griddles and grills in this already lively neighborhood are working overtime and the street vendors come out in full force.
Starting at Corona Plaza, we will drop by a family-run Mexican bakery for sweet breakfast pastries. From there, we’ll continue to an out-of-the-way spot where we’ll sit down with neighborhood families to enjoy a hearty Mexican-style brunch of pit-roasted goat.
We will continue along Roosevelt Avenue, stopping by street vendors, an Argentinean bakery and make a stop for a “cholado". We’ll end our day at a small bodega. This last stop leaves us at the edge of Jackson Heights and Elmhurst, having tried what makes Queens such a culinary Promised Land.

Meeting Point

Corona Plaza

40-04 National St, Queens, NY 11368, USA

The meeting point is in front of the Walgreen’s in Corona Plaza, 10314 Roosevelt Ave, Corona, NY 11368 (between 104 St. and National St.). It is right outside of the 103 St. - Corona Plaza station of the South Exit of the 7 train.

What to expect:

Duration: 4 hours

Corona

Corona, New York

We’ll start our day in pedestrian-only Corona Plaza, the neighborhood’s bustling meeting place, and drop by a family-run Mexican bakery where we’ll join the weekend ritual of picking out sweet breakfast pastries and rolls from large trays set out for the customers. From there, we’ll continue to an out-of-the-way spot where we’ll sit down with neighborhood families to enjoy a hearty Mexican-style brunch of pit-roasted goat.

2 hours

Jackson Heights

Jackson Heights, New York

Our food tour in Queens continues along Roosevelt Avenue, which on the weekends is lined with street vendors from throughout Latin America. To satisfy our sweet tooth, we’ll drop into an Argentinean corner bakery for some traditional treats and make a stop for a “cholado,” a hybrid frozen dessert and fruit salad also known as the Colombian Snow Cone.
We’ll end our day at a small bodega opened by a man from Veracruz, Mexico, going inside for a celebratory (shrimp) cocktail. This last stop leaves us at the edge of Jackson Heights and Elmhurst, two immigrant neighborhoods that hold their own culinary riches (and which are further explored as part of our longer Queens walk), a tantalizing reminder that during this half-day we’ve only scratched the surface of what makes Queens such a culinary Promised Land.

2 hours