NEIL ORANSOFF “Astoria has fabulous restaurants, wine shops, a terrific Greek supermarket—several of them. They make me to want to go in to get something delicious. It has great people and beautiful old houses going towards the water. It makes it a very special neighborhood.

By Rev. Austin H. Armitstead

"What is special about the Astoria community in western Queens?"

JOE MENDEZ “The thing that I like about Astoria is that “my princess” lived there. That’s what I like about it. I was a homeless person who came here from Oregon and I fell in love with Carol Ann, who is a singer and I married her.” DAVE SUMAIR “I grew up in Astoria and went to Bryant High School. I like the diversity of people from many different countries. A lot of older persons have remained because they love it here. That’s why Astoria remains good and strong!” EDGARDO SANTIAGO “I like Astoria—the people are nice and there’s a lot of trees and it’s kept clean. I’m a Brooklynite but I like it when I visit.” PAUL D. McQUARRIE ‘What I find special about Astoria is the variety of restaurants with excellent food and their cordial service. Also, the number of bakeries and pastry shops. I find Astoria to be a more enjoyable place to meet these needs than many other neighborhoods in Queens.” REBECCA COLE “Growing up in Astoria was a very wonderful experience for me. Astoria is great because it is a very diverse community. People are friendly, they smile and say “hello” and make you feel you matter to them.”