Steinway Street

Photographs: Gabriella Herman

Start: Steinway St R/V stop
End: Steinway St R/V stop
Distance: 2.5 miles
Time: 3 hours

1 Laziza means “delicious” in Arabic, and it’s also the perfect place to begin your multicultural trek through Astoria. Get sugared up at Laziza Pastries (25-78 Steinway St between 25th and 28th Aves, 718-777-7676) with a pistachio-flecked, honey-drenched dessert, like baklava ($12 per pound) or burrma ($20 per pound). While you wait, Palestinian owner Wahid Harara might offer you a free mamoul cookie with a date filling.

2 Need a new piece? Cross the street to Naseem Meat Market and Grocery (25-65 Steinway St between 25th and 28th Aves, 718-777-7032) to view a collection of ornate glass water pipes ($5–$50). “I have a great variety of hookahs,” says owner Naseem Nourdine. Shipped directly from his native Syria, they’re fit for smoking tobacco, shisha and, um, whatever-a.

3 One block away, Aguilar Records (28-57 Steinway St between 35th and 36th Aves, 646-573-1403) is an easy-to-miss storefront that you definitely don’t want to miss. If your ears prick at the sound of wailing musica norteña, you’re almost there. Aguilar sells lucha libre wrestling gear, as well as bracelets of the saints (Virgin Guadalupe) and Mexican fútbol jerseys (like the Guadalajara Chivas).

4 By now you’ve worked up an appetite, so take a brief detour: Hook a right on 30th Avenue and walk a few blocks to the joint that put Astoria on the ethnic food map. The Greek dishes served at Akti (34-19 30th Ave at 35th St, 718-721-3530) showcase the simplest ingredients. We recommend the assorted dips ($9), including hummus and taramasalata (fish-roe puree), a Greek salad ($9) and for your entrée, a whole grilled fish (around $22).

5 Mediterranean feasts are normally followed by a shot of ouzo, but we’re on the hunt for a different kind of buzz. A quick stroll toward the N train brings us to Athens Café (32-07 30th Ave at 32nd St, 718-626-2164), which serves frappés for $4.50. Warning: This Greek cousin of the frothy Starbucks bev contains high-octane espresso, and Astorians suck ’em down like water. If you’d rather not vibrate to your next stop, ask for a “light and sweet” version.

6 Ready to feel some South American love? Hike back to Steinway to enjoy the confluence of samba, lilting Portuguese accents and keratin beauty products. Summer has already arrived at Ipanema Girl (28-19 Steinway St at 28th Ave; 718-545-2277, ipanemagirl.net), a hangout for many of the 100,000-plus Brazilians who call Queens home. Peep into the back of the store for oodles of eensy-weensy two-pieces and mankinis ($40), as well as Havaianas flip-flops ($15), available in a rainbow of colors.

7 Gus Joannides has run indie music shop Sound City Records (40-07 30th Ave at between Steinway and 41st Sts, 718-545-7063) for the last 18 years. Audiophiles can paw through new and used CDs and vinyl, but another reason to shop here is Joannides’s advance-release schedule. He puts albums on shelves four days earlier than the corporate music joints (“It’s not ethical, but it’s not illegal,” he says). If Gus is cool with it, so are we.

8 You’ve got your indie tunes, now you’re ready to stock up on threads. A little slice of thrift-store heaven exists in an oasis just past 34th Avenue. This Salvation Army (34-02 Steinway St at 34th Ave; 718-472-2414, salvationarmyusa.org) recycles gently worn frocks, wedding gowns and couture for well under $15—and that’s just the party-dress aisle! It also carries trendy men’s brands at down-to-earth Queens prices. We scored a See by Chloe ruched dress for $7.99.

9 Your evening look retooled, it’s time to hang with some hard-core salseros at El Basurero (32-17 Steinway St between 35th and 36th Aves, 718-545-7077). It’s a restaurant by day and a salsa hot spot by night, and you’ll know you’ve arrived during prime time by the ritmos of fiery Colombian music coming from inside. Live full-piece bands, including Los Bisconde de Colombia, play Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.

10 That throbbing pain in your feet means you’ve taken Steinway by storm. End your Queens journey with a smoky chill-out session courtesy of Fayrooz Café (28-08 Steinway St at 28th Ave, 718-204-7667), which carries the most natural-tasting shisha imaginable, in mellow flavors like apricot and melon. They don’t sell alcohol, but you can kick back with a tall glass of mango juice while you watch live belly dancing (Friday and Saturday at midnight), a permasmile plastered on your face.

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