New eateries make Post Avenue a foodie’s dream
Westbury is on its way to becoming a dining destination. This year we have seen the emergence of several new cafes and the return of an old favorite. We now have two new places where we can get ice cream and frozen yogurt, and cafes where we can savor food from the Dominican Republic and Korea.
Westbury’s Business Improvement District (BID) can take some of the credit for these welcome additions.
“Over the past year or so, Westbury’s downtown has been fortunate to see a reemergence of new businesses and the strengthening of many of our long standing businesses, especially our eateries,” said Dawn Blinn, executive director of the Westbury BID. “We believe that much of this growth can be attributed to the enthusiasm and excitement generated by The Space and their success in drawing new people into our community.” Blinn also credits the commitment of Mayor Peter Cavallaro, the Village of Westbury and local groups who have been working to bring this renewed vitality to Post Avenue.
One of the “new” restaurants is the return of an old-timer—Galleria Ristorante at 238 Post Ave. Old timers might remember the first Galleria, opened by Dominick (he goes by one name) in 1981, which was destroyed by a fire and then reopened in a new spot in 1984, gaining a reputation for fine Italian dining. Dominick gave up the restaurant a few years ago but has returned, continuing with the same tried-and-true recipes and much of the same staff.
People are coming to Punta Cana at 162 Post Ave. for its freshly made empanadas, with choices of cheese, beef, chicken or pork fillings or a combination of any. Another typical Dominican dish includes mofongo, which is made with fried plantains mashed together and mixed with shrimp and garlic sauce or roast pork. Other popular offerings are rice and peas, roast pork and baked chicken. The seasonings are blended in-house. Punta Cana delivers and also has a red convertible auto that has been converted into a portable BBQ pit for catering.
Harmony Fusion at 263B Post Ave. presents Korean and Japanese cuisine. Everyone gets a tasty miso soup to start the meal. An immediate favorite was vegetable pajun, a Korean style pancake with vegetables, much like an oversized scallion pancake. There is also seafood pajun. On the Japanese side of the menu are many types of sushi, sashimi and rolls. We made a point of trying the Westbury Roll of spicy white tuna, shrimp tempura, avocado and cucumber. Other good choices were jewookbokem (spicy pork BBQ) and the fried noodle dish—chicken yaki soba—that was topped with seaweed flakes that “danced” as they hit the heat.
For dessert, there are two good choices—Nana’s Ice Cream and Coffee House at 225A Post Ave. and the Juice Box Cafe at 324 Post Ave. Nana’s serves Hershey’s brand ice cream. You can get sundaes, shakes, malts, floats and egg creams as well as coffee and baked goods. Juice Box features smoothies and six pull-down yogurt dispensers with flavors that include milk chocolate, vanilla bean, cake batter, strawberry, mango sunrise and something called Euro tart, which tastes like Greek yogurt. Available are lots of toppings and plenty of delicious fresh fruit. Both shops offer reward cards for regulars.
So stroll down Post Avenue and try out these new places, but don’t forget our other long-established local restaurants—there are a lot to choose from.
