BRONX

BAKERIES, COFFEE, ICE CREAM, JUICE & TEA
●Dukagjini Burektorja – 758 Lydig Avenue (Pelham Gardens); 718-822-8955; newyorkethnicfood.com/dukagjini-burek-bronx; near Bronx Zoo; 5 small tables; Albanian and Kosovan versions of filled savory pastries known as bureks (golden-blistered, butter-laced crusted pie that melds phyllo’s crispness with strudel’s elasticity); these bigger-than-dinner-plate pastries arrive from oven poufed tall with fragrant steam; sliced into wedges, reveal 1 of 4 delectable fillings: spiced meat; slightly sweet feta-ricotta; chopped spinach; or pumpkin; eat with knife, fork, and generous dollop of lush, tangy yogurt; beyond bureks, shop features only Coke, espresso (which is excellent), and Italian sodas.
●Liebman’s Delicatessen – 552 West 235^th Street (Kingsbridge-Riverdale); 718-548-4534; liebmansdeli.com; since 1953.
●Madonia Brothers’ Bakery – 2348 Arthur Avenue; 718-295-5573; madoniabakery.com; cannoli.
●188 Bakery Cuchifritos – 158 East 188^th Street, #1 (Fordham Heights); 718-367-4500; facebook.com/pages/188-Bakery-Cuchifritos/120541997961388; Puerto Rican.
●Terranova Bakery – 691 East 187^th Street (Belmont); 718-367-6985; terranovabakery.com; baking using old methods; fresh focaccia and pizza bread.



HOTELS
●Bronx Opera House Hotel – 436 East 149^th Street (Melrose, Hub); bronxoperahousehotel.com; not open yet.



RESTAURANTS
●Ann & Tony’s Restaurant – 2407 Arthur Avenue (Belmont); 718-933-1469; annandtonysonline.com; Italian-American; quiet restaurant that serves Neapolitan, classic dishes with finesse.
●Coconut Palm Bar & Grill – 2407 Westchester Avenue (Westchester Square); 718-597-8700; facebook.com/pages/Coconut-Palm-Bar-Grill/166642346708540; Guyanese; great Caribbean culture melting pot; referred to by regulars as “Cove”; wide liquor selection; absolutely stunningly beautiful Puerto Rican and Dominican staff; bar gets 4 stars; 5 star “grannies kitchen” type food, covering Indo-Caribbean & Chinese-Guyanese.
●Com Tam Ninh Kieu – 2641 Jerome Avenue (Bedford Park, Kingsbridge Road & 193^rd Street); 718-365-2680; facebook.com/pages/Com-Tam-Ninh-Kieu-Restaurant/143761912348259; specialty is broken rice (Com Tam means “broken rice,” Ninh Kieu is southern Vietnam waterfront in Can Tho); “broken rice” “lowliest rice,” grains splintered in milling process, shunted aside & sold cheap (until rich realized what they were missing); turns out fragments are clingier & earthier than grander, polished cousins, all better for soaking up flavor; adornments include suon nuong, pork chop flat as plank and fantastically saturated with lemon grass, fish sauce & liquid caramel; apart from broken-rice dishes, menu consists almost entirely of noodle soups.
●Cozy Cottage – 4105 Boston Road (Eastchester); 718-882-3040; cozycottagerestaurant.com; sandwiches and old-fashioned American standbys; Greek, Italian food, too; working man’s lunch place and family dinner spot; breakfast.
●Giovanni’s Brick Oven – 2343 Arthur Avenue; 718-933-4141; giovannisrestaurant.net/home.html‎; pizza by slice; very popular.
●Jimmy’s Café – 905 White Plains Road (Castle Hill); 718-319-1200; jimmyscaferestaurant.dinehere.us; 24-hour service; breakfast all day.
●Liebman’s Delicatessen – 552 West 235^th Street (Kingsbridge-Riverdale); 718-548-4534; liebmansdeli.com; since 1953; pastrami is tasty but lacks tenderness and kick; briny corned beef is step-up; multi-layered combo sandwiches are messily satisfying; real strength is straight-from-shtetl home cooking; chicken soup has deep, focused flavor; matzoh ball has just right texture and heft; stuffed cabbage’s tender leaves filled with meat and rice in sweet and tangy tomato sauce is delicious.
●Louis Seafood Restaurant – 3478 East Tremont Avenue (Schuylerville); 718-822-4600; louisseafoodrestaurant.com; scenes from Godfather I.
●Mario’s Restaurant – 2342 Arthur Avenue; 718-584-1188; mariosrestarthurave.com‎; pizza by slice; very popular.
●188 Bakery Cuchifritos – 158 East 188^th Street, #1 (Fordham Heights); 718-367-4500; facebook.com/pages/188-Bakery-Cuchifritos/120541997961388; Puerto Rican cuisine; cuchifritos, often known as “Puerto Rican soul food” includes variety of dishes including, but not limited to, morcilla (blood sausage), papas rellenas (fried potato balls stuffed with meat), platanos rellenos (stuffed plantains), chicharron (fried pork skin), and various other pig parts prepared in different ways; derives its name from word cuchí short for cochino (“pig“) and frito (“fried“).
●Prime Cuts Irish Butcher Store – 4338-A Katonah Avenue (Woodlawn, between East 238^th & 239^th Streets); 718-324-9262; nycgo.com/venues/prime-cuts-irish-butchers; Irish cooking; specializes in home-cured meats and home-made pies.
●Siam Square – 564 Kappock Street (Riverdale); 718-432-8200; siamsq.com; Thai curries.
●Xochimilco Family Restaurant – 653 Melrose Avenue (Melrose); 718-402-5400; facebook.com/pages/Xochimilco-Family-Restaurant/117085211643143; southern Mexican food.
●Zero Otto Nove – 2357 Arthur Avenue; 718-220-1027; 089bx.roberto089.com‎; pizza by slice; very popular.



SHOPPING
●Calabria Pork Store – 2338 Arthur Avenue (Belmont); 718-367-5145; facebook.com/pages/Calabria-Pork-Store/153260771371996; “Playboy Mansion of Pork”; salamis hanging from ceiling.
●Randazzo’s Seafood – 2327 Arthur Avenue (Belmont); 718-367-4139; randazzoseafood.com; for alici, crabs, scungilli.
●Teitel Brothers Wholesale & Retail Grocery Co. – 2372 Arthur Avenue (Belmont); 718-733-9400; teitelbros.com; for Francesconi San Marzano canned tomatoes and olives.
●Terranova Bakery – 691 East 187^th Street (Belmont); 718-367-6985; terranovabakery.com; baking using old methods; fresh focaccia and pizza bread.



SIGHTS & SITES
●Arthur Avenue & East 187^th Street – Fordham area; arthuravenuebronx.com; considered by some the “true” Little Italy; lined with bakeries, cafes, delis & various Italian merchants.
●Bronx Zoo – 2300 Southern Boulevard; 718-367-1010; bronxzoo.com.
●Edgar Allen Poe Cottage – 2640 Grand Concourse (Bedford Park); 718-881-8900; bronxhistoricalsociety.org/poecottage.html; only open Saturdays & Sundays at different hours (check website); Edgar Allan Poe spent life’s last years (1846-49) here; small wooden farmhouse built about 1812, which once commanded unobstructed vistas over rolling Bronx hills to Long Island shores; one-time bucolic setting in which he penned many works, including Annabel Lee, Bells, and Eureka; film presentation and guided tour.
●New York Botanical Garden – 2900 Southern Boulevard (Fordham Manor); 718-817-8777; nybg.org; among nation’s premier botanical gardens; 250 acres in Bronx Park; make sure to see 15-acre Benenson Ornamental Conifers.
●Woodlawn Cemetery – Webster Avenue & East 233^rd Street (Norwood, Jerome Avenue at Bainbridge Avenue); 718-920-0500; thewoodlawncemetary.org and hyperallergic.com/53757/from-da-bronx-to-eternity (walking tour ideas); take #4 train to Woodlawn; Augustus D. Juilliard, F.W. Woolsworth, J.C. Penney, Fiorello La Guardia, Duke Ellington, Miles Davis; make sure to see statue, Outcast.