El Boqueron

mmmmm the sweetbreads and artichoke was sooo good. more

awesome more

Very tasty, prompt delivery. more

Excellent Food and Service, I barely hit the submit button of my order and they called me already with a question in regards to my order. Same with the delivery time, my order was delivered extremely quickly. The person on the phone and the delivery person were very polite and professional. Most importantly the food was fabulous and I am ordering again very soon. more

I went to El Boqueron on a Monday night expecting a quiet evening. It was quite the opposite but I am not complaining because it ended up being such a fun night. The restaurant was busy the whole time we were there, which you normally don't see in other places on a Monday night. From start to end it was a great experience. The waiters there are very attentive. We first started with the champagne sangria that was ""to die for""; never had anything like that. From there, we did not know what to order and one of the owners, a young man, asked for our likes and dislikes in food. He then asked if it was ok for him to make a couple of recommendations and we left our stomachs in his hands and we were not steered wrong once. The food was delicious. We had the clams, grilled calamari, grilled scallops, shrimp in a garlic sauce and the portobello mushroom that was grilled and topped off with smoked salmon. To end the meal we had the crema catalana and the mocha flan. One of my friends ended up eating the whole flan by himself. My friends and I will definitely be going back there really soon. The prices are really reasonable and the service is amazing. What a great neighborhood restaurant! more

This restaurant came highly recommended through a friend, but clearly that person hasn't experienced quality Spanish food. I have travelled extensively in Spanish speaking countries around the world, and nothing prepared me for the ""fake"" dishes and lack of quality food in this place. And to make matters worse, the restaurant was practically empty but the maitre'd and waiter were too busy to bring us table settings before the food arrived. Then the waiter didn't remember who got what. And we ended up sending half the food back because it was so inedible. When we left the maitre'd was irritated because we hadn't tipped well, as if tipping should be automatic and not related to service or food! There are plenty of decent Spanish restaurants in Astoria. Don't waste your time or money at this one. more

I was Illusioned with to visit this place or other Spanish retaurant. But now I think that never will try another spanish restaurant here in New York. I'm from spain and my english is not very well but I can say that this restaurant doesn't have anything to compare with spanish cousine. We asked for some tapas like ""jamon serrano"", jaja, I felt like an Idiot when I saw the plate of ""jamon serrano"". This people haven't seen ""jamon serrano"" neither in pictures. Little, bad, without flavor. 9$. The chicken croquetas were one of the worst croquetas that I tried ever. Two more Tapas were ""so so"" I can't crtice them but every time that I remember the ""jamon serrano"" I don't know whether to laught or to cry. One more thing, I don't know if they try to get an quit place or they don't pay the electricity bills because the lights were dim and we couldn't to check the colour of the food. If you want to know the spanish cousine this is not the best place to visit. A spanish guy who know how is the spanish cuisine. Pros: It's impossible to get wrong two times. Cons: Little, expensive and bad. more

I saw this place when riding home on the N/W trains and I finally decided to check it out. We stayed with some tapas and the appetizer specials. The Sangria was good, nothing outstanding, but a solidly well mixed red sangria with not too much brandy. The waiters were excellent. We had the cod croquettes, served with a tomato sauce. It was pretty good, but then the highlights came around, the warm octopus was excellent, we also ordered the mini squids (killer) the sweetbreads (awesome) and the tortilla espanola. What was excellent about the food was the fat to acid ratio. At first bite, everything was so rich it almost bordered on decadent, then the acidity would cut through the taste and each bite finished clean. The squid had lemon on top, the sweetbreads had warmed red cabbage kraut. The tortilla was almost like a thick potato cake. When it arrived it almost looked like a NY cheesecake. I recommend this place. Its one of my favorite places in Astoria. Pros: tapas, sangria, friendly attentive staff Cons: just a little bit pricey but great quality more

I need to spread the word about El Boqueron!!!!! The best restaurant in Astoria hands down!!!!!! These guys really know what it takes to run a restaurant! The food is so tasty and fresh and the service is incredible!! Anything on the menu can be done tapas style so you can try many wonderful dishes in the same night!!!! Talapia, filet mignon, scallops.....I can't wait to go there tonight!! more

I went to El Boqueron on a busy Friday night with modestly high expectations. The minute I walked in with my girlfriend we were greeted very warmly in Spanish by one of the waiters who asked if we had a reservation. Since we didn't we were informed that we would have to wait 10-15 minutes. Well, we waited a full hour at the bar. The worst part of the wait was that after about 40 minutes another couple that arrived after us was given one of the available window tables. We complained and were informed that the couple had a reservation and we were also told that they cannot predict when people would leave the restaurant. We decided to give them the benefit of the doubt, but we were not convinced. The waiter sensing we were upset gave us a round of drinks and some olives and cheese. A nice touch, but we were already quite annoyed and the waiter's attitude was like ""I'm going to play my role here, but I really don't have any interest in making your evening a pleasant one."" He never told us about the specials. When I told him that I wanted the paella he told me that it would take at least 35 minutes and sarcastically commented that I should have ordered it at the bar. I asked him for a suggestion and he bluntly rattled off some fish that I stupidly agreed to order. We had the grilled sardines and garlic shrimp to start. After having the second sardine I started feeling sick and had to excuse myself from the table to get some fresh air. It wasn't that the food was horrible, but my body certainly had a strong reaction to something. The main courses were truly, truly mediocre. I'm not a great cook, but I know I could have made a better fish at home. Astoria has some pretty decent restaurants, but this is not one of them. What baffles me is that my girlfriend has some reliable friends that claim this restaurant is good. Maybe we had a bad night. Maybe we had a bad server. Maybe...but I'm not going back to find out. Cons: Service, food and long wait more

My husband and I were seated at a comfortable table at 8:00 p.m. on a Saturday night without waiting. We immediately ordered a pitcher of sangria which was very good - not the best I have ever had, but refreshing. We were so hungry and quite happy when the waiter brought out a small plate with some green and black olives, a piece of bread with a small, tasty sardine on it and a small piece of potato. It was the perfect thing before ordering dinner. We ordered two tapas: chicken croquettes and stuffed mushrooms with bacon. The tapas were good, not great. I had the shrimp in green sauce and my husband had the paella. Both dishes were very good. The portions were just right. Overall service was pretty good, a little inconsistent since when we first got there they were very attentive. Then, when they took away our dishes and we told them we did not want any desert, they took a bit too long to bring us the check. On the other hand, I suppose it is a positive thing that they did not rush us out. Our check was under 100, tip included (without desert). El Boqueron does not measure up to my favorite spanish restaurant in manhattan (Malagas), but I would certainly come back. Pros: Ambience, service, food quality more

Don't know what Don't Bother is talking about. I love this place. The food is great and the staff is very helpful. I've sat next to the kitchen on occasion and it's not terrible. I also picked it for Valentines Day. It's so cozy and romantic. I always have a nice time with when I go and am always happy with the food...if you're lucky and lamb is the special of the day, order it. You will not be disappointed. Pros: Great food and hospitable staff more

Sat right next to the kitchen, so right off the bat I was upset. The waiter tried to be very pushy with the specials. Food was average at best. Service was bad, then the waiter acted upset when we wanted to see dessert menus. Then, I log into my bank to see they added an extra $6.0 to their tip. Don't even bother. more

Wow this place was a great find. The service is imperresive the food sepectacular and the atmosphere romantic. We ate a couple of Tapas there which were Shimp in garlic, Calamar in garlic and as a main dish I ate a Seafood combination in a creamy lobster cava sauce and my date ate a wonderful Tilapia in a butter lemon and white wine sauce. For dessert the waiter reccomended his favorite which was a Torreja . Overall Wonderful experiance Pros: Wonderful Service, Variation of food , Romantic Atmosphere more

It's a great romantic restaurant with outstanding food! Avarage price: $40 p.p. more

On a casually friday night, my boyfriend and I wanted some authentic Spanish food, so we decided El Boqueron. As soon as we walked in we were greeted very friendly by the manager. Later, we ordered a pitcher of sangria, as a result it was the best sangria we had ever drank. We didn't know what to order so the kind waiter suggested a few of his favorites. They were all great. At the end of the meal we ordered a ""crema catalana"" which brought about a dance show. All together it was delightful and an unforgetable night. Pros: Excellent service, Great food, Friendly environment more

El Boqueron is very romantic, the service is extroardinary, and the food is mouth watering. They really go out of their way to please you. Everyone is very pleasant and treat you like royalty- which brings me to the subject of prices- maybe a bit pricy compared to most restaurants in astoria but you get way more then you pay for! May I also add the desserts are excellent- I don't have a sweet tooth so I hardly ever eat dessert but I will never pass it down when I'm here. You usually don't need reservations but my boyfriend and I went there on Valentines Day with reservations and had to wait a bit... so I would reccommend making rezzie's on holidays. Overall- excellent and lucky to have in Astoria! If this place was in the city it would be 4 times as expensive for what they have to offer. Pros: romantic, excellent food, excellent service Cons: pricy, next to train more

Walking up to the place, we had no idea how much room there was inside. I hadn't had tapas in years and my boyfriend never had, so we went with one of the maaaany specials the waiter listed for us, a seafood combination. While not the best seafood ever, it was flavorful and simple. We also had a couple items from the tapas menu that were just completely satisfying. The service was impeccable, and they seemed excited to encourage us to return because they gave us complimentary sherry at the end of the meal. The sangria was very refreshing and did the trick. Good quiet place for a date if you don't care that the walk-up includes a great view of the N train. It may not be a cheap date, but it's better than the prices at tapas places downtown. Pros: quick attention, friendly staff more