"Safe Outdoor Markets Can Serve As A Nostalgic Band-Aid For Now": Queens Night Market Returns To Rock Center

The Queens Night Market, one of the city's great treasures, famous for its dazzling array of food vendors from all over the world, had more than 80 operators ready to go at Flushing Meadows Corona Park last spring when, as the depressingly familiar storyline goes, COVID-19 slammed into town and shut it all down. The second season of the Market's smaller but equally popular OUTPOST in Rockefeller Center also got nixed at the time, but this week organizer John Wang and a handful of vendors made a return to the once-bustling, now-desolate Midtown.

"This is the first time vending for some of them this year," Wang told Gothamist. While some vendors took on small catering gigs to make it through the pandemic so far, and others helped out with the Fuel The Frontlines initiative, others have walked away from the food business for now. "Sadly, most of the 1,000 or so food entrepreneurs in our network have called it quits for at least the remainder of this year," Wang said, "and probably for next year too."

This year's Queens Night Market OUTPOST will be pared-down, featuring a rotating series of six vendors, each selling a few different signature dishes at a reasonable price. "We erred on the side of caution this year canceling the [regular] Queens Night Market," Wang said, "knowing that the numbers required to ensure vendors didn't lose money would make it difficult for visitors to comply with social distancing guidelines."

On opening day there was some first-rate Jamaican Jerk Chicken at the Treat Yourself stand, piled over rice and beans and drenched in your choice of sauce (but get definitely the seriously fiery "Disrespectful").

Indonesian cuisine is available at Mamika's Homemade, including Vegan Dumplings in a fiery peanut sauce; Soun Goreng, or stir fried, loaded-up crystal noodles; and an excellent version Nasi Kuning, a rice dish infused with coconut milk and turmeric. Ecuador is well represented by the La Braza team, serving up a variety of Empanadas, and roasted ears of spiced-up Choclos, and meaty fare like Pernil and Chicharron with rice and beans.

There's more chicken at The Fried Kitchen, fried up crisp and spicy for a monster of a sandwich or laid on top of waffles and drizzled with maple syrup. For something even sweeter, Dilena's Dolcini has an appealing array of treats like Cupcakes, Cake Pops, Hand Painted Cookies, and Boozy Gummy Bears, and the great Joey Bats is back with his rich and custardy Pastéis de Nata, or Portuguese egg tarts.

There's ample outdoor space throughout Rockefeller Center, in addition to the South Plaza tables, there are also the nicley-distanced tables down in the rink below the iconic, currently masked-up Prometheus. These are open to the public before 3 p.m. every day, and all day Sunday through Tuesday.

Wang says he is "grateful for the low-cost, low-risk environment for vendors we’ve designed alongside our partners at Rockefeller Center," and he's serious about safety. He told us this week, "As is becoming clear, it's so easy to let our guards down when we're having fun, eating and drinking with loved ones and even delightful strangers."

As for turnout at the OUTPOST, the first day saw "just a fraction of the people who visited" compared to last year, which was expected. "There's definitely just a smaller Midtown audience to cater to this year," but for those who do come out, Wang said, "hopefully it at least puts a smile on people's faces and reminds them of some good things waiting for us once we're through these dark, crazy times... While we're all hungry for a semblance of our normal lives back, safe outdoor markets can serve as a kind of nostalgic Band-Aid for now."

It's unclear if the Queens Night Market will return to Flushing Meadows Corona Park as planned next spring (Wang told us, "it's slowly sinking in that the global pandemic might even affect the return"), so get out there and support these vendors if you can, and while you can.

The Queens Night Market Outpost will be at Rockefeller Center's South Plaza, near 49th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, every weekday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. through November (queensnightmarket.com)