Bayside is a neighborhood in the northeast side of Queens. Bayside stretches from Bay Terrace to the edge of Oakland Gardens in Queens.  The small town contains multiple schools, many restaurants, and is the melting pot of many cultures who immigrated here in the 1900s. Bayside has always fostered a cultural landscape, developing as time progresses, into one of the most diverse and cultured places in Queens.

Bayside’s geographical landscape includes much of Fort Totten to Bayside Hills. However, when i grew up, I’ve acknowledged Oakland Gardens part of Bayside, considering that sometimes I put Oakland Gardens as my address. Honestly, Bayside is confusing from a geographical perspective because people can consider parts of Queens part of Bayside, but I consider all the places I grew up in part of Bayside, even Oakland Gardens.

Bayside consists of many ethnic neighborhoods but are blended in a  way that there is no distinct culture in a neighborhood. Most neighborhoods contain Chinese, Korean, European, Hispanic, and African American cultures. Much of the schools in the area make up a diverse population that it’s hard to find a ethnic identity in Bayside. Everywhere you go, there is something unique about the different cultures you see in restaurants and food markets.

Along Springfield Boulevard, people can see the green sign with the restaurant Rolly Kimbab on it. The restaurant features Korean cuisine at affordable price. Its green sign shows the restaurant focuses on fresh ingredients and originality. Since it is one of the few small Korean restaurants in Bayside, the restaurant focuses on its ability to keep their prices affordable. With its banners and pictures, Rolly Kimbab appeals to students and kids, bringing a visual aspect to Korean food. Rolly Kimbab uses Korean symbols to show the authentic cuisine. The Korean language can appeal to the non-native Korean speakers in the neighborhood but the English name appeals to the majority of English speaking community.

 

 

Right across the street is Gino’s Pizzeria. Gino’s opened in the 1970s and has been serving Bayside for decades. The restaurant focuses on mainly Italian dishes like pizza and pasta while preserving Italian food traditions. Gino’s represents itself in a way where most people can identify the restaurant. The banner shows the colors of the Italian flag: red, white, and green showing Gino’s comes with authentic roots. The restaurant’s title is in English to appeal to the majority of English speakers in the community rather than Italian.  To expand its authenticity, Gino’s windows are open to the public to see chefs prepare the food by hand. Through the window, people can see dough being stretched and food being prepared fresh daily.

Nearby, lies a relatively new Chinese Restaurant, Supreme Dumpling. This restaurant started business a few years ago has been serving authentic Chinese food and drinks. Most Chinese restaurants try to use colors and symbols to have good fortune or wealth in the future. Usually Chinese restaurants uses red or yellow colors because they are the colors of the Chinese flag and generally present good fortune. But, Supreme Dumpling uses the gold color to symbolize future wealth and prosperity in the future. In addition, there is a symbol behind the tree which represents good fortune. Like most Chinese restaurants, owners put certain symbols and colors to show prosperity and success in their business.

Supreme Dumpling in BaysideThe Empanada Spot is also a newer restaurant, only opening two years ago. This restaurant focuses on empanadas which are dough pockets filled with various types of filling like chicken, beef, or vegetables. The personification of the empanada shows a more friendly approach to the community showing the restaurant is a fun and inviting place to eat at. As a rarer cuisine, The Empanada Spot uses pictures to show people who are unfamiliar with their food what it looks like and the relative price of the food. Like the previous restaurants, this restaurant puts emphasis on its origin or Hispanic cuisine with the banner. It basically says the empanada spot in Spanish. With the use of two languages, the restaurant was able to show authenticity in its food and provide the native English speaking community another attractive cuisine.

A short walk from Springfield Boulevard to Bell Boulevard holds a more populated street full of European restaurants and cafes for mid-day to late night hangouts. I experienced much of the restaurants here during my middle school years and continued through high school. From steakhouses to burgers to pastries, you can find almost any food you are craving and be satisfied.

Usually on Bell Boulevard, also known as Bell, the nights are filled with a highly populated adult group, some drunk and some just wild. Bell has a fancy steakhouse called Uncle Jacks. The restaurant was established in 1996 and serving mostly high end steaks with high quality meat and dining practices. Much of the meat is raised from Nebraska and Omaha, but there are opportunities to try the rare Wagyu beef from Kobe, Japan. With steaks from the U.S. and Japan, Uncle Jack’s Steakhouse is able to please its customers with the wide variety of steaks served. Uncle Jack’s offers an inviting feeling with its icon of founder William Jack Degel opening up to customers. The image shows the restaurant is one of the best as it has a crown above the person’s head. Degel matched the appearance of the restaurant to the menu to show the quality they want to serve customers. Uncle Jack’s presents itself as a luxurious restaurant tailoring to the higher class where they serve food like lobster and seafood shown below.

On the same street, there is a bubble tea shop, Momo Ashi. Momo Ashi is a Taiwanese shop serving bubble tea as well as waffles and other small treats. The owner, Cheng, opened doors in Flushing in 2017 and expanded to places like Bayside. In the picture, Momo Ashi was under renovation so it had just put a banner to try to cover the previous business. Nevertheless, Momo Ashi presents itself as a attractive cafe to spend time in. They use the color pink to show friendship and affection showing the cafe is an inviting place to visit. The cafe is based on a cat and dog style cafe using cats and dogs as their mascots. These animals are shown on the second picture below and bringing charm to their cafe. The name Momo Ashi means peach feet which is shown as their logo. The cafe is meant to emanate the feeling of being in a cafe in Taiwan with the adorable mascots and logos it uses. With its products, the second picture shows some of the food they serve. For children, this brings an excitement since many kids are shown to like their food with an image of an animal or shapes.

 

Nearby, there are other Asian restaurants that attract many people to with a hot bowl of noodles and soup. One restaurant is called Nippon Cha. Nippon Cha is a Japanese focused tea shop, serving popular Japanese dishes like ramen. They have bento boxes which are essential to Japanese culture. Bento boxes are ways Japanese people pack their lunches and include many different dishes for a unique experience. Nippon Cha presents itself as a medium priced restaurant with its simple design and name. Nippon means the suns origin which is often translated to the land of the rising sun. Cha means tea in Japanese. The logo shows the fields in which tea is grown but in a red color to represent the sun hence the name Nippon Cha. This restaurant is easily identifiable because of its unique name and its use of Japanese symbols. The color green as used on the store front to show freshness, fertility, and growth. This green is to emphasize the tea they sell and its dedication to high quality tea.

The French Workshop is a bakery shop nearby. It focuses on pasties and other baked goods like bread and macaroons. The bakery has a simple yet elegant outlook of its store. The French Workshop is quite different compared to the other stores around it. The bakery shows itself in a modern build where you can see the sophisticated elements of the workshop. For one thing, the font of the name and logo brings a distinctly high-end feel. But, the bakery offers a mid-price range despite its elegant exterior. The exterior resonates similar feelings to that of streets in France with its glass windows and design.

Other than restaurants, Bayside has to beautiful areas to visit. One of areas is Alley Pond Park. Alley Pond Park opened in 1976 and has been a place to visit ever since.  The park is a 23 acre park with the intent to protect the nature of the area. There are many activities to do like biking and looking at the view. In 2007, NYC Parks introduced activities you can do such as canoeing, an adventure course, and learn how to fish. While maintaining the nature of the park, NYC Parks was able to build bike paths and parking lots. People tend to walk along the trails to look at the trees and lakes in the area. Most children play in the playgrounds or on the fields. Since then, Alley Pond has been a very popular destination for celebrations like the fourth of July and a place to play sports. Some common sports include tennis, baseball, and volleyball. People are able to freely host barbecues and parties from whatever culture they are from. Most people like to watch the fireworks from the open fields and have picnics amongst themselves. NYC Parks put many signs all over the park so that people can navigate their way and not get lost. Whether it be to leave or find the adventure course, the signs are essential to finding your way around the park. In addition, all the signs include a leaf within a circle. The logo of NYC Parks shows their commitment to preserving nature. Whatever culture there maybe, Alley Pond hold the ability to hold these cultures in celebration as well as preserve the natural landscape of the park.

On the other side of Bayside, lies another area worth visiting, Fort Totten. Fort Totten is located in the neighborhood of Bay Terrace. In the 1800s, it was used as a defensive structure for the South to hold facilities to help the injured. Shown in the picture below, Fort Totten is recognized as a military post and its history of being a military stronghold. After its military fornications, it became an area to hangout in. Many people can watch the waters and have a picnic on the grass. Many use the view for a photoshoot; mostly students, tend to walk across the rocks out to the water, and take photos having the bridge and sunset in the same frame. People also come to bike and walk along the path to enjoy the water and view. What was once a military base, became one of the most visited places in Bayside.

Bayside is a extremely diverse area that hold high importance to me. I grew up in this neighborhood and showed much of the area to many of my friends and vice versa. Bayside has become a go to place in Queens to eat and enjoy the landscape. Much of the cuisine is culturally diverse and provides an experience of what its like to dine in other cultures. Whether it be small snacks or high end steaks, Bayside is an optimal place to visit if you are exploring other cultures. Much of the landscape is the same as well and is preserved throughout Bayside. Alley Pond Park and Fort Totten are two places that provide a rich history of how it developed into what it is today and a breath taking scenery to look at. In other words, Bayside holds true to being one of the most culturally diverse and preserving landscapes in Queens.

 

analysis of signs then describe store