Bel Aire Diner

“The food is awesome breakfast, lunch, dinner, late night drunken crawl, or hungover!”

“Located conveniently on 21st St. in Queens, it's super easy to get to by car, and not too bad by subway/bus.”

“Mike, our most favorite waiter in all of New York City, keep up your awesome spirits and keep serving us hungry mid-twenty fatties.”

Bel Aire Diner

Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes

Price range.

$$ Price range $11-30

8 reviews

  1. This place is okay. The service was really great, so this review is solely based on the food.
    I ordered the french onion soup which was really delicious, however the turkey triple decker I ordered was honestly eh. My boyfriend ordered the fried calamari which was sooo smelly, I was honestly repulsed (and I love fried calamari) and also worried that he would end up making out with the toilet bowl when we got home. I don't play with food poisoning.
    My girlfriend ordered the matza ball soup which she claimed was delicious but her meal, a breakfast quiche, was just eh as well.

    Once again, the service was really great, but the food needs a little work.

  2. One of the things that I truly miss from Long Island is their copious amounts of diners in every town. Although the food at diners are never truly spectacular, there's something about that late night food that keeps me coming back.

    I've finally found my spot in Astoria. It's adjacent to the grocery store I frequent and after passing Bel Aire so many times, I'm glad I finally ate here this past week. It has that classic diner feel with the leather booths and menus that stretch 10 pages long.

    I got my usual drink – a vanilla egg cream (always) and ordered their homemade Chicken Orzo soup with an Eggplant, Basil, Fresh Mozz panini. My favorite item was (surprisingly) the soup! It tasted homemade. It had plenty of noodles and chicken and was the perfect thing to eat during the cold weather lately.

    As for my panini, it was good. My eggplant was a bit too oily but it balanced out with the addition of the fresh basil and mozz (glad they didn't skimp out on those). It was a good portion too. I'll definitely be back! Maybe breakfast for dinner!

  3. Oh Bel Aire Diner. What a wonderful run we've had. Your late night service catering to my pre-hormonal burger cravings has saved me from consuming my own arm on many occasions. Your salads also saved me from my own body craving for your delicious waffle fries and chicken salad sandwiches. Mike, our most favorite waiter in all of New York City, keep up your awesome spirits and keep serving us hungry mid-twenty fatties.

    We will see you again soon.

  4. Excellent diner in Astoria.  Love the complimentary mini muffins that are served with brunch.  Always a reliable option for brunch when you can't decide where to go and want something good and filling.  Highly recommend the breakfast bake for brunch.  It's eggs, avocado, and corned beef hash and it's delicious.  Definitely check this place out if you're looking for a solid diner to grab breakfast/brunch in Astoria!

  5. Bel Aire Diner is your standard Queens Diner. Lots of options and choices. I guess if you wanted the kitchen sink with gravy; I am sure they have it.

    My standard orders are breakfast food items. Eggs over easy with ham, fries and toast or pancakes with ham or a club sandwich. All good. All tasty. Fries hot. I always like to order my fries well done. Over easy eggs; medium and perfect. Coffee hot with refills. Service, very attentive.

    This place is really a solid Queens Diner. Food always comes out fast, hot and tasty. Oh yes; 247 and they take Credit Cards. On Seamless for those deliveries. Just a bit to far for my delivery needs.

  6. I've been in Astoria a long time and I never understood the fascination with this place. People rant and rave about it and I don't think I ever really left there saying, "Damn! That was really good food!" So I don't understand the big deal. I've only really gone there the few times I have due to it being a fast and easy decision for a large group of people after a night out. I get it- they have a huge menu selection and that's cool, it's also a big spacey diner and the service is pretty good- but the food really isn't "all that." I ordered an egg white wrap with bacon, Swiss cheese and spinach with home fries. It would have been nice for them to actually cook the bacon because it was very stringy and fatty (and I asked for well done btw) and there was so much spinach in the wrap I couldn't even taste anything else about it. I asked for the home fries well done also and only the top seemed to be semi well done. I ended up only eating half that wrap and trying to pick out some of the spinach from the other half but mid way through the picking- I gave up. I guess next time I'll stick to something I hope they cannot mess up like scrambled eggs perhaps. I'm not trying to put the place down – because like I said, I know many people that rant and rave about this diner and they go all the time. So it's either you like it or you don't. Go and give it a try and see if you're a fan or not. Oh and a few episodes of "Blue Bloods" was filmed inside- so that's pretty cool lol

  7. Ehhhh.  This diner was nothing special. Customer Service was mediocre. Food was ok for breakfast. Felt a bit depressing inside.

  8. Came in here to eat at about one in the morning. Was hoping this place would be more spot on than the reviews had insisted but it wasn't. I had the nachos from the Mexican side of the menu while my friend had the regular burger. Needless to say that we both didn't finish our plates. I mean, don't get me wrong it was ok food. However, I think the problem was the quality. My nachos were microwaved or just not cooked well. While my friends burger plate just looked mediocre. Good place to come but nothing special.

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