Rosario's — Local services in New York

Now THATS an Italian food shop! Rosario's is an old, well kept shop at the end of the N in Ditmars, Queens. A lot of people have already posted about it, but it deserves some additional praise anyway. You'll find most Italian staples with some rarer stuff too, and the sandwiches look awesome even though I've never had. It's the kind of shop that Italians would flock to before the majority of their species closed in NY. This whole thing is really just the outstretched shadow of Rosario himself, who is a short, friendly Italian man with a mustache who knows his Italian food: in other words, my kind of guy. He also looks EXACTLY like the stand-up sign of him outside, which I find to be hilariously good advertising.

Rosario's only sells pizza by the slice and offers one kind: fresh mozzarella and tomato sauce for $2. Yep, $2. Can't beat that. He also has only a limited amount at all times, and bakes one pie at a time in his small oven so you could conceivably have to wait. It's worth it. First off the crust, while on the crisper end of the spectrum, is a great piece of Italian bread in its own right. It is very sturdy, but if you got it fresh instead of a reheat then I'd anticipate it being a little more yielding. The tomato sauce used is very good, but it is overshadowed by a blanket of milky, fresh mozzarella that they make in house. This stuff was seriously good, and I almost went back in to buy a ball. Instead I got another slice for the ride home. This one was fresher, and the crust was more flexible as I had predicted.

Got a sandwich here awhile to take to work. I kept it easy with just some proscuitto di Parma. They didn't have a sharp cheese for slicing, so the counterman talked me into their homemade fresh mozzarella, which wasn't exactly a hard sell as I know it's great. After selecting my loaf of bread, the counterman was also nice enough to suggest packing the mozzarella and roasted red peppers separately to avoid it turning soggy. Rosario was around as well, as always, but luckily the rest of his staff are just as good. I paid and left to have a great dinner nearby.

The sandwich held up great. the proscuitto di Parma was applied heavily and was high quality stuff. The bread was great, as you could expect it to be by their pizza--which is now offered by the pie by the way! The mozzarella was as great as I remember. The roasted red peppers were good, but boy do they use plenty of garlic! I put this thing together on Monday, and boy were my co-workers jealous. With the toppings applied judiciously by yours truly, it was an epic sandwich. It was also easily big enough to save half for the next day, and I am by NO means have a small appetite.

The sandwich with everything cost $10 and change. If I bought it in Midtown, it would've been $15, less than half the size, made with cheaper ingredients, and I would've gotten a side of shitty service to go with it. I wish I lived nearby here just so I could be a regular. You really can't beat a place like Rosario's. Between here and L'Incontro, I'll be back a lot sooner...

Heavenly little Italian grocery/sandwich-and-pizza spot right underneath the Ditmars subway station (end of the line for N/W trains). They have a variety of Italian imports in the grocery area—pasta, canned goods, various drinks that you won’t see in typical grocery stores—plus a sandwich counter in front and a pizza counter in back. The guys working there are great, very efficient and friendly and easy to deal with. Prices on sandwiches and pizza are very fair, IMO; I’ve never bought any grocery items there so can’t speak to those prices, but these aren’t people who are trying to rip anyone off. It’s not that kind of shop.

The pizza is lovely: it’s not heavy and greasy (you can eat it for lunch and not feel gross afterward at all), and the sauce stands out to me, with just a little hint of sweetness, nicely proportioned herbs, etc. I highly recommend the thick-crust/Sicilian with the fresh mozz; it has this pillowy soft crust that, crucially, is crispy on the bottom—a bit like L&B Spumoni Gardens, actually, if you’re familiar with them, though certainly not the exact same.

I’ve only had the Italian combo sandwich, but MAN is it good. Salami, prosciutto, and mortadella (I get ham instead because I don’t care for mortadella), plus fresh mozz and red peppers, on good, quality bread that always tastes fresh to me. It’s just a delight, and like the pizza, it’s not all greasy and heavy the way some places’ Italian sandwiches can be. Meats and cheese always seem high-quality.

Rosario’s is a standout spot in Ditmars/Astoria in general, a real neighborhood treasure. You won’t regret getting your next meal from this excellent...

Went to buy some items yesterday, including a packet of Kimbo Nespresso-compatible capsules and some Italian "Macine" cookies. Once I got home I saw that the capsules expired in September 2022, hence that is why they were "on special". I came back today to get my money back for the expired espresso capsules, I also returned the cookies, just because they used to be $2.49 for 400g, and now they are $4.49 for 350g. The short Latin guy at the counter was terrorized by the thought of having to issue a refund, he had to go call Rosario himself to do that, and Rosario displayed an attitude when asking why I wanted the refund for the 2 items. He had no idea how to refund my card so I obviously suggested to get the money back in cash. He paid me back as if he was giving me a kidney or a pound of flesh, rather than a handful of dollars. Not the first time you sell us expired merchandise, throw it away instead of marking it as "on special" 9 months after expiration. This shop has not been the same since the father passed away, and now besides the guy with the short beard (and the Egyptian guy and Giuseppe from Sicily before him) all the other ones working there are useless. Long waits at the counter even with an empty shop. He lost my wife already as a customer; I am...