Sunnyside Cafe
June 13, 2014 By Michael Florio
Caffe Bene, the multinational coffee giant based out of Korea, is opening two cafes in Astoria this summer, according to a company spokesman.
The first café will open at 32-14 Steinway Street in July and will be followed by a store at 31-30 Ditmars Boulevard in September.
“We want to open in Astoria since there are so many young people that enjoy coffee,” said Jason Lee, a spokesman for Caffé Bene.
Caffe Bene has more than 1,400 cafes across the globe. Its stores attempt to replicate the look and feel of traditional European coffeehouses–much like the large American coffee companies do.
The two Astoria cafes, like all Caffe Bene franchises, will be selling conventional items such as brewed coffee, hot and cold beverages, pastries, croissants, sandwiches, waffles, gelato, and so forth.
Caffe Bene has opened several cafes in New York and New Jersey since it entered the US market in 2012. The franchises are located in Times Square, Flushing, Fashion Institute of Technology, Fort Lee, NJ, and Palisades Park, NJ.
The company opened up a café in Sunnyside in early May.
Lee said that many customers are attracted to Caffe Bene due to its interior design. He said the cafes have a simple layout and are built with wooden materials.
Café Bene moves into Astoria as Starbucks is expanding.
Starbucks is about to open its fifth Astoria location at 30-18 Astoria Boulevard this summer.
4 Comments
Honestly there coffee is nowhere near good. The place is cute but unfortunatly this korean chain is no expert in brewing coffee. A Joe’s Coffee would have been wayyyyy better out here.
European Coffeehouse experience? Just go to one of the Greek cafes….
Victory Cafe on Steinway….
Lefkos Pyrgos off Astoria-Ditmars stop on N/Q….
That being said, I do love Caffe Bene atmosphere. the bookshelves are quaint. The waffles are good (I prefer fresh and plain). and their dark hot chocolate is great
i’d think if the folks in astoria want a european coffee house experience we could just walk to 30th ave no?
I would love to go in one day and sit and enjoy something to eat and drink but every time I have attempted you have the tables full of people sitting there with A coffee for hours on their laptops – its just like starbucks!