Beacon’s Bites: 969 NYC Coffee
Cheap food, a rarity these days, and an export of 969 NYC Coffee. Welcome back to Beacon’s Bites, where I, Evie, and my colleague, Finn are here to review another restaurant.
Similarly to last time, this restaurant was recommended to us by a member of the Forest Hills High School staff.
This month, Finn and I traveled to Jackson Heights to try out this Japanese coffee shop. This restaurant was recommended to us by one of our wonderful librarians, Mr. Hetko.
As our readers may know, our review system is broken down into four components, ranked out of five stars.
Quality: The caliber of the food itself
Affordability: How much does the food cost?
Service: Was the service good?
Aesthetic: The vibes!
Is the food presented well? Can you bring somebody on a date there? Is it a classy establishment?
Our goal was to assess 969 NYC Coffee under this rubric. To get there from FHHS, we took the R train to the Jackson-Heights Roosevelt Ave station. We arrived, and when we got there, a friendly elderly gentleman greeted us at the counter. We ordered and sat at a table outside.
Evie: I ordered two teriyaki chicken onigiri, a type of rice ball filled with chicken and wrapped with seaweed and a hot chocolate. I meant to order two rice balls but the food was so good I ordered a third. The chicken was flavorful and the juice combined with the rice was heavenly. I also found the fact that it was all done by one elderly cook. Very charming.
Overall, I give 969 NYC Coffee’s food a 4 stars out of 5.
Finn: I ordered two pork onigiri and it was delicious and filling, which had surprised me since I thought they were small
before we got them. It was made super quickly and so was the matcha latte I had. After trying matcha for the first time, I can say it is pretty good and worth a try for those who haven’t had it. Overall the food was good, the vibe was nice, and the price was reasonable, but it did not really blow me away. I feel like there was room for improvement in the service since it was confusing as there is no menu for food displayed.
Overall, I give 969 NYC Coffee a 3 stars out of 5.
The results are in! Beacon’s Bites gives 969 NYC Coffee a…
Quality – 3.5/5: The quality of the food was pretty good, the food was simplistic but flavorful, and the rice balls were almost addictingly
tasty. The hot chocolate was rich –almost too rich– and this isn’t entirely a must-visit restaurant, but if you are in the area and want some cheap yet quality food, this is the place.
Affordability – 4/5: The price of the food was very reasonable. We paid $12 per person for two rice balls and a drink. This is a great, affordable establishment for any student looking for a cheap bite.
Service – 3/5: There were no menus available, but the one elderly gentleman ran the entire stand himself, and he was very efficient at getting us our food. He was very sweet and courteous. However, the lack of menus knocks the score down a couple of points.
Aesthetic – 3/5: The aesthetic was very reminiscent of the New York City deli look. It has a nice feel to it, but since it is very small it doesn’t feel like the best place to kick back and enjoy a meal. It is more of a place where you would probably grab food and go.
This is good for the convenience and price, but considering that we look for places where you can sit down and enjoy the meal, it did not make the mark for us.
Overall, we give 969 NYC Coffee a 3.5/5!
