You are reading

Queens Night Market Announce Plans to Reopen in Spring

Queens Night Market (Instagram April 2019)

Jan. 12, 2021 By Christina Santucci

Organizers of the Queens Night Market have announced plans to return to Flushing Meadows Corona Park this spring after last year’s event was cancelled due to COVID-19.

“In order to open in April, we have to start the process now. We are going to target April 17 and keep our fingers crossed,” the event’s founder John Wang said.

The market is tentatively scheduled to run through October 30 in the outdoor grounds of the New York Hall of Science, and the first two Saturday nights may serve as ticketed “sneak previews” for the event as has been the case in previous years.

This year, organizers plan to monitor COVID-19 numbers and the vaccine rollout in the city throughout the planning process.

“Hopefully when we do reopen this year there are no capacity restrictions,” Wang said. Items sold at the market will be capped in price at $5 with a few $6 exceptions, therefore vendors rely on a large volume of sales to make a profit. In 2019, the event averaged 15,000 visitors per night with occasional evenings drawing 20,000 to 25,000 people.

“People are itching so much to get out and do social events, and hopefully we have become some positive aspect of New York City, and people will be excited to come out,” Wang said.

So far, about 50 vendors have been selected to dish up international offerings at this year’s market, and applications for stalls will be accepted on a rolling basis.

After the event was cancelled in 2020, the Queens Night Market channeled efforts into helping provide meals to healthcare workers in Queens, assisting with a borough-wide census drive, and serving up food at a fundraiser for the Alliance for Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Six of the Queens Night Market’s vendors also sold their dishes at an outpost in Rockefeller Center in the fall.

However, the pandemic also appears to have taken its toll on independent food sellers in Queens. Wang estimated anecdotally that between 50 to 75 percent of the 2,000 aspiring entrepreneurs associated with the market appear to have closed down or paused their businesses.

“Part of it is practical. If they are so worried about making and paying rent, they are probably not able to use their savings to start a business,” he said.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

‘Unspeakable cruelty’: Richmond Hill stepfather accused of brutally beating 8-year-old over brownies, indicted for attempted murder

A Richmond Hill man was indicted by a Queens grand jury for the attempted murder of his 8-year-old stepson nearly a year ago.

Davien Reid Sr., 43, of 88th Avenue, was arraigned in Queens Supreme Court on Friday on the indictment charging him with attempted murder in the second degree, assault, witness intimidation and other related crimes for the brutal beating of his stepson after the youngster was accused of eating brownies intended for the defendant.

JetBlue unveils $100M Terminal 5 transformation at JFK Airport

New York’s hometown airline unveiled its plans to revitalize its flagship terminal at JFK Airport, which will undergo a $100 million extreme makeover over the next two years aligning with the Port Authority’s massive $19 billion overhaul of the international airport and its road network.

Long Island City-based JetBlue announced the overhaul at Terminal 5, which will feature more than 40 new concessions and amenities, including art installations and a redesigned center concourse. The terminal, which is managed by Fraport USA, will open throughout this year, and the terminal improvements will be completed by the end of 2026.

Queens TV actor convicted of 2021 St. Albans murder in real-life crime drama: DA

A TV actor from Rego Park is facing 25 years to life in prison after he was convicted of murder by a jury following a two-week trial in Queens Supreme Court on Friday.

Isaiah Stokes, 45, of 62nd Road, was found guilty of the fatal 2021 ambush shooting of 37-year-old Tyrone Jones in St. Albans on Feb. 7, 2021, as he sat in a parked Jeep Grand Cherokee, waiting for a friend to arrive for lunch at a nearby restaurant.