When JACX&CO opened at 28-17 Jackson Avenue on November 11, 2020, its opening roster included Beebe's, Crif Dogs, FIELDTRIP, Ghaya, Lotus + Clever, Méxology and Taïm. Six years later the hall reopened on October 30 under a new name, METTRA, with new management and almost entirely new counters. Newsday reports that Beebe's, Ace's Pizza, Taïm, Fieldtrip, Ghaya and Kissaki have all left. Several of the operators replacing them already run kitchens in Flushing.
LIC Food Hall on 42nd Road shows the same pattern. Its vendor page says the hall features "hand-picked options from Flushing" and beyond, and in November 2026 it added another Flushing name to its roster. Both of Long Island City's food halls now rely heavily on operators who proved themselves out on the 7 line before opening a counter here.
METTRA Kept the JACX&CO Room and Changed Who Cooks in It
The building's look hasn't changed. According to Newsday, METTRA keeps the industrial look from its JACX&CO years: high ceilings, leather seating and counters around the edges, with a cocktail bar in the middle of the main floor and a hand-roll bar upstairs on the mezzanine. Newsday also reports that the hall is open daily from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. and that nearly every dish costs under $20.
The operators have changed. QNS reported that Siam Thai, led by Chef Natta, also runs locations in Flushing, Staten Island and Chicago. Himitsu, the sushi and hand-roll counter on the mezzanine, brings what QNS calls its established Japanese cooking from Flushing to Long Island City. Center Bar comes from the hospitality team behind The Attic and Tavern 157 in Flushing. Even the grand-opening raffle pointed east. Its top prize was a one-night stay at the Renaissance New York Flushing Hotel at Tangram.
One connection to the old lineup remains. QNS reports that Himitsu's chef, Mark Garcia, previously worked at Kissaki, one of the former JACX&CO tenants Newsday lists. So the building's sushi counter still has a link to the hall's earlier version, under new ownership.
METTRA's own site lists the current vendors as Bobwhite Counter, Soft Swerve, Siam Thai Express, Himitsu Handroll Bar, Nagaiki Ramen, Ziyan Chicken, Kimbo Beef, Master Spicy Hot Pot, Center Bar and Unmei Matcha. Newsday's menu notes give some prices:
- Nagaiki Ramen: The Old Bay Ebi Abura Soba, a brothless ramen topped with Cajun-spiced shrimp, is $16.
- Siam Thai Express: Pad Thai is $15, Thai iced tea is $6, Tom Yum noodle soup is $17 and mango sticky rice is $10.
- Kimbo Beef Noodle: Guizhou yellow-braised beef rice noodles.
- Soft Swerve: The Broadway special is ube soft serve topped with Fruity Pebbles and cereal marshmallows.
- Center Bar: QNS reports cocktails, beer, wine and spirits, with happy hour from 4 to 7 p.m.
The new management plans weekly live entertainment, cultural programming and community events, according to Newsday.
LIC Food Hall Was Built Around Flushing From the Start
METTRA turned toward Flushing when it relaunched. LIC Food Hall at 27-17 42nd Road, inside Star Tower, was set up that way from the beginning. QNS reported that the hall held its grand opening in August 2025. The co-manager, David Lee, also owns Marathon HK Diner, one of the hall's anchor counters.
Before the hall opened, Eater NY's preview described the early roster as a group of expansions. Hunan Noodle was opening its second location, Fat Cat Flatbread had a base in Flushing, Ten Seconds Yunnan Rice Noodle was opening its third Queens location, and Duomi Rice Yogurt House its second. The hall's own page still says Hunan Noodle was "originally located in Flushing" and recommends its Changsha black stinky tofu and Nanchang dry mix noodle.
The roster has changed since that preview, and the new arrivals bring even bigger track records. QNS's October 2025 list of the hall's ten vendors included Gua Gua Bo Bo Chicken, Fat Cat Flatbread, Duomi Rice Yogurt House and Cozy Tea Loft. The hall's current vendor page lists Marathon Hong Kong Diner, Pho Vital, Taipei Hang, Hunan Noodle, Shimiaodao and U Ni Rice, along with Xiang Ba Ye, Faat Gee Siu Mei and Joe's Steam Rice Roll. The hall describes Xiang Ba Ye, a Hunan wok-cooking brand, as having more than 500 locations across China. Faat Gee Siu Mei roasts its Cantonese barbecue in-house every day, including roast duck and char siu.
Joe's Steam Rice Roll is the newest arrival. According to the hall, Joe's was founded in Flushing in 2017, grew into Manhattan's Chinatown, the Upper West Side and Sunset Park, and opened its newest location at LIC Food Hall this month. It's known for silky Cantonese-style steamed rice rolls made fresh to order.
Where the New Counters Started
Lined up together, the operators with known home bases show the same pattern in both buildings.
| Counter | Hall | Where the operator was already cooking |
|---|---|---|
| Himitsu | METTRA | Flushing |
| Siam Thai | METTRA | Flushing, Staten Island and Chicago |
| Center Bar | METTRA | The Attic and Tavern 157 in Flushing |
| Hunan Noodle | LIC Food Hall | Flushing, with LIC as its second location |
| Joe's Steam Rice Roll | LIC Food Hall | Flushing since 2017, plus Chinatown, the Upper West Side and Sunset Park |
| Xiang Ba Ye | LIC Food Hall | More than 500 locations across China |
For a resident, this means most of these counters have already proven their menus elsewhere. A first-time visitor to Joe's on 42nd Road gets the same rice rolls Flushing has been eating since 2017, without the trip out on the 7.
The Street Openings Show the Same Pattern
Outside the food halls, LIC's most visible recent restaurant opening also comes from an established operator. Spicy Moon, the vegan Chinese restaurant known for spicy tofu steamed buns and General Tso's "chicken," opened its fifth location at 45-04 Pearson Street. According to The Infatuation, it's a two-story space hung with pink and blue fabric streamers, with a rooftop. Reservations are on Resy. The company's other locations, all in Manhattan, are on the Bowery and in the West Village, East Village and Chelsea, according to its site.
Rewind, at 45-57 Davis Street, is a new concept rather than an expansion. Eater NY listed it at that address in its fall preview. QNS reported that the 9,000-square-foot restaurant, cocktail bar and karaoke venue held its grand opening on September 9. It has eight private karaoke rooms and Asian-inspired food and drinks. Co-founder Chia Pan leads the concept, and the kitchen is run by chef Alexander Lee, who has 15 years in the industry. Rewind is a destination built for big groups. The food halls are where the neighborhood's everyday lunches and casual dinners now come from Flushing kitchens.
One Stall Is Still Open on 42nd Road
LIC Food Hall is still adding vendors. Its vendor page lists Unit J as available now: a 190-square-foot restaurant space with 49 square feet of storage. Judging by who has moved into these two halls over the past year, the next tenant will likely be an operator with a following somewhere else in Queens.
Food halls like these show you which established operators see Long Island City as worth a second address, and that same signal matters when you're weighing a building, a block or a sale here. For a private conversation about what the Jackson Avenue and Court Square corridors look like right now, reach out to Bianca D'Alessio - Nestseekers Masters Division and request a private consultation.
