Arepa Lady, Vegan Spot To Open At Long-Awaited Food Hall: Report

ASTORIA, QUEENS — A beloved Colombian street food restaurant and vegan comfort food spot are slated to open outposts at an Astorian food hall, according to a new report.

Arepa Lady and Urban Vegan Kitchen, both of which already have locations open in New York City, will fill the final two spots at The World Artisan Market, an international food hall located in a repurposed Astoria warehouse at 34-39 31 Street, the Astoria Post reported.

News of the restaurants’ openings come as the food hall announced that all six of its vendors will begin serving customers by the end of this year, after the pandemic delayed its initial 2019 opening plan.

“Everyone will be open and operating by the end of the year,” Steve Lysohir, the president of EJ Stevens, the Astoria-based development company behind the project, told the Astoria Post.

A restaurant spokesperson told the news site that Arepa Lady, originally known for its Jackson Heights shop, will open at The World Artisan market in November. This isn’t the restaurant’s first foray into the world of food halls, however, since it already has a shop at Brooklyn’s DeKalb Market Hall.

Urban Vegan Kitchen, which already has a West Village location, will open its Astoria outpost sometime in the fall, the Astoria Post reported.

The two new restaurants will join four other restaurants in the food hall: Sotto la Luna, an Italian restaurant opening next month, Sala Astoria, a Spanish restaurant-slash-wine-bar, Elevenses, a vegetarian bakery, and Potlux Kitchen, an Asian fusion restaurant.

The Yamato Noodle Company will also host Japanese cooking classes on site, according to the Astoria Post.