New Seafood Restaurant Opening In Astoria: 'The Boil'

ASTORIA, QUEENS — A Southern-style Seafood restaurant is about to open up in Astoria.

The Boil will open on Aug. 18 at 40-11 30th Ave., just east of Steinway Street, according to the restaurant's website. The storefront was formerly home to Passage Irish Bar & Kitchen, which closed in July after five years in business.

Described by Time Out as a purveyor of "Cajun-style crustacean feasts," The Boil has existing locations in NoHo and Jersey City.

Its menu centers on more than a dozen different boiled seafood items that can be slathered in three types of butter or a "Cajun blend." A raw bar includes oysters, littleneck clams, a shrimp cocktail and Dungeness crab, while appetizers range from catfish sliders to mac and cheese to a chicken-finger basket.

Astorians spotted signage going up this week on the 30th Avenue storefront, which is next door to Comfortland.

The Astoria location will be open daily, from 5-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 5 p.m.-midnight on Fridays, 4 p.m.-midnight on Saturdays, and 4-11 p.m. on Sundays.

The Boil will be one of the latest examples of the crab-boil boom that has unexpectedly swept New York over the past couple of years, the result of low seafood prices combined with increasing demand for specialty food items, according to a report by Hell Gate.

Indeed, The Boil is opening another new location in Park Slope on the same day as Astoria, and its website mentions "partnership opportunities" on the Upper West Side, Upper East Side and Long Island, suggesting plans to expand further.