ASTORIA — Would you like those pancakes al fresco?
A 24-hour diner that's been open for decades on 21st Street and Broadway is looking to add sidewalk seating, with the owners saying they want to keep pace with the growing number of other local restaurants that let patrons dine outside.
Community Board 1 approved the Bel Aire Diner's application Tuesday to operate eight tables with 16 chairs along Broadway.
"Times are changing — everybody has outdoor seating," said Pat Dellaportas, who along with her husband, Archie, took over as owners of the Bel Aire almost 19 years ago.
"We just want to change it up a little," she said.
Bel Aire serves classic diner staples like waffles, omelets and tripledecker sandwiches.
Though it's open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the outdoor seating would only operate from roughly 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., the owners told the board.
"It's a novel application. I've never heard of a diner having an unenclosed sidewalk café," Joseph Risi, CB1's consumer affairs chairman, said Monday night.
The board voted unanimously to recommend in favor of the diner's application, which will ultimately need to approved by the the Department of Consumer Affairs and the City Council.
Dellaportas said they hope to add the outdoor tables as soon as they're allowed.
"It gives us a little bit of an option," she said. "People like sitting outside."
