SUNNYSIDE — A new restaurant in the neighborhood is serving up a medley of ceviche dishes and other seafood specialties.
Dayboat opened earlier this month at 41-16 Queens Blvd., between 41st and 42nd streets, in the space formerly occupied by the popular eatery Salt & Fat, which closed its doors in October.
Owners Roberth Mendoza and Sandra Telenchana said ceviche — fresh fish or seafood marinated and cured in citrus juice and other ingredients — will be the restaurant's specialty.
"What we're trying to do is not a Peruvian restaurant — what we're trying to do is ceviches," said Mendoza, who became interested in the dish while previously working at a Peruvian eatery in Manhattan.
Dayboat's menu reflects a number of international influences, including Japanese, Korean and European, he said.
"Peru was a big port in South America for a long time, and you had a lot of countries stopping by," Mendoza explained. "All of these cultures came tighter and influenced not only what ceviche is, but also Peruvian cuisine."
The current menu includes five variations of ceviche, including a traditional one made with fluke in lime juice, celery and onion and another featuring octopus, avocado, jalapeño and chalaquita, a Peruvian salsa.
There are also several tiradito dishes, which is similar to ceviche but features a fish or seafood that's sliced thin before it's marinated.
The paella at Dayboat (Credit: Felipe Tobar)
Other menu options include Cornish hen, a winter squash salad with beets, pumpkin seeds and a miso maple glaze, and a seafood paella with shrimp, mussels and squid.
The restaurant gets daily deliveries of its fish and seafood, Mendoza.
"We're just ordering fresh fish every day," he said.
The owner said he chose to open up shop in Sunnyside because of its already adventurous restaurant scene.
"Sunnyside is an area where people are willing to try food," said Mendoza, who grew up in nearby Jackson Heights. "People who are willing to experiment a little bit and try new things."
The eatery is waiting on its liquor license, but plans to start serving signature cocktails in the next few weeks, with plans to serve brunch in the future.
Dayboat is currently open for dinner from 5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
