Favorite Dishes #95: Banana Royal at Eddie’s Sweet Shop

Nostalgia seems like an ongoing trend in restaurant concepts; we’ve lost count of the number of places employing vintage-inspired wood wainscoting and faux-antique tin ceilings as part of their design. Old-fashioned ice cream parlors have jumped on that train, as well. But then, there’s Eddie’s Sweet Shop (105-29 Metropolitan Ave #1, Queens; 718-520-8514), the real deal. Since 1909, this corner store has been serving scoops to adoring fans, barely changing a thing. The humongous banana royal ($9) at Eddie’s is a delicious throwback; served on a fluted silver dish, it’s piled high with three scoops of ice cream, sliced banana, syrup (ranging from chocolate and caramel to marshmallow and strawberry), sprinkles, chopped nuts, fresh whipped cream, and a cherry on top. Ice cream is house-made, in flavors developed during the shop’s early days. Expect to see classics like cherry vanilla, mint chip, coffee chip, pistachio pineapple, rum raisin, strawberry, and butter pecan. The Banana Royal is large enough to share, but so good you’ll want it all to yourself.

Fork in the Road is counting down to our Best of New York City issue in October. We’re combing the city every day, one dish at a time, to guide you to the most delicious food in NYC. These are our 2015 100 Favorite Dishes, in no particular order, save for the top 10.

Here’s our countdown up to now:
#100: Laminated Blueberry Brioche at Dominique Ansel Kitchen
#99: Egg Shop’s Golden Bucket Fried Chicken
#98: Ramen Lab’s Torigara Shoyu
#97: Cannoli at Ferdinando’s
#96: Breakfast Sandwich at Dimes