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For a glimpse into the future of the Queens waterfront, Long Island City's Riverview makes an apt crystal ball. Nestled on the ground floor of one of the borough’s newest and tallest high-rises, decked out in chi-chi modernist décor, and with virtual dibs on the bucolic Gantry Plaza State Park and pristine Midtown Manhattan skyline, it's a far cry from the dingy delis and rundown coffee shops tucked among the industrial blight lining—for the time being—Hunters Point's East River shoreline. But you may find reasons to like it anyway. For one thing, Riverview offers an uncharacteristically peaceful NYC outdoor dining experience; for another, the food is commendable. For starters, the full-bodied squash soup is graced with a nice jalapeño-oil punch to offset the squash's blandness, while the mesclun salad's truffle dressing has a pleasant, lasting earthiness. Entrees like the seafood linguine, with its potent lemony broth and basil notes, and the quasi-crisp roasted chicken, are equally flavorful; even the somewhat soggy fries accompanying the chicken are tastier than they look and feel. All in all, the Riverview's meals are distinctive, ample, and reasonably priced, not unlike Queens. Well, back in the old days, at least. — Mark Holcomb

Squash soup, $8