Mundo New York

Long before Mundo ended up at the Paper Factory Hotel (#1), it was already right up there with some of the most heralded establishments in the borough (#2). This version of Mundo was a spiffier, more spacious and trendy version than the initial location in Astoria. It was short lived unfortunately and remains one of the great losses of restaurants in Queens.

The space was beautiful. In some ways, it was nicer than the building it resided in and was meant to be a destination for a quickly gentrifying section of LIC. The contemporary vibe was lovely and the interior was super sexy all throughout. It was really more than just a restaurant, it was a place that was perfect for special occasions and/or events.

From a food and beverage standpoint, they were on their A game. The menu was a modern blend of Mediterranean, Latin, and American cuisine. I still miss their "red sonja" lentil fritters and certainly their "ottoman dumplings" manti, which were always a hit. They also served a fun brunch hour and always had a number of dishes that spanned across so many cuisines (empanadas? pancakes? gnocchi?) that were surprising, but tasty in their own right.

They also had a hell of a cocktail program and a good looking bar to match. Bartenders were professional and friendly; I would enjoy sitting along the counter and watching them do their magic. The happy hours were always fun and it was never too crowded.

Sadly, things are never fair in life. Mundo was a hit before it closed and it closed before it became a hit. They closed and reopened once before, I'm holding onto the hope they can do it again.
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(#1) Now known as the The Collective Paper Factory https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-collective-paper-factory-long-island-city
(#2) https://www.yelp.com/biz/mundo-caf%C3%A9-and-restaurant-astoria-3

I absolutely love this place. It is the perfect location for a romantic dinner, or girls night.

The cocktails are delicious, the ambiance is great, parking is pretty good also which is surprising since Mundo is in Astoria/LIC

The food was so good - I had the grilled octopus as an app, and a greek salad. Then espresso creme brulee for dessert. SO GOOD!!

My friend had half a chicken - cooked to PERFECTION.

Wait staff were good too, we even got free prosecco.

A little on the pricey side, but certainly worth it, you can tell it is all great quality.

The restaurant is trendy and spacious, located on the first floor of a boutique hotel. Ambiance is fantastic.

I came here with a party of 6 for dinner on a Saturday night. We had the octopus for one of our appetizers that was absolutely delicous! It's so easy for restaurants to screw up octopus but they did it just right! It wasn't overcooked and rubbery, the texture and the flavor was perfection. My friend and I shared the rack of lamb and the risotto, both very delicious. They give you about 4 pieces of lamb that was seasoned well and tasty.

I recommend this place for large parties and special events.

Mundo is situated in the fairly recently converted paper factory building that also is home to the paper factory hotel. The restaurant offers an odd but cohesive blend of cuisines. However, Mundo primarily markets itself as an Argentinian restaurant. There's an exciting amount of diversity primarily of Turkish and Israeli influence. Highlights are the steak and eggs; french toast; red sonja (a must try); and, Ottoman dumplings.

On my initial two visits a live French jazz band performed; a different band on each visit. Perfect ambiance for a perfect meal. While it may seem as a destination restaurant, please keep in mind there's much to do within a few block walk, including: a 14 screen multiplex; The Museum of the Moving Image; plenty of hip bars and outdoor cafes to people watch; and, much, much, more...

Prices are very reasonable for the high-quality gastronomical experience that is purveyed. The staff is very friendly and accommodating.

Mundo keeps me returning. I brought the munchkin for brunch and she loved it. Can't wait to return to what I believe is the most underrated restaurant in the entire city. This hidden gem in Long Island City earned the right to be widely known and I'm more than happy to help spread the word.

It's a shame the food is so good because the service was so bad, I probably won't come back see again.

We came for dinner at 7 and the restaurant actually wasn't that packed, so I have no idea why service was as slow and terrible as it was. The waitress had no idea what the specials were, if we could change sides, if we could sample a wine, nothing. She honestly had no clue about anything. Aside from that, it took us forever to even get the waitress to come take our order.

We had most of the appetizers and as entrees the table had scallops, lamb and the burger. The food was delicious and after the service we received, I was shocked the food was as good as it was. The Brussel sprouts as a side was also delicious.

All in all, the service was the worst I've ever had, but I will say the food was really good. If you're willing to take the risk of receiving terrible service, you'll be rewarded with delicious food.

I like that since there's no obvious type of cuisine they're going for here, they've just called it world, in spanish, for good measure. They've got a short but very solid list of beers and some pretty interesting cocktails too. We split some calamari (good, and made better with the addition of some fried peppers and shallots), the red sonja appetizer (bulger and peppers mashed and served in bib lettuce) and I can recommend both. For my entree I had the pappardelle which came in an unexpectedly creamy white sauce (it's not obvious on the menu that it'll be sorta alfredo like) while my friends split a variety of their fish dishes. Solid stuff all around.

This place looks pretty good for big group dinners since they've got space and long tables. I think there may even be a private room in the back.

Twice now I've gone during operating hours and they hAve not been open. Really annoying.

Update: I was a guest at the hotel on a trip for business. The front desk informed me the restaurant was open until 11PM so two nights in a row I rushed back for dinner, the first night I walked in at 10:45 and the kitchen was closed (even though I just asked for the hummus appetizer) and the second night it was even earlier 10:30?

The fact that "The chef" commented passive aggressively makes me like this place even less.

We visited Mundo back in June for father's day to surprise dad by explaining him and my family our marriage decision with my hubby so first of all it was a memorable night :)

We took Q and R trains to get there from Brooklyn, it is kind of far for us but pretty close to city. It takes place in a hotel(Paper Factory) which causes the prices to be higher. We paid over $400 for 6 people. Service charge included. (%20) I don't like that policy but maybe considering tourists, they do that.

About service, really attentive, detail oriented, they deserve the tip, no question.

About the food, my brother tried dumplings, he is like an expert of them, he was like "it is okay", my parents shared a skirt steak which was really good, I got a taste, the mashed potato with its special hot pepper flavor, so original. My husband got chicken alla rustica and I got lamb chops. Both dish was too oily for our taste. Appetizers are risky. Some you may love a lot, some are so unusual. Red sonja is a classic, empanadas are good. Ceviche peruano, not my taste al all.

Drinks are $11-15, wine we got was $72 by the bottle, was not a fan(Colome Malbec).

Really nice interior design, they have party room on lower level.

Chocolate soufflé is the winner of the night! Semolina helva is nice too but if I would return, I would return for the soufflé.

Came here with a bunch of friends on a Sat night with a reservation, and was seated immediately. The place was dim and romantic with an interesting Mediterranean night feel. Perfect for an intimate date (take note!).

We started off with the Red Sonja and Grilled Spanish Octopus. Both of which were excellent. The octopus was tender and cooked perfectly. I absolutely loved the Sonja and would have been completely satisfied if that was all we ate that night (but then again, I'm a cheap date). I ordered the grilled salmon myself, and had a taste of the rack of lamb. The salmon was seasoned well and was a perfect "medium", not dry or overcooked. And that carrot purée was uhh-mazing. The rack of lamb was also done very well, and seasoned perfectly. No sauce needed.

The one con, unfortunately, was that all of my friend's rack of lambs came out somewhat cold (4 orders). Otherwise, this place would have gotten a solid 5 stars from me.

Also, kudos to the bartender. The winter rosemary was by far one of the best cocktails I've had in a long time.

Would I come here again? Def.

This restaurant recently changed their name to Lily Valley and is in the Paper Factory hotel. I had the burger with the lime jalapeno fries and it was unexpectedly great. Burger was fat and juicy, a large amount of bread but was ideal for how juicy the burger was. Fries were very thin and crispy. 8/10 for the burger.

Good service, and nice ambiance. Definitely recommended.