Q Thai Bistro, Ascan Avenue Favorite, Closes Its Doors

After 15 years under the LIRR tressle, , the French-Thai Fusion restaurant on Ascan Avenue, will bid adieu to Forest Hills.

While many restaurants come and go in the area, the closing of Q Thai has sent shockwaves through the local culinary community.

“It’s time to move on. It’s not fun anymore, it used to be fun. Now-a-days it’s a struggle just to keep the doors open” said owner Vesna Denic, who opened the bistro in 1996. Originally co-owner with her then-husband Joey Gmerek, Denic currently operates the restaurant with sister-in-law Jean.

It’s no surprise that small businesses have been hit hard during the recession and Q Thai was not immune. “These past three years have been tough. Every year we lose close to 6,000 customers,” Denic said. “It’s still popular but not enough.”

Customers of the restaurant are still in shock over the news. Frequent visitor Michael Spero, 22, said, “I’m sad to see it go. They had pretty good food and I don’t want to have to commute to Manhattan in order to find good Thai food.”

A morose Denic has more or less resigned the restaurant to its fate.

“People still call to make reservations, but I don’t want to waste their time,” she said.

Forest Hills Chamber of Commerce President Leslie Brown, said she was “sad to hear of Q Thai Bistro's closing, as I enjoyed many a meal there and the place was an asset to Forest Hills.”

The bistro may not be completely out of the picture. Since the restaurant was put up for sale, there are a few potential buyers who might keep the Q Thai name alive. “We have potential buyers. But it’s not going to be the same. They have different ideas, but might want to keep the name ‘Q,” Denic added.

As for future plans, Denic is keeping herself busy with multiple jobs. As a part of Madeline Realty, Denic will concentrate on the real estate market as well as an entrepreneurial business of her own.

“I have a lot a plans, I always have two or three jobs. I do real estate, so hopefully the real estate market will pick up this year. So I can concentrate on that and I’m in the process of making myself scarves.”

Q Thai Bistro may be coming to an end for right now, but Denic doesn’t cross out the prospect of opening another restaurant in the future.

“[When I opened] the restaurant, good wine and Thai food was missing from Forest Hills. So maybe in two or three years, Forest Hills will need the business again and maybe I’ll be back.”