DISCOVER QUEENS
Welcome to the ultimate guide to Queens, NY – where authentic experiences meet local pride.
We curate unforgettable tourism experiences that invite visitors to truly explore and discover the heart of Queens. Through our prestigious Best of Queens Awards, we shine a spotlight on the borough’s most outstanding businesses – from hidden-gem restaurants and unique shops to world-class services – and actively promote them across our highly curated tour guides and digital platforms.
Our mission goes beyond promotion: we empower Queens’ local businesses to thrive by offering complimentary consulting, marketing support, and growth strategies at no cost. When our community succeeds, everyone wins – residents, entrepreneurs, and travelers alike.
We can’t wait to show you why Queens is New York’s most exciting borough.
Meet The Team
Nicole Biscardi
Restaurant 311 Program Manager
I’ve worked in NYC for the vast majority of my professional career in the food and beverage industry, which amounts to over twenty years. I’ve seen first-hand the challenges that NYC food and beverage operators and restaurateurs face, and I’ve committed myself professionally to helping these entrepreneurs succeed. I possess the unique ability to teach, coach and build resilience in my clients’ businesses by arming them with relevant information, guided implementation and most of all, confidence.
I help small businesses navigate NYC’s challenging regulatory systems, maintain health and safety standards, and comply with labor and financial regulations on city, state and federal levels. I encourage creating positive work cultures, advise on human resources issues and I assist operators in improving their bottom line. I work heavily in the business planning stage with start-up and first-time entrepreneurs, and have also worked with some of NYC’s most experienced restaurant groups.
Juan F. Vargas, MBA
Marketing Strategy & Analytics Consultant
Juan F. Vargas is a NYC-based Marketing Strategy & Analytics Consultant with over 4 years of experience and an MBA in Business Analytics from Pace University. Since 2024, he has led marketing efforts for the Queens Chamber of Commerce and Nicole Biscardi & Co — designing and launching a five-borough Business Toolkit website that surpassed 18,000 page views in 30 days, growing the Restaurant 311 program from 88 to 120 businesses, and leading the digital strategy to promote the Restaurant 311 program. Previously, he served as Marketing Director for fashion and beauty eCommerce brands, leading digital strategy, website design, and email and social media marketing.
Fluent in Spanish, English, and French, Juan engages seamlessly with New York City's diverse small business community, fostering strong relationships and delivering inclusive, data-driven marketing solutions. He leverages tools like Python and Tableau for data collection, storage, and analysis to optimize targeting for email campaigns and social media outreach.
As a tech-savvy professional, Juan brings expertise across website design and development, SEO, data analysis, content creation, and CRM setup, along with proficiency across a wide range of digital tools — providing growth solutions for entrepreneurs and organizations across NYC's small business ecosystem.
