A We Heart Astoria tipster tells us that Forest Hills-based Twist and Smash’d will open in the old Bud’s Ale House location at 34-02 Steinway Street. Twist and Smash’d serves twisted potatoes and gourmet burgers (perhaps they are even smashed), along with salads, breakfast and snacks. Here’s the menu for the Forest Hills location.

So what’s up with those twisty potatoes? The owner tells all: “While traveling in Ecuador we found a small café that sold twisted potatoes. We were enchanted by this idea of a potato on a stick and brought it back to New York with us.” These crispy twisty potatoes were a big hit during their market research and people really seem to love them. It’s hard to go wrong with crispy potatoes, truth be told. The sweet potato version sounds tasty, too.

Looks like a lot of meat options, but there is a homemade veggie burger (with caramelized onions and mango salsa) option, and a crab burger, too. A gluten free bun is also available.

We look forward to learning more over the coming weeks.

ETA: Here’s a photo of the place as it is now: