ZOE SALDANA REPS HER CITY!

In just one year, Zoe Saldana went from a struggling actress to one of Hollywood's hottest superstars. After the success of "Star Trek" and, most recently, "Avatar," the 31-year-old Queens native is now competing against the likes of Miley Cyrus and Megan Fox at Nickelodeon's Kids Choice Awards. But despite her newfound fame, Saldana still enjoys coming back to New York City for a little R&R with the family.

"Avatar" has been a huge commercial success. Was it as much fun to make the movie as watch it?

It was a fantastic movie to make. The intimacy was never lost with Jim [James Cameron]. He molded the technology to his way of working and maintained the intimacy that a director has with the actors. He didn't want to be in another room, so he built these cameras and helmets that we wore. It was actually very liberating, because once we removed all the time that was consumed by hair, makeup, lighting, wardrobe and all the visual vanity things, we were just left with a story, a set of characters and the director. It was sort of like a workshop. It was all in the imagination, which is a very liberating feeling for an actress.

You were born in New Jersey, raised in New York City and the Caribbean and live in Los Angeles. Where do you consider home?

I'm a New Yorker from head to toe. I breathe, I eat, I walk, I think like a New Yorker. Whenever I feel like going back home, I always imagine Queens. I don't get back to New York as much as I would like, but I try. I really miss it.

What do you miss most about New York City?

I miss my favorite Chinese food restaurant down in Chinatown. I don't remember the name exactly — I think its name starts with a "W" — but I've been going there since I was a baby and it brings back good memories of Sunday meals with Mom and Grandma. The waiters wear Hawaiian shirts. It could be in the dead of winter and they are decked out in palm trees and birds. The restaurant is really tiny. I think it's on Broome St. They make the best wonton soup, fried noodles and duck. Every restaurant says their duck is succulent, but this duck is the most succulent of all.

When you come back to New York City, what's the first thing you do?

I get on a train. I absolutely love train rides, especially the New York subway system. When you are from Queens, your life revolves around the 7 line. I used to call it the purple line when I was a kid. There is something about being on a train — you have an excuse to just zone out. I don't really have to call anybody because I'm in the subway. I can just listen to music and read a book. It's my little bit of off-time, because every other time, as a New Yorker, you live with this natural impulse to always be running from place to place. I think the subway allows you to have a little break. When I'm on the train, I have a legitimate excuse. "Sorry, I was on the train. I couldn't call you back."

Really, you are not too famous to still ride the subway?

Even now, I can still pull off the subway. New Yorkers are so respectful. I know, that sounds crazy, but everybody is so busy trying to make rent and take care of their own lives that nobody really has time to notice what's going on with the person next to them on the train. I love New York for that reason. We respect each other's privacy. I dress just like I used to when I was a teenager. I put on big glasses and a hat and nobody notices me.