Woodside Tattoo is a Queens-based tattoo business built around careful design, clear communication, and the belief that permanent work deserves time and thought.
Owner Mateo Rivera grew up between Woodside and Jackson Heights in a family that had been in Queens for years. As a teenager, he was always drawing: names in different lettering styles, faces from photographs, album-inspired imagery, neighborhood storefronts, and memorial pieces for friends who wanted something personal. What interested him was not just making an image look impressive. He liked hearing why somebody wanted a particular name, face, symbol, or date and then figuring out how to make that idea look balanced on the page.
Mateo's path into tattooing developed through years spent around New York artists, learning how different skin, placements, references, and styles change the decisions behind a design. Portraits and black and grey work became particular interests because they brought drawing, light, shadow, and personal stories together. Cover-ups taught him another side of the trade: sometimes the best service an artist can give is an honest explanation of what will and will not work. Those experiences shaped the approach that eventually became Woodside Tattoo.
When Mateo built the business around Woodside, he wanted it to feel connected to the Queens community rather than like a studio trying to imitate somewhere else. The shop's work reflects the requests people actually bring in: family names, memorial portraits, religious imagery, realistic subjects, old tattoos that need a new direction, and pieces chosen simply because the client loves the image. Mateo later brought artists Alina Chen and Javier Morales onto the team because they shared the same belief that good tattooing begins with listening, careful preparation, and respect for the person who has to wear the result.
We focus on Black And Grey Tattoos, Piercing, Cover Up Tattoos, Name Tattoos, Portrait Tattoos, and Realism Tattoos. Each service has its own page so you can see exactly what is involved before you call.
We are based around Woodside and serve New York, including Ridgewood, Sunnyside Gardens, Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, Maspeth, and Kew Gardens.
The client knows why the tattoo matters. We start by understanding the subject, priorities, and concerns before deciding how the design should look.
If a cover-up cannot work as requested or a detailed portrait is being forced too small, we explain the issue. Clear guidance is more useful than an easy promise.
A tattoo is not a disposable purchase. We take spelling, references, placement, composition, and preparation seriously because the finished work stays with the client.
First tattoo or twentieth, simple name or large realism piece, every client should be able to ask questions and receive a straightforward answer without being made to feel out of place.
Meet the people who answer the phone and do the work on our Meet the Team page, or see how to join us on our Careers page.
Have an idea, reference, or old tattoo you want to change? Send the details and we will help you figure out the next step.
Free — no obligations