Best of Jackson Heights
Ten Jackson Heights spots verified against live hours and closures, from Birria-Landia's NYT-listed tacos to Jackson Diner's 40-year Little India kitchen.
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- 1Jackson Heights · $$ · 77-99 Roosevelt Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Late-night birria taco truck parked on Roosevelt Avenue, serving consommé-dunked Tijuana-style birria tacos, quesabirria, and cheese-crusted tacos dorados.
Because it landed at #18 on the New York Times' 2025 list of the 100 Best Restaurants in New York City, one of the highest citywide honors any Jackson Heights kitchen has received.
Order The quesabirria, dunked in the consommé before every bite.
Go after 9pm on a weeknight when the line is shortest, and bring small bills since the truck moves faster than a card reader.
- 2Jackson Heights · $$ · 74-15 Roosevelt Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Nepali home-style kitchen on Roosevelt Avenue specializing in steamed and fried momos and thali platters, opened by Yamuna Shrestha in 2015.
Because it made the New York Times' 2026 list of the 100 Best Restaurants in New York City and has won the city's Momo Crawl five years running.
Order The jhol momo, dumplings served in a tangy sesame-tomato broth.
Order a mix of steamed and pan-fried momos in the same visit so you can compare textures side by side.
- 3Jackson Heights · $$ · 88-05 Roosevelt Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Casual Mexican seafood spot on Roosevelt Avenue known for towering tostadas, acid-bright aguachile, and octopus and shrimp ceviches.
Because its aguachile negro earned an 8.7 from The Infatuation, one of the highest scores given to any restaurant in the neighborhood.
Order The aguachile negro, the dish The Infatuation calls essential to a visit.
Come with at least one other person so you can order a tostada tower alongside the aguachile without overordering.
- 4Jackson Heights · $$ · 79-19 Roosevelt Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Also No. 2 on Best Colombian in Jackson Heights →
Round-the-clock Colombian bakery, diner, and juice bar on Roosevelt Avenue serving fresh-baked bread, empanadas, and ropa vieja, plus the neighborhood's best-known cholados.
Because it has run 24 hours a day on Roosevelt Avenue for 27 years and still pulls an 8.3 from The Infatuation.
Order A cholado, the shaved-ice fruit dessert the counter built its name on.
Swing by at an odd hour, like 4am, when it's often quieter and the bakery case is freshest.
- 5Jackson Heights · $ · 77-17 37th Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Also No. 1 on Best Colombian in Jackson Heights →
Colombian arepa counter built on the legend of Maria Piedad Cano, the original 'Arepa Lady,' who sold arepas de choclo from a street cart on this corner for decades before her sons opened a storefront.
Because the storefront grew directly out of Cano's cart, which sold arepas de choclo on this same corner for more than three decades before the family formalized the business.
Order The arepa de choclo, a sweet corn cake with melted cheese.
Order the arepa de choclo with cheese folded inside, the version the original cart was famous for.
- 6Jackson Heights · $$ · 76-05 Roosevelt Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Long-running Mexican taqueria on Roosevelt Avenue with an open grill visible from the street, serving tacos, huaraches, and full entrees to a mixed local and late-night crowd.
Because it has kept its open grill running on Roosevelt Avenue since long before the taco truck boom that grew up around it, and still rates 7.8 with The Infatuation.
Order Tacos al pastor, carved straight off the trompo.
Sit at the counter facing the grill so you can watch your order get built before it lands.
- 7Jackson Heights · $$ · 37-47 74th St, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Also No. 2 on Best Indian in Queens →
Longtime Indian dining room on 74th Street, one of the anchor restaurants of Jackson Heights' 'Little India' corridor since the early 1980s.
Because it has anchored 74th Street's Little India corridor since Gian Singh converted it from an American diner into an Indian restaurant in the early 1980s.
Order The lamb biryani, a menu constant since the early 1980s.
Try the lunch buffet first if you want to sample widely before committing to a full entree.
From @jackson_diner on Instagram, shown through Instagram's own embed player.
- 8Jackson Heights · $$ · 84-02 37th Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Family-run Uruguayan grill and steakhouse on 37th Avenue, famous for its parrillada platter piled with steak, sweetbreads, and house sausages.
Because its parrillada, listed as a portion 'for one,' actually feeds three or four people according to The Infatuation's review.
Order The parrillada, a mixed grill of steak, sweetbreads, and house sausage.
Split the parrillada 'for one' between two or three people rather than ordering it solo.
- 9Jackson Heights · $$ · 70-64 Broadway, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
24-hour Pakistani-Indian counter spot on Broadway known for its chicken kebab roll and grab-and-go South Asian fast food.
Because The Infatuation's own review confirms it runs 24 hours a day out of a blink-and-you'll-miss-it counter on Broadway.
Order The chicken kebab roll, wrapped fresh in minutes.
It's a stand-and-order counter, not a sit-down spot, so plan to eat the roll on the walk home.
- 10Jackson Heights · $$ · 73-10 37th Ave, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Spotless Indian sweets-and-chaat shop on 37th Avenue near 74th Street, known for its samosa chaat and case of mithai.
Because Time Out singled out its samosa chaat combo by exact price, $3.99, as a defining bite of the neighborhood.
Order The $3.99 samosa chaat, crisp samosas over chickpeas with tamarind and mint chutney.
Grab a box of mithai from the case on your way out, it travels well for later.