Jackson Heights
South Asian, Himalayan, Colombian, Mexican and Ecuadorian food within a few blocks of each other, in what is plausibly the most linguistically diverse neighborhood on earth.
- What it costs
- Free to walk. Momo counters and taquerias run a few dollars; sit-down places are still cheap.
- Best in
- Any season
- Where
- 74th Street & Roosevelt Avenue, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
- Official site
- nycgo.com
Three neighborhoods in six blocks
- 74th Street north of Roosevelt is the South Asian strip — Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi grocers, sari shops, gold jewelers, sweet shops and restaurants.
- Roosevelt Avenue running east and west is Latin American — Colombian bakeries, Mexican taquerias, Ecuadorian and Peruvian places, and street carts operating well into the night.
- Threaded through both is the largest Himalayan community in the United States — Nepali, Tibetan and Bhutanese, and the momo shops that come with it.
All of it is within about a ten-minute walk.
What to actually order
- Momos from a counter — steamed or fried Tibetan and Nepali dumplings. Several of the best are tiny shops with three tables.
- Colombian bakery items and a fresh juice, mid-morning.
- Tacos from a cart on Roosevelt in the evening, when the carts come out properly.
- South Asian sweets from a 74th Street shop, sold by weight.
- A full Indian or Nepali sit-down meal if you have time for one thing done properly.
Bring cash for the carts and small counters.
The rest of it
Away from the food, Jackson Heights is a historic district of 1910s–20s garden apartments built around private interior gardens — an early and genuinely influential piece of urban planning. Walk a few blocks north off 37th Avenue to see it; it looks nothing like the commercial strip.
37th Avenue is the quieter neighborhood shopping street and is more pleasant to walk than Roosevelt.
The neighborhood is also home to a long-established Latin American LGBTQ+ scene along Roosevelt.
Getting there
The 7, E, F, M or R to 74th Street–Broadway / Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue — a big interchange that puts you in the center of it. About 20 to 25 minutes from Midtown.
The 7 is the scenic way; the E is the fast way.
Getting around once you're there
**Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue is accessible.** Streets are flat. Roosevelt Avenue runs under the elevated 7 line, which makes it dark, loud and narrow, and the sidewalks are crowded with market stalls. Many restaurants have a step at the door.