6 Restaurants Mayor Zohran Mamdani Frequents In NYC

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Actress and cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey sits in an ornate wooden chair inside Kabab King, a Pakistani restaurant in Queens, New York, in the music video for rapper Mr. Cardamom's 2019 song "Nani." "Drinkin' hella water poured for me by my waiter," raps Mr. Cardamom, filling Jaffrey's glass. "Not just anyone, but the head f*****g maitre." Later in the video, a shirtless Mr. Cardamom stands in a street food cart, rapping while wearing only an apron and holding a wrap in his crossed arms. It's clear Mr. Cardamom loves food (via YouTube).

Seven years later, Mr. Cardamom still loves food. But today, he's better known as New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. Even his mayoral campaign centered on food. Mamdani has said it's just the way he sees the world. "So many of these moments in my life were ones that I could not separate from food," he told The New York Times.

Mamdani's approach turns some conventional New York City food wisdom on its head. He likes the hole-in-the-wall, neighborhood joints, of which New York City has lots. And he's lived in Queens, the city's most diverse borough, where there's no shortage of cheap, delicious food. For years, he lived in Astoria, known for its great restaurants. Here are some of the spots he keeps coming back to.

Perhaps no restaurant is more closely associated with Mamdani than Kabab King. It's not just the music video here: he's been a regular at Kabab King since high school, and his inauguration as mayor was even catered by the restaurant. "You gotta go there for biryani," Mamdani said in an interview with The New Yorker (via YouTube). "It's incredible. I would say then finish it off with some paan outside," he said, referring to a traditional South Asian after-meal palate cleanser.

Kabab King is a 24/7 restaurant in the diverse Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens. It's not where Mamdani grew up — he grew up in Uganda and Manhattan's Morningside Heights neighborhood — but it's an area that's come to be associated with Mamdani because of its large South Asian community. Kabab King's menu has traditional Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Indian foods like tandoori dishes, curries, and even kabab rolls similar to the one in Mr. Cardamom's music video.

Mamdani talks a lot about the role that small businesses play in the New York City food scene. There's a good reason: there are between 9,000 and 10,000 small-business restaurants in the city, per WifiTalents. In January 2026, Mamdani signed an executive order designed to simplify the regulatory processes for small businesses. He did so at a small business: Sweets & Things, in the eastern Brooklyn neighborhood of Cypress Hills.

Sweets & Things is a relatively new Dominican bakery and coffee shop with a menu focused on tres leches cakes. The bright pink, modern interior and innovative menu had garnered some attention even before Mamdani stopped by, including a feature with the owner on Good Morning America.

Mayor Mamdani now lives in Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor of New York City, but previously lived in an apartment in Astoria, Queens. Everybody has their favorite local takeout joint, and Mamdani did too: a Thai restaurant in Astoria called Pye Boat Noodle. The New York Times reports that Mamdani's favorite dish at this restaurant is a salad called goi neur, in which almost-frozen raw beef is served with cucumbers.

Not your style? Pye Boat Noodle also has a selection of curries, noodles, rice, and dumplings. And for diners looking to eat in instead of the true Mamdani style of goi neur to go, the restaurant's small dining room includes a brightly colored, turquoise bar and lots of rustic wood paneling. There's also a courtyard for outdoor dining in the back.

Another Astoria spot that Mamdani likes is Urban Vegan Roots, a vegan and kosher cafe with upscale, meatless takes on classic dishes. The menu spans vegan Korean barbecue wings to seitan scallopini to vegan chicken and waffles. It's also near where Mamdani used to live, and it's a place he's been to many times.

Perhaps the most memorable visit was when he met his colleague and friend, State Senator Jabari Brisport, for a meal at Urban Vegan Roots. That's when he first planned his mayoral run back in 2024. Brisport wasn't so sure about Mamdani's plan. "Will this campaign work? I mean, I'll support you, but I don't know. Is this the best use of your time?" he told Mamdani then, per CBS.

Just around the corner from Kabab King is Laliguras Bistro, a Nepalese restaurant with a menu of thukpa, thali, curry, and momo. This restaurant is where Mamdani came on his first day as mayor-elect to meet Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents Jackson Heights, for lunch. He ordered chili chicken.

Himalayan food is plentiful in the area. Within a few blocks, some of the only Bhutanese restaurants in the United States serve traditional dishes like ema datsi and momo. And a short walk away from Laliguras are a number of South Asian supermarkets, including Patel Brothers, Apna Bazar, and Ittadi Bazaar.

It's impossible to talk about Mamdani's connections to food without talking about the halal food carts that are ubiquitous in New York City. They're both a symbol of cheap food in the city and a symbol of rising costs and immigrant small business owners struggling to keep up. In fact, one of Mamdani's early viral social media videos highlighted the difficulty of running a halal food cart. He calls it "halalflation," and talks about the complicated process by which food cart operators secure permits, sometimes for over $20,000 (via Instagram).

The New York Times estimates that there are 20,000 street vendors in New York. Mamdani has never talked about a particular cart that's his favorite, but they're a popular choice for a quick, affordable meal to go. And you never know — you just might get your chicken over rice served to you by a shirtless Mr. Cardamom.