New York City is a destination where visitors and residents can figuratively eat around the world. As a city that is always changing, New York City’s food scene is both switching up with dishes from many cultural backgrounds, trendy culinary concepts, and settings ranging from fine dining establishments to street food vendors. While there are many examples that can make for a long list, start with these 10 must-eat foods to try when visiting New York City.

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10 Pastrami On Rye

Pastrami on rye is a common menu item in Jewish delis in New York City. A Serious Eats article cites that this curated meat came about from Ottoman Turks, but this meat-preserving recipe traveled via the Spice Route and became popular in Romania. In Romania, it was called pastramă and commonly made from goose. Brought over by Romanian Jewish immigrants to New York City, pastramă would become the word pastrami. One story on the start of the pastrami sandwich involves Sussman Volk, New York City butcher who is noted as the first person to produce the pastrami sandwich in the late 19th century. In an American Heritage article, the story goes that a Romanian friend gave Volk the recipe in exchange for using his place for storage; Volk began offering the sandwich in his deli, and it became a hit. Yet most people might associate the pastrami on rye with Katz’s Delicatessen, an NYC institution since 1888. Other delis in NYC serve this sandwich, too.

9 Dim Sum

According to an article on the Asian Society’s website, dim sum is defined as a traditional Chinese meal consisting of plates of dumplings along with other accompanying dishes; dumplings may be filled with vegetables, meat, or fish. Dim sum is commonly served at dim sum parlors, which in NYC are located across Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. The first dim sum parlor in NYC is credited to Nom Wah Tea Parlor, which opened in 1920 in Manhattan’s Chinatown.

8 Dumplings

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Image by Patrick from Pixabay 
A plate of Georgian khinkali

In addition to dim sum, there are many varieties of dumplings that can be tried in NYC. Dumplings are made from small portions of dough that are wrapped with different fillings and cooked by steaming, frying or boiling. Along with dim sum, other Chinese dumplings include xiao long bao, a soup dumpling. Dumplings from other cultures include Japanese gyoza, Italian ravioli, Georgian khinkali, Korean mandu, Polish pierogies, and Tibetan and Nepalese momos. Queens’ Jackson Heights is the location of an annual Momo Crawl.

7 Chopped Cheese

Along with the bacon, egg, and cheese, a staple that can be found at bodegas (a small convenience store that is run by its owner) is another cheese-related sandwich called chopped cheese. A chopped cheese consists of ground spice beef that gets “chopped around” on a flat-top grill, mixed with onions and melted cheese, and then paired with lettuce, tomatoes, and condiments on a hero roll. As an NYC invention, a First We Feast article reports that chopped cheese is often credited to have originated in East Harlem at Blue Sky Deli & Grocery, which is also known as Hajji’s. It’s also believed to have been influenced by this bodega’s Yemeni workers, whose culture has a similar sandwich called dagha yamneeya. Chopped cheese can be found at bodegas, while some NYC restaurants have also added the sandwich to their menus.

6 Caribbean And Hispanic Or Latin American Foods

Among other cultures, New York City is home to many of Caribbean descent. For example, Brooklyn’s Flatbush neighborhood has a Little Caribbean enclave. Manhattan's Washington Heights has a large Dominican Republic population and a “Little Dominican” enclave within the Inwood neighborhood. The NYC borough of The Bronx is known for having a large Puerto Rican representation while Queens’ Richmond Hill has “Little Guyana.”

Try Jamaican jerk chicken, beef patties, and coco bread; Puerto Rican mofongo and chicharron; Dominican mangu, Pescado al horno, and mofongo; Guyanese plait bread and pepperpot; Cuban ropa vieja and Cubanos, and Trinidad roti, among others.

NYC’s Hispanic and Latin American populations also have many culinary contributions. Try an arepa, which is common to Colombia and Venezuela, along with Mexican birria tacos, Argentinian panqueques, Brazilian churrascaria, and Bolivian salteñas.

Related: 14 Best Rooftop Restaurants In NYC

5 Halal Food

Halal food is prepared as permissible by Islamic law and applies to the preparation of meats such as chicken, lamb, beef, fish, and game birds; pork is excluded. In New York City, halal food can be prepared at restaurants, but it can also be ordered from street food carts. According to Eater NY, halal food can be found within Astoria’s Little Egypt, Harlem’s West African population, and Brooklyn’s Sheepshead Bay.

One of the most recognized halal food trucks in NYC is The Halal Guys. They’re best known for their chicken and gyro over rice and falafel sandwiches. Another option is Kwik Meal, which gets high marks for their lamb kati rolls.

4 Soul Food

In New York City, soul food is predominantly found in Manhattan’s Harlem neighborhood but also in parts of Brooklyn. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, this cuisine is rooted within the American South and developed by enslaved African Americans based on what was made available to them. It also was influenced by African, European, and Native American traditions. During the 20th century Great Migration, many Blacks left the South and headed north to New York City and Chicago and brought these cooking techniques and traditions with them. In Harlem, Sylvia’s was founded by Sylvia Woods in 1962, and the restaurant is credited as an important part of this food history. Try chicken and waffles, collard greens, sweet potato pie, and other staples.

3 Hot dogs

Hot dogs are German in origin-with Frankfurt giving name to the frankfurter-but German immigrants brought over the concept of selling sausages to the U.S. Yet NYC is the place where what’s now the hotdog was created. While food vendor stands sell hotdogs, go to Brooklyn’s Coney Island to have one. An article on the Museum of the City of New York’s website states that Charles Feltman opened the first hot dog stand in Coney Island in 1871 and sold a lot of them in his first year of business. He would be superpassed by his employee, Nathan Handwerker, who started his own namesake hot dog business, Nathan’s, which still remains in Coney Island. Every July 4th, Nathan’s puts on a competitive hot dog eating contest that draws in many spectators.

2 Bagels

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Photo by Vicky Ng on Unsplash
A selection of bagel varieties.

This ring-looking bread roll is often associated with New York City, with many bagel shops and eateries to order one from. According to an Untapped Cities article, bagels are believed to have come from Poland and were introduced to New York City by Eastern European Jewish immigrants in the late 19th century. Over time, bakeries making bagels emerged in the city and thus developed public interest in consuming them. As for a definition, a bagel is made by first boiling dough and then baking it to give it a crispy exterior and chewy texture. They can be toasted and brushed with cream cheese or flavored spreads. It’s also common to order a bagel with lox, a type of brined salmon filet that also comes with cream cheese, sliced red onions, dill, and capers.

1 Pizza

Hand holding a pizza slice in New York City
via Shutterstock
A hand holding up a pizza slice in front of a New York City street

New York has its own style of pizza that is primarily identified by having a thin and crispy crust and prepared with low-moisture mozzarella and tomato sauce. It’s a common practice to eat a slice by folding it with your hands. New York-style pizza can be sold as whole pies and/or slices, and additional toppings, at an additional cost, can be added on.

The origin of pizza in New York City is linked to Italian immigrants from Naples who arrived in America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and had this experience in making it. Gennaro Lombardi, also an Italian immigrant, is commonly credited as the founder of the first pizzeria in the United States. Lombardi’s was established in 1905 and is located on Spring Street in Manhattan’s Nolita neighborhood. Yet, according to a History.com article by Peter Regas, a Chicago pizza historian, a man named Filippo Milone is suggested to be an earlier pizza proprietor in New York City. Nonetheless, New York City’s pizza scene has evolved to include both traditional and non-NYC styles, with many places to choose from.