Queens is the most linguistically diverse place on the planet, and its food follows suit. Ride the elevated 7 train — the 'International Express' — and you can eat your way around the world in a single afternoon.
Jackson Heights and Elmhurst
Under the tracks in Jackson Heights, the aromas shift block by block: Colombian arepas, Tibetan momos, Nepali thali, Indian chaat and the best South Asian sweets outside the subcontinent. Neighbouring Elmhurst adds Thai temples of heat and Malaysian coffee shops that rival anything in Southeast Asia.
Flushing's Chinatown
At the end of the line, Flushing holds the largest and most ambitious Chinatown in the city. The New World Mall food court is a bewildering, wonderful maze of regional Chinese cooking — hand-pulled Lanzhou noodles, Sichuan dry pot, Xi'an lamb burgers, soup dumplings by the dozen.
How to crawl
Go hungry, go in a group, and share everything. Carry cash for the stalls, pace yourself, and let curiosity rather than a guidebook set the route. Queens rewards the wanderer more than any neighbourhood in New York.
