Last Updated on March 28, 2026 by Emma Fajcz | Published: January 16, 2024
Craving some alligator, insects, or Guinea pig? If you’re feeling adventurous, there are plenty of interesting dishes like these ones at restaurants in the Big Apple. Here’s our top 9 unusual foods in NYC that you should try, and places where you can find them.
Love hot and spicy food? Don’t miss our guide to the spiciest food in NYC!
New York: a Hotspot of Unusual Cuisine
Once upon a time in New York, someone called the authorities because a man was “mistreating a squirrel.” When the police turned up, they found the “suspect”: an Ecuadorian man who was in the grilling area of the park cooking a cuy, or Guinea pig, on a long skewer. Cuys are a common snack in the Andean part of South America. The police went on their way, leaving the Ecuadorian man to his lunch.
It was just another day in New York City, a metropolis of nearly nine million people where nearly everything can be bought, sold, acquired, and, of course, eaten. Keep reading for our top 10 favorite unsual foods to try while you’re in the Big Apple!
Cuy
You don’t need to go to Prospect Park or a pet store looking for Guinea pigs to eat. You just have to go to the Peruvian restaurant Urubamba in Jackson Heights, Queens, where they can plate one for you and no one will call the cops. Be sure to call ahead and order it in advance, though.
Octopus Hot Dogs
What do you get when you combine a hot dog and octopus? An octopus hot dog, indeed. La Pulpería has been serving up some outside-the-box (and incredibly delicious) creations like these since 2021. If you’re a fan of octopus, don’t miss their bacon-wrapped octopus served on a brioche hot dog bun.
Alligator
You might be hard-pressed to find alligator meat on the menu of a New York restaurant, but at Los Paisanos butcher shop in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, you can find alligator (in the form of sirloin or tenderloin) to cook at home. They also sell antelope, rattlesnake, and caribou meat.
Balut
We tend to forget that eggs are actually unfertilized chickens. That is, until you try balut: a fertilized developing chicken embryo, a popular snack in some Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines and Vietnam. Quite unusual in the USA, but if you’re into unusual foods, then this might be for you.
If you’re curious, you can find balut at Tan Tin Hung supermarket in Chinatown, Chang Li supermarket in the Bronx, or Queens Night Market.
Macaroni and Cheese Ice Cream
When it comes to ice cream, the safe bet is chocolate and/or vanilla and maybe some added parts thrown in to give it a twist. But at Van Leeuwen, an ice cream shop with locations in the West Village, the East Village, SoHo, and the Lower East Side, you can marry your love of ice cream and mac n’ cheese via their official Kraft Macaroni & Cheese flavor.
While they do have a wide range of other incredible other flavors (ahem, Peanut Butter Brownie Honeycomb, Earl Grey Tea, and Sicilian Pistachio), why not opt for one of the unusual foods in NYC?
Bopis
Bopis is a popular spicy Filipino dish that consists of chopped pig and/or beef lungs that is sauteed in tomatoes, onions, and chilis. At Ihawan in Woodside, Queens, finely chopped pork lungs are mixed with pork liver, onion, tomatoes, garlic, and hot peppers to create a spicy, gamey dish.
Curried Lamb Brain
Eating lamb brains, or the brains of any once-living being, won’t make you smarter. It might impress your waiter, but that’s about it. At Haandi, a Pakistani restaurant in Murray Hill (aka “Curry Hill”) that is very popular among taxi drivers, you can eat a bowl of lamb brain curry and live to tell about it.
Ostrich
Brooklyn Heights may be the most aesthetically pleasing, easy-on-the-eyes neighborhood in New York, but it’s not a great dining destination. Except for, maybe, Henry’s End, where you can feast on exotic animals. Henry’s ostrich potstickers are a favorite. And it doesn’t stop there: you can slurp up turtle soup, feast on elk chops, antelope meat, or a stuffed quail.
Yak Milk Soup
You probably didn’t wake up today and think: I wonder if anyone has thought of taking some sour yak milk and turning it into a soup? But if you did, you’re in luck. The Tibetans have, in fact, had that same thought and it put it into action.
At Phayul, a Sichuan-Tibetan restaurant in Jackson Heights, Queens, you can slurp up sour yak milk soup while a portrait on the wall of the smiling Dalai Lama looks on approvingly in the distance.
Still looking for foods you haven’t tried yet? Don’t miss out on these most famous foods from New York City while you’re in the area.
Come for the Food, Stay for the History
New York City’s diversity of amazing cuisines would not exist if it weren’t for the countless immigrants who came to the city throughout the years. Appreciate the variety of cultures and the rich history of NYC with our Guided Statue of Liberty Tour with Ellis Island. We’ll take you on a boat across the harbor to Liberty Island and show you the history behind one of America’s iconic places.
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Unusual Foods in NYC FAQs
What are the most unusual foods to try in NYC?
Some of the most unusual foods to try in New York include cuy (guinea pig), balut (fertilized duck egg), curried lamb brain, grasshoppers, alligator, and even macaroni-and-cheese ice cream. NYC’s diverse immigrant communities make it one of the few cities where you can sample unusual dishes from all over the world in a single trip.
Where can you eat unusual foods in New York City?
Many of NYC’s most unusual foods can be found in neighborhoods with strong international food scenes, especially Queens, Chinatown, and Brooklyn. For example, Jackson Heights is known for Peruvian cuy and Tibetan yak milk soup, while Chinatown and the Bronx are good places to try balut.
What is the weirdest dessert in New York City?
One of the strangest desserts in NYC is macaroni-and-cheese ice cream, a cult favorite that’s available at locations of Van Leeuwen. The flavor combines the sweet creaminess of ice cream with the savory taste of Kraft macaroni and cheese.
Are unusual foods in NYC actually worth trying?
Usually, yes. Many “weird” foods sound more intimidating than they taste, and adventurous eaters often find they enjoy them. Many people find that foods like snails, eel, and insects taste far better than expected once people give them a chance.
