Joy Curry & Tandoor • 1994

In the shadow of the United Nations, this family-run halal kitchen feeds an improbable cross-section of Midtown—diplomats in suits queue alongside cabbies for smoky tandoori chicken and fragrant lamb biryani. Since 1994, Joy Curry & Tandoor has kept prices low and portions generous, serving hundreds daily from its compact space on East 46th Street. The draw is simple: honest South Asian cooking that tastes like someone's mother is in the kitchen.