Tip #1: The halal cart is your best friend.
Thousands of halal food carts blanket Manhattan, each serving chicken-over-rice with white sauce and hot sauce for $6 to $8. They operate from late morning until past midnight. The Halal Guys at 53rd and 6th is the famous one, but the cart outside your hotel at 11 PM is often just as good without the queue.
Tip #2: Take the 7 train to Jackson Heights.
Get off at 74th Street-Broadway in Queens and you are in the halal food capital of the Western Hemisphere. Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Afghan restaurants line every block. Kabab King does excellent grilled kebabs. Taste of Lahore has serious biryani. Prices are roughly half what you pay in Manhattan.
Tip #3: Pray at the Islamic Cultural Center on 96th Street.
The Islamic Cultural Center of New York at 96th Street and 3rd Avenue is the city's first purpose-built mosque, with a copper dome visible from blocks away. Jummah draws Muslims from 50 countries. Masjid Manhattan in the Financial District is your best option if you are staying in Lower Manhattan.
Tip #4: Brooklyn has halal history.
Atlantic Avenue between Court and Clinton Streets has Lebanese, Palestinian, and Yemeni restaurants dating back generations. Damascus Bakery has been making flatbread since 1930. Further south, Bay Ridge has more Arab restaurants and bakeries. Take the R train to Bay Ridge Avenue.
Tip #5: Use the subway, not taxis.
A single ride is $2.90 with OMNY tap-to-pay. The subway runs 24 hours and gets you everywhere faster than a taxi in Manhattan traffic. Key lines for Muslim travellers: the 7 to Jackson Heights, the R to Bay Ridge, the N/W to Astoria, the 2/3 to Harlem.
Tip #6: Steinway Street in Astoria is Little Egypt.
Between 28th Avenue and Astoria Boulevard, you will find Egyptian, Moroccan, Lebanese, and Turkish restaurants. Less touristy than Manhattan, cheaper, and the food is authentic. Mombar serves slow-cooked Egyptian comfort food in a space that looks like a Cairo antique shop.
Tip #7: Fall back on pizza and seafood.
A plain cheese slice costs $1 to $3 and is vegetarian by default. New York pizza is excellent and available at thousands of pizzerias across the city. Seafood and sushi are everywhere in every price range. You will never lack for options even if you are far from a halal cart.
Tip #8: Visit in spring or autumn.
April to June and September to November give you mild weather and manageable crowds. Fall foliage in Central Park in October is spectacular. Summer is hot and humid. Winter is cold but Christmas decorations and ice skating at Rockefeller Center make it worthwhile.
Tip #9: Hijab draws zero attention here.
New Yorkers are famously indifferent to how anyone else looks or dresses. Niqab, hijab, kufi, thobe: all normal on the subway. The city's diversity is not a slogan. It is the reality of every subway car.
Tip #10: Budget aggressively for accommodation.
Hotels cost $150 to $400 per night. Queens (Jackson Heights, Astoria) offers budget hotels and Airbnbs with the best halal food at your doorstep, and the subway gets you to Manhattan in 30 minutes. Stay in the boroughs, eat well, and commute to the sights.
New York requires planning on the budget side, but the halal food infrastructure is the deepest in the Western world. The effort pays off.