The Best Persian Food in Brooklyn Right Now

By Anna Rahmanan

Eid in NYC is reliably one of the most joyful, colorful, and exultant celebrations of the calendar year. It concludes the month of Ramadan with feasts and fits and parades, and under the city’s first Muslim mayor, it’s hitting a little different in 2026. For the city’s small, proud, and unyielding Persian community, however, today also marks the beginning of a new year with Nowruz, typically celebrated with similarly tender gatherings and exchanges of food around dinner tables and in parks and along running water, where sprouted greens are tossed as a symbol of renewal.

Most years, it’s a blast, but for reasons that should be clear, New York’s Iranian diaspora—measuring at just 14,000 or so members, according to the 2020 census—is having a difficult time getting into the rejuvenating spirit, as the country they chose wages war on the country they left. With them in mind and heart, we’re putting one up for the Persian expats who’ve brought a bit of home with them to the County of Kings, where they’ve built a food scene that is stunningly contained to just a handful of practitioners—manageable enough to explore in full, good enough to make you want to.

From no-frills grab-and-gos to Michelin-stamped sophisticates, these are some of the best Persian spots in the borough right now.

Courtesy of Sofreh

Sofreh
75 St. Marks Avenue

Sofreh is probably the best-known restaurant on this list, and for good reason. It’s largely responsible for the recent rise in popularity of Persian food across the city, and it fully deserves the spotlight. When chef Nasim Alikhani opened the restaurant in 2018, it quickly earned a James Beard nomination, a nod to just how stellar the food is.

Here, the mast-o-khiargets a bit of a glow-up: reimagined as a strained yogurt and Persian shallot dip with chives. The Shirazi salad is spot-on and the ash reshteh tastes like a modern take on the classic, still deeply respectful of tradition. There’s a Persian rice portion of the menu that begs to be ordered in full (options include saffron rice, jewel rice with carrots, and herb rice), as does the hefty roster of desserts, from the traditional Persian ice cream (saffron! Rosewater! Pistachio!) to the cardamom rose cake and the butternut squash halva.

Alikhani also runs a scaled-down Persian cafe under the Sofreh banner, which is more than worth a daytime trip (and much easier to grab a seat at on a whim).

Courtesy of Bijan’s

Bijan’s
81 Hoyt Street

We’ve got to be honest: we feel a tiny bit guilty including Bijan’s on this list. While the food is definitely inspired by Persian cuisine, it also leans pretty heavily toward the American side. Think of it as an American-Persian fusion spot that’s absolutely worth your time—but probably won’t give you a textbook understanding of traditional Iranian food.

That said, if you’re craving a nod to the classics, start with the kashkebademjan appetizer—a creative spin on one of the cuisine’s staple dishes. Traditionally, this is a stew called khoresh served over white rice, but here it’s reimagined as a creamy roasted eggplant dip served with warm pita. Think: fried garlic, mint, walnuts, and yogurt sauce—definitely more dip than stew, but delicious nonetheless.

As for mains, the Persian kabab (made with either ground chicken or beef) and the Persian lamb stew (or gheymeh, made with yellow split peas and a tangy tomato sauce) are the most traditional entrees on the menu. The rest of the offerings are more American-leaning, but with subtle nods to Iranian flavors, with herbs mixed into the burger blend and a dash of sumac on the side dish.

Courtesy of Brooklyn Noosh

Brooklyn Noosh
988 Atlantic Avenue

Brooklyn Noosh feels like the kind of cozy tavern you might randomly stumble into on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The vibes are unquestionably New York, but the food on offer is unimpeachably Persian.

Start with the mast-o-khiar (literally, yogurt with cucumber), a cool and creamy appetizer that sets the tone. From there, dive into one of the two authentic khoresh options: ghormeh sabzi, a deeply herby green stew made with red kidney beans and chunks of beef, or fesenjoon, a rich and tangy dish of sautéed chicken and onion simmered in pomegranate paste. Both are classic. And of course, there are kababs. Don’t miss the joojeh—a tender chicken skewer marinated in lemon and spices, served alongside grilled veggies and saffron rice. Bonus: pretty much every dish comes with a grilled tomato, a staple in Persian cuisine.

A quick note on the name of the eatery: “noosheh jan” in Farsi loosely translates to “may it be sustenance for your soul.” Think of it as the Persian equivalent of “bon appétit.” The name clearly sets the tone.

Courtesy of Eyval

Eyval
25 Bogart Street

Opened in 2022 by Ali Saboor, the former chef at Sofreh, Eyval is one of the newer additions to the borough’s Persian scene, but it’s been making serious waves ever since. Located on the corner of Bogart Street in Bushwick, the restaurant has quickly become a favorite among younger Brooklynites seeking out the kind of thoughtful, globally inspired cuisine they’ve come to expect in recent years.

The space itself feels like a modern Tehran eatery, with a sleek, stylish interior that sets the stage for a menu rooted firmly in tradition. Start with the barbari bread, a thick Persian flatbread that’s crispy on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside. It’s an ideal companion to Eyval’s stellar spread of appetizers, from a creamy fava bean borani to a bright carrot-based dip and a delicious Shirazi salad, with chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onions.

While the menu includes an array of khoreshes and entrees ranging from beef to chicken to shellfish, two plates in particular steal the show: the tahdig, a crispy rice dish, is served here with almonds, pistachios, barberries, tomato and a luscious pomegranate sauce, and the saffron ice cream sandwich, one of three desserts on the menu, but easily the most memorable.

We’d be remiss not to mention the cocktails, each one infused with traditional Iranian ingredients in a way that makes them feel substantial, almost like dishes in their own right. The saffron martini is a bold combination that may only appeal to selective palates, while the Eyval doogh, made with blue gin and lemon, is a playful, refreshing twist on doogh, a classic Persian yogurt drink.

Courtesy of Masquerade

Masquerade
351 Broadway

Masquerade in Williamsburg, found right under the JMZ tracks, is a whole experience. The space feels more like a laid-back bar than a traditional restaurant, thanks to its small but mighty menu of Iranian-style tapas and seriously good cocktails. The offerings change often, but they’re always made for sharing. Don’t skip the tahdig or the ash reshteh, a sort of herbaceous noodle soup, if they’re on the menu (and definitely pair them with a drink). The cocktail list leans into the sorts of ingredients that are often used in Persian cuisine, like mint, cardamom, saffron and olives, flipping the flavors of the kitchen straight into your glass.

Opened in 2021 by co-owners Pouya Esghai and Siavash Karampour, Masquerade is inspired by a sort of utopian vision of Tehran—the kind of bar the two might open if mingling and drinking were more culturally accepted back home. For what it’s worth, the restaurant is also Mamdani-approved.