Moonlite Grill & Chicken Review: Affordable Halal Shawarma & Grilled Meats in Jackson Heights

Quick Summary

Restaurant: Moonlite Grill & Chicken
Address: 73-15 Broadway, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Cuisine: Halal Middle Eastern, Mediterranean & American Fast Food
Price Range: Affordable ($)
What We Ordered: Fried Chicken, Samosas, Chicken Roll, Lamb Chops, Chicken Shawarma Sandwich, Chicken Shawarma Rice Platter, Rice Pudding
My Favorites: Lamb Chops and the Chicken Shawarma Sandwich Wrap
Best For: Budget-friendly halal dining, massive rice platters, and casual group dinners.
Would I Come Back? Definitely, to try their burgers and kebabs.

Watch My Experience

Looking for Affordable Halal Food in Jackson Heights?

If you love food, Jackson Heights is legendary. It is easily one of my favorite neighborhoods in Queens when I'm hunting for diverse halal food. You can find everything from rich South Asian curries and traditional Himalayan plates at spots like Himalayan Yak to quick chicken-over-rice platters. Every time I walk down these streets, I feel like I uncover another hidden gem.

The exterior storefront of Moonlite Grill and Chicken in Jackson Heights, Queens, showcasing its pink and tan facade against a bright blue sky. — Moonlite Grill & Chicken is conveniently located right along Broadway.

On my latest food run, I stopped by Moonlite Grill & Chicken, an unassuming, budget-friendly halal spot right on Broadway. What caught my eye about this place is just how much they have on the menu. Instead of just focusing on one specific regional style, they cover a bit of everything. They have traditional Middle Eastern grilled meats and shawarma, but they also serve up fried chicken, burgers, fish sandwiches, and street-style rice platters that look exactly like what you get at NYC’s iconic halal carts.

That massive variety is great if you are eating out with a group of friends or family where everyone is craving something different. We walked out completely full, and I'm already looking at what I want to try next time.

The Vibe: Casual with a Second-Floor Train View

Just a heads-up: you aren't coming to Moonlite for fancy decor or luxury vibes. When you first walk in from the street, the entryway is pretty narrow and compact, so it feels like a standard takeout joint. But if you head upstairs, the second-floor dining area opens up quite a bit.

The casual second-floor dining area of Moonlite Grill and Chicken at night, featuring large glass windows overlooking Broadway with green LED accent lighting. — The upstairs dining room at night, featuring large windows that look directly onto Broadway.

When you go, try to snag a table right next to the big glass windows. They look straight out over Broadway, and you can actually watch the elevated subway trains rumble past while you eat. It’s a very cool, quintessential New York backdrop that gives a lot of local character to an otherwise basic, casual dining room.

The only minor downside I noticed was the service setup. The staff members were friendly and welcoming, but because the main seating area is upstairs and the counter is downstairs, it can be a bit hard to catch a server's eye if you need extra napkins, a refill, or the check. It's not a dealbreaker, but just something to keep in mind if you're in a rush.

Getting to Moonlite Grill & Chicken

You can find Moonlite Grill & Chicken at 73-15 Broadway, Jackson Heights, NY 11372. Getting here on public transit is incredibly easy. I highly recommend taking the subway instead of driving, because street parking on Broadway is a nightmare. Just ride the E, F, M, R, or 7 train to the Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue Station, and it’s an easy five-minute walk to the restaurant.

Appetizers & Fast Food: Samosas, Fried Chicken, and Chicken Rolls

To start things off, we wanted to see how well they handle both their traditional sides and their American fast-food options. We ordered a combo plate that came with a Vegetable Samosa and a piece of their Fried Chicken, served with a side of white garlic-yogurt sauce. This combo only cost around, which felt like a total steal.

A white plate holding a piece of crispy, golden-brown fried chicken, a fried samosa, and a small side dish of white garlic yogurt sauce. — A surprising combo: crispy American-style fried chicken alongside a traditional samosa.

I really enjoyed the samosa. It was fried perfectly golden brown with a nice crunch, and the potato filling inside was heavily spiced and fragrant. Dipping that hot, crispy pastry into the cool garlic cream sauce was easily one of the best bites of the night. The fried chicken surprised me, too—the batter was thick and crunchy, and the meat stayed surprisingly juicy underneath.

We also tried the Chicken Roll, which came out on a small wooden plate with a side of ketchup.

A golden-brown, crispy fried chicken roll served on a round wooden plate next to a small white bowl of red ketchup. — The golden-brown Chicken Roll delivers a serious crunch with every single bite.

The pastry skin on the roll was crisp and clean without feeling heavy or oily, and the shredded chicken filling inside was well-seasoned. It's a great, simple finger food to share with the table while you wait for your main platters.

Lamb Chops: The Ultimate Highlight

If you only order one thing from Moonlite, make it the Lamb Chops. They were hands-down the best thing we ate. The platter is huge and comes fully loaded with the chops over a bed of orange seasoned rice, a side salad with red cabbage, a charred green pepper, a grilled tomato, and a side of savory chickpeas.

A heavily loaded platter of grilled lamb chops over orange seasoned rice, served with chickpeas, a charred green pepper, a grilled tomato, and a red cabbage side salad. — The grilled Lamb Chops platter: tender, heavily seasoned, charred to perfection, and easily the best value dish on the menu.

I was really impressed by how tender the lamb was. Sometimes budget spots overcook lamb chops until they feel like leather, but these had a great exterior char while staying incredibly juicy inside. The spice rub they used had a nice kick to it, and eating the rich lamb meat alongside the tangy red cabbage salad and hearty chickpeas kept every bite interesting. For the price and portion size, this dish is an absolute steal.

Chicken Shawarma: Sandwich vs. Rice Platter

What I love about their menu setup is that you can get their chicken shawarma served two completely different ways depending on what kind of meal you are in the mood for. We decided to try both the handheld wrap sandwich and the classic heavy rice platter.

Option 1: The Chicken Shawarma Sandwich Wrap

The Chicken Shawarma Sandwich Wrap ended up being my favorite of the two. It comes out with a side of golden french fries and is sliced neatly into pieces so you can see the cross-section of the wrap.

A chicken shawarma wrap neatly sliced into sections on a white plate, topped with shredded red cabbage and herbs, served with golden french fries and a ketchup packet. — The Chicken Shawarma Sandwich wrap is cleanly sliced and beautifully balanced with crunchy red cabbage.

The shaved chicken inside was moist and packed with those warm, classic Middle Eastern spices. I loved that they included a good amount of bright purple cabbage and fresh herbs inside the wrap—it gave it a great crunch and kept the sandwich from feeling too heavy or soggy from the house sauce. If you want a cleaner, well-balanced bite, go with the wrap.

Option 2: The Chicken Shawarma Rice Platter

On the other hand, if you want pure, heavy NYC street food comfort, you'll want to order the Chicken Shawarma Rice Platter instead. This is a massive mountain of food that feels exactly like a classic halal cart platter.

A massive chicken shawarma rice platter completely covered in a criss-cross pattern of white sauce and orange hot sauce, served with a side of chopped lettuce salad and pickled onions. — The Chicken Shawarma Rice Platter is heavily drizzled in white and hot sauce for ultimate street food comfort.

They lay down a thick bed of fluffy, seasoned rice, cover it in chopped shawarma chicken, and then hit the whole thing with a heavy, zigzag drizzle of creamy white sauce and hot sauce. It comes with a simple lettuce side salad and some bright pickled onions to help cut through the richness. It’s messy, heavy, and incredibly satisfying.

Rice Pudding: A Simple Dessert

To finish the meal, we ordered their traditional Rice Pudding for dessert. Honestly, this was the least memorable part of the night for me. It wasn't bad by any means—it had a nice, silky texture, it wasn't overly sweet, and it looked pretty served in a rustic clay bowl topped with almond slivers and a single dark raisin right in the middle.

A traditional bowl of white rice pudding served in a rustic clay dish on a white saucer, garnished with almond slivers and a single dark raisin in the center. — The Rice Pudding is served traditionally in a clay bowl, acting as a simple, mild palate cleanser.

It works perfectly fine as a cooling palate cleanser after eating a bunch of heavily spiced meats, but it didn't blow me away. If I came back, I’d probably skip dessert and just order another appetizer instead.

Honest Thoughts & Final Verdict

At the end of the day, Moonlite Grill & Chicken does exactly what it sets out to do: it serves up highly satisfying, flavorful, and genuinely cheap halal food right in the middle of Jackson Heights. The restaurant layout has a few small quirks—like the narrow ground floor and having to wait a bit for service upstairs—but once the food arrives, those small things don't really matter.

The sheer size of their menu is a huge plus. If you want to see what their kitchen does best, I highly recommend stickling to the Lamb Chops and the Chicken Shawarma Sandwich Wrap. If you are planning a casual food run through Queens and want great flavors that won't empty your wallet, Moonlite is definitely worth a stop.

Restaurant Information

Feature	Details
Restaurant	Moonlite Grill & Chicken
Address	73-15 Broadway, Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Cuisine	Halal Middle Eastern, Mediterranean & American Fast Food
Price Range	Affordable ($)
Nearest Subway	Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue Station (E, F, M, R, 7)
Walking Distance	About 5 minutes
Must-Try Dishes	Lamb Chops, Chicken Shawarma Sandwich Wrap
Parking	Very limited street parking (Take the subway!)
Would I Return?	Yes, I want to try their burgers and kebabs next time

Please note that menu items, prices, hours, and restaurant information can change. Be sure to check their official listings or Google Maps for the latest details before you head out.