Zohran Mamdani owned up to his avid foodie persona during his campaign trail as a New York City mayoral hopeful. From eating at a sushi restaurant to devouring chicken biryani with his bare hands, the Indian-origin assemblyman has repeatedly made controversial headlines, regardless of what the food outing may have entailed. However, the scene flipped upside down after the November 4 Election Day.
The 34-year-old politician scripted history by becoming the first Indian-American and first Muslim mayor in the Big Apple’s history on Tuesday night (US time). He did so by beating out his rivals Republican Curtis Sliwa and independent Andrew Cuomo at the polls. And on the very day as NYC’s mayor-elect, he inevitably landed himself a busy schedule packed with early morning interview, transition announcements and meetings.
However, the “highlight” of his first day as mayor-elect was “lunch chili chicken with tingmo bread and aloo dum” with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), who even joined Mamdani’s watch party celebrations on November 4. The Democratic socialist dined at Laliguras Bistro, which is a Nepalese restaurant in Jackson Heights.
Mamdani’s snaps of the outing with AOC captured the humble vibes of the pocket-friendly restaurant. South Asians, especially Indians, will agree that a meal is never complete with tea (chai), and so Mamdani stayed true to those “desi” food roots as well. But now, even Nepalese people have happily branded him as one of their own, especially with Buddha sneaking a cameo in the background of the Mamdani-AOC photo. Hence proved, the Indian-origin, Uganda-born American politician’s multi-cultured roots are flourishing.
AOC clarifies Mamdani lunch outing was all about chai
AOC joined many others in raving about the soon-to-be NYC mayor, as left the comment: “An honor to share momos and get to work with our mayor elect!.” Her response on X was: “It was an honor to break bread with our Mayor-elect @ZohranKMamdani over some of the best momos Jackson Heights has to offer. From childcare to rent, New York should be affordable and safe for working families. Let’s get to work!”
When someone questioned if the beverage pictured in the snaps was “chocolate milk,” AOC was quick to correct them, and wrote back, “Chai (team emoji).”
Chai ☕️
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 6, 2025
Reactions to Zohran Mamdani eating at a Nepalese restaurant
Scenes of the NYC mayor-elect’s day-out at the Nepalese eatery went viral online the day after he closed off his victory speech with the tunes of the hit Bollywood song “Dhoom Machale.”
One comment under the Instagram post read, “progressives are always so hot & i love that for us.” Another IG user added, “This is the Nepali food shoutout I needed to survive a cold NYC winter this year!!” A third person said, “Love this. @laligurasrestaurant is my favorite Nepali Restaurant in NYC! And they ordered the best food on the menu.”
Another quipped, “Socialist breakfast.” Meanwhile, a fifth netizen wrote, “Nepali food on day one!? We are SO back.” Someone else chimed in, “Only real ones celebrate an election victory with Nepali momo, aalu-dum and chiya.”
Someone on X cheered, “Momo, chicken chilly, aloo sandeko and chiya. This man is an honorary Nepali.”
