The Long Read · Eat & Drink · Hicksville, Long Island
Long Island is in its chai era
Saffron chai until midnight, Lahore street food cooked where you can watch, a three-milk sundae for the table. Long Island's halal cafe scene grew up while you were stuck on the LIE.
From Hicksville to Wantagh to Bay Shore, a new crop of halal cafes and dessert spots has given Long Island somewhere to go after dinner. Every one passed our halal check first.
From the weekly edition, Mon Oct 26 – Sun Nov 1, 2026 · Weekly edition
You know the scene. Dinner's done, nobody wants to go home, and somebody's khala says "chai?" like it's a question. On Long Island, the answer finally comes with options. Every spot here passed our halal gate first, and buzz sets the order.
The anchor: Burkii, Bay Shore. The newest arrival, and our Eat & Drink No. 1. Owner Sammi Dutt told Greater Long Island the idea goes back to high school, when a quick halal bite after practice was hard to find. Now there's a Kashmiri latte with rose, cardamom and pistachio. Halal check: certified by HMS and Shariah Board New York.
1. FiLLi Cafe, Hicksville. The one that started the wave. The Dubai chai brand opened at 350 S Broadway on Oct. 4, 2025, and Greater Long Island reported hundreds of people and waits of more than an hour. The star is Zafran Chai, made with Kashmiri saffron and Assam tea. It's open until midnight, or 1am on Fridays and Saturdays. Halal check: certified by Shariah Board New York and HMS, both through Dec 31, 2026.
"We're a chai shop, not a coffee shop." — FiLLi franchisee Sagar Khanna, to Greater Long Island
2. Food Street, Hicksville. It's in the same strip mall, for when you want dinner instead of a drink. When it opened in late May, co-owner Sharry Chaudhari told Greater Long Island people were still showing up 40 minutes after closing time. There's a Jersey link too: the chain's first location was in New Jersey, and Zabihah says the founders are behind Secaucus' Lahore Restaurant. Get the Gappa Chaat and a paratha roll, then Rabri Doodh. The kitchen is open, so the kids can watch. Hours differ by source, so check first. Halal check: the official site says "truly halal," and Zabihah lists it as fully halal, hand-slaughtered zabihah, no alcohol (the staff's word).
3. Layers Bakeshop, Westbury. The OG, open since April 2022, with more branches in Elmont, Roslyn Heights and Holbrook. Go here for the birthday cake, the exam-results cupcakes or the "don't bring anything" dessert you're bringing anyway. Ferrero Rocher cake and the Lotus Three Milk Sundae are on its bestseller list. Halal check: Zabihah says the menus state it's halal, no alcohol (we checked the Westbury listing).
4. Doh'Ghaar Cafe, Wantagh. The South Shore newcomer, open since February. Owner Usman Ashraf mixes his own Biscoff, tiramisu, pistachio and rose lattes and serves bun kababs and chaat next to the croissants. The name means "two caves," he says. It's closed Mondays. Halal check: Zabihah lists it as fully halal with no alcohol (the staff's word).
The family part. Your parents get chai and chaat that taste like somewhere they remember, the cousins get a Biscoff latte, and nobody needs an "is this okay?" side-eye. The after-dinner plan is finally better than the parking lot.
Links: burkiirestaurant.com (Instagram, TikTok) · FiLLi Hicksville (Instagram, TikTok) · food-street.us (Instagram) · layersbakeshop.us (Instagram) · @dohghaar · Doh'Ghaar on Zabihah
Sources: Greater Long Island (Andrew Rappaport: FiLLi, Nov 7, 2025; Food Street, May 29, 2026; Doh'Ghaar, Feb 24, 2026; Burkii, Oct 15, 2026); FiLLi's official site and Hicksville store page (filli.us, fillicafe.com); Food Street's official site (food-street.us); Layers Bakeshop's official site and branch list (layersbakeshop.us); Zabihah (Doh'Ghaar, Layers Westbury, Food Street Hicksville). Halal certifications: Shariah Board New York (sbny.org) and HMS USA (hmsusa.org). All checked Sat Oct 17, 2026. Quotes are from those publications, and we didn't interview anyone.
Quick facts
| Place | Where | Halal | Hours | Official site | Socials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burkii | Bay Shore NY | Certified by HMS and Shariah Board New York Powered by Zabihah | 6am–10pm on weekdays | burkiirestaurant.com | Instagram · TikTok |
| FiLLi Cafe | 350 S Broadway, Hicksville NY | Certified by Shariah Board New York and HMS, both through Dec 31, 2026 | Open until midnight, or 1am on Fridays and Saturdays | fillicafe.com | Instagram · TikTok |
| Food Street | Hicksville NY | Official site says "truly halal" Powered by Zabihah | – | food-street.us | |
| Layers Bakeshop | Westbury NY (also Elmont, Roslyn Heights, Holbrook) | Powered by Zabihah | – | layersbakeshop.us · Zabihah | |
| Doh'Ghaar Cafe | 2101 Wantagh Ave, Wantagh NY | Powered by Zabihah | Closed Mondays | @dohghaar |
Izzah Pulse. Prices and times are from the listings and can change, so check the link before you go.