Kalustyan's, Gramercy Park, Manhattan
Update: I visited Kalustyan’s a few weeks ago and introduced a friend, They are fully operational and they are much larger than I recall. You want hot sauce? They have enough to start a museum. I was very happy to find halvah. They have everything, not just foods and spices from India. Updated 13 July 2021.
Kalustyan’s is a specialty store selling Indian spices as well as imported foods from around the world including much of the Middle East. I first discovered the store many years ago when I made a variety of different garam masala recipes to give as gifts.
This store has been around since 1944 and is in the heart of a neighborhood given the name “curry hill” because it is adjacent to Murray Hill! If you’re looking for hard to find spices or ingredients that you aren’t able to find in the typical grocery store, Kalustyan’s is the place!
It is also surrounded by many Indian restaurants with many taxis parked around there. Perhaps that is an indication of the quality of the food served in them.
Kalustyan’s - 123 Lexington Avenue between 28th & 29th Streets