These are my favorite places to find New Jersey’s best food. I’ve been there, I loved the food, and I’ll return. If someone asks me for a really good Thai restaurant, I’ll send them to Topaz Thai in Belleville. You can’t go wrong suggesting Chendu 1 Palace as one of New Jersey’s best Chinese restaurants. Spirito’s serves the red sauce Italian dishes my Grandfather loved. Friends and family are sick of me praising De Lucia’s pizza as the best on the planet. Among the more obscure cuisines, Pho Thai-Lao Kitchen is the only New Jersey restaurant I’ve found so far serving Laotion food; Shirin Cafe is the place for Uzbek fare.

EthnicNJ is based in Maplewood (Essex County), so naturally my favorites are concentrated in North/Central Jersey. EthnicNJ’s top picks will change as we add cuisines and try more restaurants. Share yours in the comments for each cuisine, and one of your favorite ethnic restaurants might become an EthnicNJ.com favorite. If I find a better hot dog than the Ripper, I’ll happily bump Rutt’s Hut to #2. De Lucia’s probably ain’t moving.