These two ethnic enclaves are among the most colorful parts of the city. Each was settled by early immigrants, who preserved their own language, customs, and food in the midst of the new and foreign land. Little Italy has dwindled to a few blocks, but it is still an atmospheric center of authentic Italian food and shops, especially on a warm night, when cafés set out sidewalk tables and the songs of Napoli fill the air. Chinatown, however, continues to grow. More than 200,000 Chinese live there, in crowded quarters. The shops and sidewalk markets overflow with exotic foods and herbs, as well as gifts ranging from backscratchers to fine antiques; and it has been estimated that Chinatown contains an astounding 200 restaurants.
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Morning
Take the No. 6 train to Spring Street, walk past Lafayette, and turn down Mulberry Street (see Mulberry Street) for a stroll through Little Italy. Don’t miss the old- fashioned food shops on Grand Street, such as cheese specialist Alleva Dairy (188 Mulberry Street at Grand) and Piemonte Co. (190 Grand Street), where two dozen shapes and varieties of pasta can be bought. At 206 Grand is DiPalo Dairy, where you can watch fresh mozzarella being made. Take a break at a classic Italian café, like Caffè Roma, 385 Broome Street, or Ferrara’s, 195- 201 Grand Street.
Continue on Mulberry to Bayard, and you’ll find an introduction to what’s ahead, the Museum of Chinese in the Americas . Walk east one block to Mott Street, the center of Chinatown. Enjoy a dim sum lunch at Jing Fong or the Golden Unicorn .
Afternoon
Remaining on Mott Street, spend some time browsing the many shops, exotic food stores, markets, and galleries that line the street. Step into Saint’s Alp Teahouse, 51 Mott Street, to sample a current fad imported from Taiwan: tall glasses of flavored teas served with “pearls” of tapioca in the bottom.
End the afternoon with a visit to the golden Buddhas of the Eastern States Buddhist Temple and have your fortune read.
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The name for this sharp curve on Doyers Street was coined by a newspaper because this was the site of so many gangland ambushes during the 1920s. It was a period when the Hip Sing and On Leong tongs , groups similar to criminal gangs, were fighting for control of the opium trade and gambling rackets in Chinatown. The tong wars continued off and on until at least the 1940s, and their rivalries continue in the present-day youth gangs.
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Cantonese food at its best lures locals even though the prices are high for Chinatown.
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Ginger, lychee, pumpkin, mango, and red bean are among the flavors that can be sampled at this popular dessert stop, a favorite with young visitors.
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Built by the English Lutheran Church in 1801 and sold to the Roman Catholic Church of the Transfiguration in 1853, this Georgian-style stone church with Gothic windows is typical of the influence of successive influxes of immigrants in New York. The church has changed with the nationalities of the community it serves, first Irish, then Italian, and now Chinese. As the focal point of today’s Chinese Roman Catholic community, it offers classes and services to help newcomers and holds services in Cantonese and Mandarin.
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Chinatown’s only park was created in the late 1890s as a result of the campaigning of newspaper reporter Jacob Riis and other social reformers. It filled a stretch of the city that at the time was New York’s worst slum, where Riis reported a stabbing or shooting at least once a week. Though it features more concrete than greenery, the park is popular today, filled with Chinese kids at play, mah jong players, and people practicing tai chi and martial arts. On the weekends, Chinese fortune-tellers sometimes set up shop in the park.
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A rustic setting and a wonderful courtyard garden make this family-run restaurant with 16 kinds of pizza a favorite.
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This calm, modern market is in marked contrast to the raucous street scene, a place for comfortable browsing where all the strange vegetables you’ve seen elsewhere are neatly labeled.
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Step into the incense-scented interior, where offerings of fresh fruit are piled high, and more than 100 gold Buddhas gleam in the candlelight. The temple takes advantage of Chinatown’s tourist traffic by offering $1 fortunes for sale near the front.
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Constant lines attest to the talents of Cecilia Tam, who sells the neighborhood’s best custard cakes at a little red street stand.
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Restaurant price categories
For a three-course meal for one with a glass of house wine, and all unavoidable charges including tax.
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