Another reason I like Chicago: Chinatown

Gate of Chinatown

I’m a sucker for Chinatown. Being brought up in NYC, Chinatown was a natural to go to when it was a smaller venue south of Canal from one side of Mott to the other. Chinatown went into a sprawl in the 70s, crossing over Canal and surrounding Little Italy. And the other way passing the theater and moving into the business section east. Main Street in Queens became Chinatown  Flushing (唐人街, 法拉盛華埠) of the modern immigrants to the US, as Chinatown Manhattan becomes sleeker and more hip.

Dragon Wall in the Forbidden City, 1987 (above) and Chicago, 2012 (below).

There is a smaller Chinatown in LA and Philly, an interesting one in Boston. There is the amazing Chinatown of glitter in SF. So I felt very comfortable in Chicago with a real Chinatown. Lots of good smells and food. And very established in the community. Chinatown Manhattan was dominated by its closed in spaces. Chinatown  Flushing reflects its Jewish roots where places like Gertz, Alexander’s and Korvette’s used to be.

Chinatown in Chicago is not huge like San Francisco, but the food is good and the sights remind me more of the real place, than many of the other cities.

The theme of Communist China and Mao serving you food at Lao Hunan, had great visual and stomach appeal.

Chinatown old and new.

Only a block from the Cermak–Chinatown CTA station on the red line. Go.

Tags: Cermak–Chinatown station, Chinatown, Chiu Quon Bakery, Lao Hunan