A guided food tour of Chinatown? Yes, please.
The area of Manhattan can be intimidating. Its streets are extra-crowded (and extra-smelly) and finding a good place to eat can be tricky if you don't speak the language or have a recommendation. So when my school offered a Chinatown tour—not to mention it would be
given by a former reporter for The New York Times—I was immediately on board.
I was a little scared when I learned the mercury would rise past 95 degrees that day (Chinatown is not known for having the most pleasant smells), but nevertheless, I was excited to check out some diamonds in the rough. And that I did.
Without the help of a guide, I probably wouldn't have found some of these places. For example, she led us to a street cart on Grand Street that serves intestine-shaped noodles with tripe and fish balls. (I'm still not a tripe fan, but I'd give the fish balls another shot.)
She also introduced me to an amazing banh mi joint (Banh Mi Vietnamese), a dive that sells handmade pulled noodles with beef tendons (Super Taste), and a local chain offering Liang pi, or cold skin noodles (Xi'an Famous Foods).
I also discovered places to buy fresh tofu and frozen dumplings if I wanted to try my hand at cooking Chinese dishes. If I was really brave (and rich) I now know a place where I can purchase dried sea cucumbers. How much, you ask? $118 per pound. No offense, but I think I'll stick to truffles at that price.
There is still so much to learn about Chinatown, but the tour was a great chance to dig a little deeper. Don't worry, Big Wong, you'll still be my go-to restaurant in Chinatown—that is, until I can find Peking duck better elsewhere.
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