CHINATOWN TOWNHALL ON THE WEB

Announcing that Monday's Townhall Meeting is on the web.  If you missed it, find out what is being done for the future of Chinatown by clicking on the below link. 

Thank you Anthony and AAARI!

Here's the link:

 www.aaari.info/09-06-01CWG.htm

CICF is part of APICHA's Silent Auction!

(In this picture: Yeou Cheng Ma, Suki Ports (one of the founders of APICHA, and me.)

APICHA GALA

So I was part of The Asian Pacific Islanders Coalition against HIV and AIDS (APICHA)'s benefit committee until I got silently ousted. Totally my fault; missing too many meetings and spread too thin. I do however LOVE APICHA. They do such amazing things in the APA and the Chinatown community.

Galas are usually not my scene unless I really support a cause. Galas mean that I have to put on a dress and pretend to be a girl. I am also socially awkard and tend to go dateless, but hey...

The gala was beautiful...

I heard the most beautiful music ever...

Yeou-Cheng Ma played the violin as people entered. I later found out she was the sister of Yo-Yo Ma which made perfect sense.

More importantly than the gala itself, I wanted to blog about why APICHA is important.

APICHA's mission is to combat the stigma attached to AIDS and HIV within the APA community. In the APA community, the disease is rarely spoken about and many suffer alone in shame away from family and friends.

I know a lot of APAs since I'm in Chinatown all the time. It's hard to believe that none of them have HIV or AIDS. HIV and AIDS doesn't discrimate against Asians. It is a reality that people I know and care for are suffering in silence.

This is why APICHA is so crucial to our community. It's terrible enough to endure the physical pains of the disease. One should not have to needless emotional isolation.

APICHA is located in the TriBecCa/Chinatown area.

To find out more about APICHA for donations or volunteer opportunities,

visit www.apicha.org

MAUNG GEMS

Sometimes I like buying things for myself. Sometimes I like buying things for friends. In short, I love shopping.

I love these bracelets made of jade. I got a bracelet with jade flowers for $15 bucks. The band is made from a strong brown string that is hand knotted. The jade is beautiful and imported from Myanmar. I got a matching one for my sister as well.

It amazes me how many wonderful things you can buy in Chinatown for bargain prices. Recession shopping anyone?

Maung Gems-Located in the NY Jewlery Mall

118 Baxter Street (Btw Canal and Hester)

www.maunggems.com

646-246-8717

CELL PHONE CASES ON CANAL

I am a Crackberry. I am sadly an owner of a Blackberry. I bought my case on Canal Street from a local street vendor.

I paid $5 bucks. Is that not a bargain? Most of my friends who have bought the same case from the cell phone stores often pay anywhere from $15-$20. What a difference!

It's such a steal that I was tempted to buy other color cases to match different outfits. Yes, I have a shopping problem...

They also sell cases for other phones, IPods, and other accessories. Just stroll down Canal Street, anywhere from Mott to Broadway and you should see these guys around.

DANNY NG'S

Danny Ng's restaurant has a new location. They closed their Pell street location awhile ago and now can be found on the Bowery.

I found the food to be much more yummy than their old location. We ordered a whole bunch of dishes and it only came out to be $20 a person (including tip). We ordered family style and we ate like Kings and Queens. We definitely stuffed ourselves royally.

My favorite is the lobster with cheese. It is absolutely delicious. I also recommend the shrimp with fruit and mayo. Sounds a little weird, but it's great.

Rumor has it that the spare ribs with pumpkin is to die for. I will have to try that next time!

DANNY NG'S

52 Bowery (@ Canal

212-608-0688

SWAT BAR

It was my friend's bday Saturday and everything was booked up in Chinatown. Somehow, someone found this random bar that was able to accommodate the 30 of us without reservations.

There is always a catch. Swat Bar is extremely old school. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing...I actually had a really good time.

The best way to describe the joint is " a second floor Golden Flower revival." For those of us that remember Golden Flower, it was a bit of a Chinese karaoke dive bar. Now, a lot of people are sad that it's gone and it is now taken over by the posh Apoteke.

Karaoke with a stage; mostly Chinese songs. A much older crowd in a second floor walk up. Swat Bar still has all the essential beers and mixed drinks that makes for a good evening.

I long thought that the old school bars of Chinatown, (besides for Winnie's) were gone. I realized that they have just moved a little further out. It's definitely not posh, but that doesn't mean that it can't be fun. Old school Chinatown karaoke bars...

SWAT BAR

95 or 97 Canal Street

Corner of Orchard and Canal, 2nd Floor Walkup

SHANGHAI ASIAN CUSINE

This place used to be called Shanghai Garden.  I wonder why they changed the name.  The restaurant still seems unchanged.   

My favorite here is the noodles in spicy brown sauce (Ja Jurng Mein).  Other popular favorites are the Shanghai Lo Mein and the Soup Dumplings.  Everything is absolutely DELICIOUS.  

My goodness I love eating in Chinatown!

SHANGHAI ASIAN CUSINE

14A ELIZABETH STRET

NEW YORK, NY 10013

(212) 964-5640

DIMSUM at ORIENTAL GARDEN

My friend Thea from Hamilton Madison House loves dimsum. The only problem is that she doesn't eat meat! I'm totally carnivorous!

It actually hasn't been as much of a challenge to find dim sum items without meat. We dimsumed at Oriental Garden. This wood paneled restaurant tends to be among my favorites. It's more calm than the bigger banquet halls. The quality tends to also be higher. It's slightly more expensive but when I say that, it means maybe 50cents to a dollar more.

We at a plate of choy sum, vegetable spring rolls, and vegetable dumplings. They also have a menu around that is bilingual with pictures. They carry more than what they offer on the small dimsum carts they are pushing around.

Who knew eating food without meat could be so tasty. Dimsum without meat can still be yummy!

ORIENTAL GARDEN

14 ELIZABETH STREET

212) 619-0085

THE SHOE MAN

For any of us that have walked by Columbus Park, know the "Shoe Man".  He is the person who sits on the corner that repairs shoes.  He has finally moved locations after 26 years!  I walked by and saw the sign in the picture above.

I wonder what caused him to move!  Email me if you know the scoop.  I have gone to him for many years.  I never understood why he did it for so cheap because it just seemed so labor intensive.  He has often reheeled my boots and such for something like $2 or $3.   That is dirt cheap!  

I always did feel that he did do it as a labor of love.  He always seems very happy with what he's doing although it is tedious.  The Shoe Man is also very inventive, having two phone numbers.  This is because his English isn't very good and doesn't want to lose business.  What an ingenious idea! 

He will now be on 221 Grand Street and Elizabeth Street.  I'm glad he just moved and didn't retire!

THE SHOE MAN

221 GRAND STREET

646-434-9360 (Chinese)

646-434-9352 (English)

SHANGHAI CUISINE

Today, I met up with my buddy Pauline Yu.  Pauline works as the Community Liason for Mayor's office.  Her Father is also President of the Chinese Benevolent Association (CCBA).  So in short she is a Chinatown Advocate All-Star!

We had lunch and chit chatted about local politics at Shanghai Cafe.  It always feels good to get together with other young people in the Chinatown area who want to better our community.  Also it's a plus when they want to venture and try new yummy foods with you!

We ate their soup dumplings with pork which is a signature Shanghai dish.  In addition, we also ate noodles with beef and eggplant.  YUMMY! 

Although we are in a recession, I don't think that means we can't stuff ourselves.  This yummy meal for two, including tip was a little shy of $30.  Keep in mind we over ordered.

SHANGHAI CUSINE

89 BAYARD STREET

212-732-8988

CICF AT BROOKLYN BP'S APA CELEBRATION

Marty Markowitz, who is the Brooklyn Borough President has an APA celebration. We've been invited the last couple of years to be part of that. Our ice cream always seems to be a hit.

You can celebrate APA culture by eating ice cream. The Chinese were essential to building the railroads in the U.S. but they were also the innovators of ice cream!

(In this photo, I am wearing a jacket designed by Yanna. Available at Peony Red.)

HAPPY TIME CAFE

Today, I ate at Happy Time twice! Friends were visiting me at work. What a wonderful day!

I love Happy Time because it's only a few doors down from CICF. They have a million different things to choose from. They have meals if you're very hungry; snacks if you're kind of hungry; and lots of different drinks.

The owner must think I'm a bottomless pit. Within a five hour period, I ate a Hawaiian fried rice, A Hong Kong milk tea, a coffee with tapioca, and an order of fried dough.

Happy Time makes me HAPPY! =)

HAPPY TIME CAFE

51 BAYARD STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10013

212-732-2395

AUTUMN LIN PHOTOGRAPHY

I have been in a mood where I have just not been feeling pretty.  I've been playing that West Side Story song, singing along with my girl Maria and I'm still not feeling pretty.

My friend decided to get me out of my funk.  Autumn who is a well known photographer offered to photograph me.

Autumn maintains her original office in Chinatown and has expanded to Jersey.  Surprisingly only a small percentage of her clients are Chinese.  She has been voted the best photographer by the Knot Magazine.  Autumn also is one of the regular photographers for the United Nations. She gets to follow around members of royal families, capturing their precious moments with her camera.  How awesome is that?

I'm really looking forward to my pictures.  I know they will turn out beautiful, not because I am pretty but because Autumn is so fantastic.  That's why she gets paid the big bucks ( I would not be able to afford my pictures if she didn't do them for free.  I do manual labor for a living!) 

Everything fabulous comes from Chinatown! I'm sure I'll feel as pretty as Maria after seeing the photos.

BTW her private collection "Journey to the West" is being displayed at the gallery at 11 Front Street in DUMBO.

AUTUMN LIN PHOTOGRAPHY

373 Broadway, Studio D5

(917) 939 - 4899

(212) 655 - 9289

www.autumnlin.com

RED EGG'S BAR

Red Egg's bar has been a pretty cool place to hang out. If I have a rough day, I order a Shirley Temple (I rarely drink alcohol). Darren usually convinces me that I need to make that a double. This is as wild as I usually live... I really go because I love the dim sum that is served throughout the day as kinda a bar appetizer.

The other day, I was actually more adventurous and tried Darren's specialty drink. He is so proud of his Pisco Sour. It's a drink made with an egg white and Peruvian rum. Red Egg is Peruvian Chinese cuisine so it makes sense that this is a signature drink.

The Pisco Sour was DELICIOUS! I hear that alcoholic drinks with egg whites are all the craze. Maybe I should start living more dangerous.

Cheers to drinks at Red Egg!

RED EGG

202 Centre Street

New York, NY 10013

BLOGGER PARTY

If you're reading this, you must have figured out that I am a blogger. My blog is actually #1 for NYC's Chinatown. (not to toot my own horn =) )

The other night, I had stayed out late to go to a blogger party. It was one of the few nights, where I pretended I had a life...

I had to go out! I was invited as one of the guests of food/other bloggers!

It was awesome! Desserts, alcohol and fellow bloggers! There are some days where it is great being me. =)

EXHIBIT AT COLUMBUS PARK

My friend Winnie always feeds me great news articles about what is going on in the community on Facebook.

The other day, I was strolling through Columbus Park. My friend asked me what the pictures hanging up were. Sadly though I own this blog, I didn't know the answer...

Right now, the exhibit Chinatown Voices is being exhibited throughout the park. The collection was meant to show the diversity of Chinatown; past and present.

I really loved it. I felt like it was something I could relate to since I'm in the community so much. Surprisingly neither of the artists were Chinese. Patel and Pham did however work through translators. One artist is Vietnamese and the other is from India.

The art is also interactive; inviting the spectator to relate the art to their own stories.

For me, most of the special moments in my life have taken place in Chinatown...

Visit Columbus Park and email me and I'd like for you to share your story with me. =)

For more information visit www.nycmetropoles.com

WO HOP UPSTAIRS

Yesterday, me and two friends went to eat at the upstairs section of Wo Hop. We celebrated a friend's engagement over yummy snails.

Anna is so cute! It was about time her hubby popped the question! Gloria is also super special. When she gets engaged, we will have to continue the tradition and eat snails again!

Memorable moments are always happening at Wo Hop.

WO HOP

17 Mott Street

New York, NY 10013

212-566-3841

(Both me and Virginia are wearing outfits from Peony Red. www.peonyred.com)

CICF AT GRACIE MANSION

CICF has made it's appearance this year again at the Mayor's Asian Pacific American (APA) Celebration! CICF has also been part of the festitivties for the Controller's Celebration, as well as both Borough President (BP) Manhattan and BP Brooklyn!

No celebration is complete without ice cream!

CHINATOWN TOWN HALL MEETING

An important event is taking place in the community on June 1st at 6:30. The Chinatown Working Group (CWG) is holding a Town Hall Meeting to discuss the future of Chinatown. The goal of the meeting is to hear what the community thinks and to bring up any current concerns.

The meeting will be held in both Chinese and English. I do encourage anyone who does live or work in the community to attend. Only by hearing our voices, will we be able to make positive change in our community.

The CWG will be holding a meeting this Wednesday (May 20th) at 4-5:30 at Community Board #1, Rm 79 at 49-51 Chambers Street to plan the Town Hall.

If you also have an suggestions, please reach out to Gigi at gigi@nfsc-nyc.org / 516-642-2099

TOWN HALL
JUNE 1, 6:30 at PS 124 (40 Division Street)
New York, NY 10013
http://www.cbwchc.org/

CHARLES B WANG

The other night I was invited to the Charles B Wang fundraiser. Mr. Wang is the legend that created Computer Associates. This man has been so generous with his fortune. In Chinatown in particular, he built our health clinic.  This year marked its 10th anniversary.  At the gala, Mr. Wang was the honoree.

I had the honor of meeting the impressive man. He was surprisingly humble. Mr. Wang has so many accomplishments.  He spoke with us about an organization he founded called Smile Train which helps to provide poor children with cleft surgery. 

Sitting around the table with me were other APA advocates and community members. Mr Wang and Mr Teng inspired us to put together a fundraiser in the community to help these children. 

It would be an honor for us to help these children in the spirit of Mr. Wang.  I believe it is important for us to give back to a man who has done so much for Chinatown.

To make a donation or find out more on the Charles B. Wang Health Clinic, visit
http://www.cbwchc.org/