HO HO FLORIST

I must have gotten flowers from here at least a dozen times. The flowers from this shop always take my breath away. Regardless, some might find this florist, a somewhat unusual place...

When you walk into the shop, you feel like you may be interrupting their Mah Jong game. The people here are always playing MJ or cards! The place smells like pleasant mix of cigars and roses.

This blog entry is by far not a negative review. I love the flowers here and I love that it is run by real people. In light of all the changes in Chinatown, it is so refreshing seeing a place like this! When on earth are you going to have a gentrified neighbor that's going to do your floral arrangement while puffing rings of smoke?

Ho Ho Florist is an old school Chinatown business where their shop is their home. They feel comfortable being who they are and hanging out with their friends. They have been here bringing beautiful flowers to Chinatown for as long as I can remember...

Awesome....

P.S. If you see my boyfriend, remind him he should be me flowers from this place!

HO HO FLORIST

161 HESTER STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10012

212-226-0729

In this picture: CICF hat autographed by SJP

SARAH JESSICA PARKER

I was bummed out that I missed seeing Sarah Jessica Parker (SJP) at CICF. I have been a long time fan of hers.

I adore her partly because I love Sex in the City. More so, I heard from a friend that when SJP was on Oprah she said that Chinatown was her favorite place in NYC.

SJP has also been spotted next door eating dumplings with Matthew Broderick. Another friend tells me that she was even married in a church in Chinatown!

SJP is an iconic modern woman who's a great a dresser and loves Chinatown! She's a true NYer and definitely one of my favorite actresses!

FYI my sis said she ordered pistachio with chocolate sprinkles!

GRAND BO KY RESTAURANT

Because Bo Ky is just that good, they had to open a second location. It makes perfect sense now that Chinatown has spanned out into what used to be Little Italy.

Grand Bo Ky's food is just as good as their old location which resides on Bayard street.

It's great seeing hard working families able to expand their businesses in light of a difficult economy. Brothers John and Angle are second generation restaurateurs. This family will own 2 of 3 Chiu Zhao restaurants in Chinatown.

I ordered pigs feet over rice while my friend ordered a noodle dish with minced pork. YUM!

Everything made by their family is delish!

GRAND BO KY RESTAURANT

216 GRAND STREET

212-219-9228

MR TANG CLOSES

Mr Tang restaurant has been on the corner of Bayard and Mott for nearly a decade. It has always been known to be one of the more popular restaurants. The prices here were a bit higher and the atmosphere a bit fancier than the average Chinatown restaurant.

For many locals, this was a spot where you could have a real dining experience. I've celebrated many special occasions, like birthdays here with family and friends.

The eatery had been known to attract big names like Jackie Chan and Russel Wong. The food here was very delicious.

With the bad economy and rising rents in Chinatown, Mr Teng has closed. The sign that hangs in their window says that they are closed because they have lost their lease.

Us Chinatown locals are now wondering what the space will be next. ..

BAYARD BUDDIES

This is me and my buddy Felix. He works next door as a waiter.

When you work a million hours a week, you learn to be friends with everyone on your block to maintain a so called social life.

Felix is from China but his English is excellent. He tells me that his secret for learning good English, was watching Sex in the City.

He works a lot of hours but the economy here is terrible. He's thinking about possibly going home to China instead of staying here. At least there, he has his family and friends.

The Chinatown economy is hurting a lot. From the vacant store fronts to the blocks shut down on Canal.

I'll be sad if another one of my friends on block leaves...

BIG WONG RESTAURANT

Big Wong is possibly one of Chinatown's most popular restaurants for locals. The sit down area is very casual and perhaps unimpressive but the food is outstanding. I think they make some of the best duck and roast pork in all of Chinatown. It is great for taking home food for families.

I've been here many Chinese New Years, waiting in line. I have many memories of getting jostled by little old women who are worried that they will run out of cha siu! Chinese New Year is an aggressive time!

I hear that this restaurant is linked with other restaurants that I also love: Hsin Wong and Yee Li. The food at these restaurants are also just as yummy.

BIG WONG RESTAURANT

67 MOTT STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10013

212-964-0540

EXCELLENT DUMPLING HOUSE

If you follow my blog, you would get that I really LOVE dumplings. I've always passed by this place called Excellent Dumpling House, but had never had the chance to stop in.

I tried their seafood dumplings, soup dumplings and crab rangoon. DELICIOUS! Their soup dumplings also rock!

This place has been rated by Zagat from 2002-2008.

In this cold weather, I find it to be a plus that they deliver!

EXCELLENT DUMPLING HOUSE

111 LAFAYETTE STREET

NEW YORK, NY 100013

212-219-0212

212-219-0213

VANESSA'S DUMPLING HOUSE

I've been hearing a lot of hype about Vanessa's Dumpling House. They were recently rated as one of the best dumpling houses in NYC by Time Out NY this year.

I finally had the chance to try them out and yes, they are OH-so GOOD! I like how they offer the option of boiled or fried dumplings. I, personally am not a huge fan of fried dumplings. Their Basil and Chicken Boiled Dumplings are rocking! They will only run you $3.75 for 8 pieces and it'll come in a soup for only $4. That is a serious bargain.

Other yummy goodness that you check out here are the Chive and Egg Pancake and the Noodles with Mashed Sesame Sauce.

If you love the dumplings here as much as I do, you can take them home frozen. A bag of 50 dumplings will run you somewhere between $9-$14 (depending on the variety).

To confirm, the dumplings here are definitely among the top that I've tasted.

VANESSA'S DUMPLING HOUSE

118A ELDRIDGE STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10002

212-625-8008

212-625-8118

THE OLD MUSIC PALACE

The old Music Palace used to sit on the corner of the Bowery and Hester. It was the last of the few Chinatown movie theaters. It closed down sometime between the years 1999-2000. At this time, it was supposed to have been taken over for a commercial project that never fell through.

The space has been vacant for a very long time. Recently, construction for a new hotel has been under way. I think it will be good to give life to this space.

MILK AND HONEY

I've been hearing about Milk and Honey for the longest time. When I heard about this secret location , I knew it would be in Chinatown/LES.

So for those of you who don't know about M & H; it's very exclusive to get into. At one point, you had to know someone who knew the phone number to get reservations and find out where it is.

I'm going to blow their cover and tell you that they are located on Eldridge right off Delancy. Someone invited me and made reservations. It was well worth the walk over there.

The feel of the place is that of an old school speakeasy. Their mixologists here are top notch. M&H doesn't have a menu. Instead of having staple drinks, they will mix up anything that you fancy with a bit of a spin to it. I was dreaming of something sweet with fruits. They came up with something that tasted a bit like a white grape mojito with whole pieces of fruit. DELISH!

MILK AND HONEY

http://www.mlkhny.com/cocktails/newyork/

CHRISTMAS AT HAMILTON MADISON HOUSE

CICF donated new toys and served as a drop off point for Hamilton Madison House (HMH) this year. My friend Cynthia Lin was also kinda enough to donate baked goods for the occasion. She also served as my elf. There was also a dancing reindeer who knew how to play the violin that I brought all the way from the North Pole!

According to Thea, I am the first Chinese girl Santa in the history of HMH. This is wack considering it is Chinatown. Glad I broke down that barrier...

A definite Christmas success!

MING'S CAFFE

Whenever I take the F train, I pass by Ming's Caffe. I never had the chance to try their food until today.

The decor is cute and homey. You can watch Chinese comedies while enjoying a good meal. I got the spaghetti with pork chops and tomatoes. So HK and totally YUM! One friend got the Spam and eggs over rice. My other friend got the tripe. The herbal tea is also a healthy alternative to soda.

Now that the weather is so cold, I don't want to step out. It's really great that they do deliver. I'll definitely have to try some other things on their menu!

(Please note: the spelling of the restaurant is CAFFE instead of CAFE when looking it up)

MING'S CAFFE

28 Canal Street

212-978-1888

212-978-1889

FREE Delivery

HOLIDAY FLOATS

In these pictures, floats are prepared for a holiday parade on Mulberry street in Chinatown that goes through Little Italy.

In this picture: Bob Diamond, Mary Lee, and Sal Situ try to raise funds for the Greater Chinatown Community Association at their holiday party.

In this picture: Magnetic North rocks CICF shirts!

(Photo by An Rong Xu)

EGG CUSTARD KING=-Natalie's Bakery

Egg Custard King was kinda like the egg custard version of CICF. They used to have different flavored egg custards, ranging from strawberry to taro. With all the variety, I am still a fan of the original egg custard (don-tot).

So I get a comment on my post the other day that they renamed it Natalie's Bakery? I'm thinking WTF?!!? So, I go and call them and ask if this is Egg Custard King and they reply "yes". I'm not convinced. I go in for further investigating and walk to the location.

It is oh so deceiving. The sign's font and everything looks the same as the old Egg Custard King but yes it has been renamed Natalie's Bakery! They actually only have too varieties of egg custard; original and Portuguese style.

This is sad news for the don tot scene in Chinatown! They did however have yummy green tea cakes!

NATALIE'S BAKERY

271 GRAND STREET

HONG KONG STATION

On cold winter days, I like Hong Kong Station. With a choice of noodles, you can choose toppings that vary from fish dumplings to tripe. This eatery charges per item. My eyes are usually bigger than my belly. I usually wind up picking a lot!

My favorites are the wide rice noodles (hou fun) with fried eggs, bok choi, chicken wings, and dumplings. ( I add a lot!)

The ambiance is friendly to diners who eat alone, as well as groups of friends. I usually eat my meals alone in Chinatown since I work. This spot is definitely one of my favs! I get to listen to Cantonese love ballads over a bowl of yummy goodness! Wow!

*Also if you're not in the mood for noodles, they have yummy egg sandwiches and French Toast!

HONG KONG STATION

45 BAYARD STREET,

128 HESTER STREET

THE BAG BUST

Chinatown gets a bad rap for selling counterfeit bags. Canal Street is world famous for selling knock-offs. About a year ago they shut down a large row of stores, leaving the block empty. This week, the Cops made another big bust and closed down another block.

I don't really see how cracking down on bags is a priority in our community. I've heard that the city loses money on luxury tax when people buy counterfeits instead of the real thing. In my opinion the people who buy counterfeits are not the same crowd that are going to be buying the good stuff.

Regardless of whether you agree with my point of view; it has hurt our community. When the bag stores are shut down by the Police, the stores are left vacant. The landlords can't collect the rent and the businesses that were there aren't going to be paying their taxes.

Empty blocks equals less foot traffic in the area. That means it hurts our restaurants, boutiques, cafes and even our ice cream stores.

And the funny thing is that the people that sell knock offs just learn to evolve. When they have their stores taken away from them, they wind up selling at secret locations and out of garbage bags. The bags are still being sold, but their blocks become part of a ghost town.

MAN VS FOOD

The CICF shirt is wicked popular! In this picture, the CICF shirt is worn in Man vs. Food. He owns the CICF shirt in blue, black and red!

In this picture: Iris Lin bring a bag of toys for the Hamilton Madison Toy Drive.