Good Eats in Chinatown

I've been fascinated by the very idea of Dim Sum since I first learned what it meant. The ability to try lots of different types of dumplings and small plates at one time? It sounded like a dream come true. And when I first had Dim Sum in a small place on 46th street in New York, it was pretty perfect. That particular place gives you a menu (not really what I had in mind, but quite helpful) with descriptions of each type of dumpling. You choose a few, gobble those up and then re-start the process. 

However, when I went to Chinatown a few weeks ago and we found a classic Dim Sum restaurant, I found it wasn't as easy as it was at my standby on 46th. There's a lot to deal with, and I'm not so great at dealing with it. The classic Dim Sum is served on carts by servers wandering around. I knew that would be the case, but I had imagined it would be easier to determine what was on each cart. In our defense, we chose a pretty popular with locals spot - Jing Fong. Jing Fong is the type of place that those that live in Chinatown actually visit. So not only do they have the upper hand, but they also speak the language which makes ordering so much easier.

We neither spoke the language nor were we gifted enough in conversation to determine what we were ordering or what the process even was for ordering. It turns out I'm much too awkward for service like this. There was a lot of pointing, questioning and just taking what they handed us. However, that seemed to work in our favor because we only managed to purchase one thing that was awful. I'd say that was a win! 

Our favorite was the pork and shrimp dumplings as they always are, and the dumplings to the right of the top photo which were filled with meat and covered in soy sauce, and looked a lot like a jellyfish. Like I said, knowing what I was eating wasn't my strong suit. In the end, it was a pretty delicious lunch. But that lunch didn't contain dessert which honestly should never be skipped on vacation.

 

From Jing Fong we had two choices (based on hard-core Instagram research) - Rolled Ice Cream or Ice Cream in a bubble waffle. It was cold, and the rolled ice cream was closer, so we headed to 10 Below Ice Cream. If you've ever read BuzzFeed, you know that this place jumped to notoriety this past summer with their Instagram-worthy ice cream. It's such a gimmick, that lines wrapped around the block. But that was summer, and we had the upper hand. Who actually wants ice cream in January? Turns out that logic worked in our favor, because we were the only ones in the shop.

 

Rolled Ice Cream is essentially just that. Our fabulous ice cream roller, made the ice cream on a cold stone, flattened out into a super-thin ice cream pancake, then, using a spatula, rolled it up into 3 inch tubes and dropped it into a cup. It's super cool to watch them do and I will admit the ice cream is beautiful in the cup. But it's also super sweet and not nearly as creamy as regular old ice cream is. It's a fun experience, but if you're looking for really good ice cream, I'd recommend skipping 10 Below and just finding a plain old ice cream shop. 

 

Chinatown in New York - as with most Chinatowns - is full of all sorts of delicious restaurants and treat shops. Even if you're not quite sure what to try, I'd recommend just going for it. It may not go completely smoothly, but you'll have fun and you'll never go hungry!