Chinatown Food Crawl

If you want to be whisked away out of Manhattan, pay a visit to Chinatown. Chinese characters line the store fronts and the sidewalks are bustling with vendors selling fruits, Asian vegetables, mystery meat, knock of purses, and plenty  of “Rolex” watches. Chinatown is also a frugal foodie’s dream with dozens of hole in the wall spots serving up authentic, affordable grub.

My friend and I hit the streets for a Chinatown food crawl in search of the best eats.

Chinatown Food Crawl Tips:

• Bring cash, as many spots are cash only.
• Do some research ahead of time, but be open to stumble upons.
• Sit down service will always be more expensive.
• If there’s a line, it’s probably good.

We had some major hits and a couple misses across 6 different venues. The best part? The grand total was $15.67 per person! Here’s what our journey entailed.

Joe’s Steam Rice Roll:  Beef Rice Roll, $6

A steamed rice roll is a classic Cantonese dish that features rice noodle sheets made from rice flour, tapioca/glutinous rice, and water. It is then filled with meat or vegetables. Drizzle some soy sauce and chili oil over that bad boy and you’ve got one epic dish.

The rice noodles from Joe’s are delightfully stretchy with a melt-in-your mouth sensation. Our beef filling was perfectly tender with loads of flavor, making for one hell of a tasty cheap eat.  It was the first and the best stop on our Chinatown food crawl.

Joe’s Shanghai: Soup Dumplings,  $12.62 (including tax and gratuity)

Joe’s Shanghai is famous for it’s xiao long bao, which are soup dumplings. Soup dumplings are a little steamed buns that hold a filling and soup broth. Eating one gracefully is no easy feat, but the reward is an incredible flavor and texture explosion.

While Joe’s Shanghai is “the”  place for xiao long bao, our order fell short. The broth tasted too watery and was merely luke warm. Perhaps they weren’t steamed to order. Mayb  it was an off day.  Certainly not worth the price tag. Check out a video of the spot HERE.

Mei Lah Wah Bakery:  Baked Buns, $2 each

The next stop on our  Chinatown food crawl was Mei Lah Wah Bakery, which is famous for its baked pork buns. Let me tell you, these buns are 10/10. The bun itself had the perfect soft and bready texture, and the pork filling was outrageously flavorful with the right amount of  salt and ever so hint of sweet.

We also got a pork and pineapple bun, which was a pineapple bun stuffed with the pork filling.  WHOA BABY.  The sweetness and slight sugary crunch of the bun’s exterior complemented the pork filling to perfection.

Tasty Dumpling: 5 Pan Fried Pork and Chive Dumplings, $2

No Chinatown food crawl is complete without pan fried pork and chive dumplings. While Tasty Dumpling dominates  “best dumplings in Chinatown” lists, they feel short. The dough was slightly too thick and the filling lacked flavor. Plus, they weren’t fried enough, meaning no crispiness. For $2, I couldn’t be too mad. But last week’s dumpling experience at King Dumplings was superior.

The Dough Club: Mochi Donut, $2.75

Mochi donuts are my  new favorite treat, but our cookie monster creation fell short. It leaned more towards doughnut than mochi, lacking that satisfying mochi texture.

Alimama: Mochi Donut, $4

The mochi donuts from Alimama are complete perfection. Our cereal donut was sweet, crunchy, with the perfect chewy mouth feel. More expensive than the Dough Club, but far better value.

Wrapping Up Our Chinatown Food Crawl….

We checked out 6 different venues with 7 different eats for a grand total of $31.37. That’s $15.67 a person for an epic foodie journey!

Joe’s Shanghai, Tasty Dumpling, and the Dough Club fell short. But Joe’s Steam Rice Roll, Mei Lah Wah Bakery, and Alimama were total home runs. It was a successful Chinatown food crawl, and it certainly won’t be the last.