China Town

There is no doubt that New York is the most culturally diverse city in the world. There are many neighborhoods throughout the city that reflect the customs of the people who live there. Perhaps no community demonstrates this more clearly than the Chinese, who have established not 1, not 2, but THREE different China Towns throughout the five boroughs. Several weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting Flushing, Queens, which has one of the China Towns. I went there for lunch with some friends after a day at the beach, and was able to enjoy some great authentic Chinese food.

Were not in Kansas anymore, Toto. No egg rolls here.

The particular restaurant we visited has been recommended by the Michelin Guide for the past few years (Note: I said recommended, not rated, as in stars). You know you're in an authentic place when you can't read anything and you are the only non-Asian people in the dining room. Thankfully, my friends had visited before and the menu had some translations.

We ordered several plates of food, all of which come at a very cheap price ($5 or less). This style of dining is called dim sum. It reminds me of tapas in Spain, where everything is appetizer portioned and meant to share. You are served hot tea to accompany your meal to aid in digestion instead of water (but you can have water if you like, as well). This first dish is pork dumplings. There's a ball of ground pork sitting inside this little liquid-filled pouch, which are then steamed. Tradition follows that you poke open the pouch to let the liquid flow out into your spoon to suck up. Otherwise, you risk burning your mouth with the steaming hot liquid if you just eat the whole thing in one bite. The dumplings were absolutely delicious. I could eat the whole basket, which brought 5 or 6 dumplings.

Up next were some rice cakes sauteed in a wok with some vegetables. They are gluten-based discs that have an incredibly soft and chewy texture.

Lastly were some scallion pancakes. These are non-leavened flatbreads made with dough instead of batter, like a traditional American breakfast pancake. The dough is mixed with green onions and cooked with oil. Although a savory item, they lacked a bit of seasoning. Nonetheless, they were an interesting treat.

I have the feeling this was just the tip of the iceberg as far as my musings into Chinese food are concerned. I will definitely check out some of the other China Towns to sample their authentic cuisine. And the best part is, it's so cheap!