How New York Came to Have 9 Chinatowns

Whether or not you've noticed, New York's Chinese food scene is changing — dramatically — owing to a rapid influx of Chinese immigrants since 2000, and the fact that they're coming from a variety of regions and socioeconomic backgrounds. 

And now, the crack team at Eater.com has made the audacious claim that the city has not two, not three, but NINE Chinatowns scattered across the boroughs. These include parts of Forest Hills and Homecrest, Brooklyn, which have seen an increase in their Chinese populations in recent years.

In this latest installment of Micropolis, WNYC's Arun Venugopal sits down with Eater NY editor Serena Dai over dry pot at MáLà Project in the East Village, where young Chinese immigrants have forged a new, hip food scene in the last couple years, fueled by WeChat posts and word of mouth.

"One reason the East Village has been a great place for these people to open is that the audience is there," said Dai. "So these NYU students who are not only going to the restaurants but some of them are opening them as well. I’ve met people who did grad school at NYU and then they’re doing maybe consulting jobs and they’ll invest in a franchise at their favorite bubble tea place. Because they really love food and want to be part of food culture."

Eater: "The Ultimate Guide to Chinese Food in NYC"

WNYC's Arun Venugopal with Eater editor Serena Dai at MáLà Project in the East Village

(Richard Yeh/WNYC)