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NYC Chinatown - Uncovering the Best Cheap Eats
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items Chinatown is my favorite and most-frequented region of the ENTIRE city of New York, where you can find full meals for $5. Here's where you should be eating:
Map
Sections
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the best & cheapest dumplings
cheap eats
bakeries/sweets
the best & cheapest dumplings
$3 peanut noodles and the best pork and chive dumplings in nyc
pro tip - buy a bag of 50 frozen dumplings for only $12!
pro tip - buy a bag of 50 frozen dumplings for only $12!
Shu Jiao Fu Zhou
$5 for a steaming, overflowing tray of 10 saucy pork buns! and $5 for 15 pan fried dumplings - some of the best prices i've ever seen
Jin Mei Dumpling
super homey spot for yet another overflowing plate of dumplings. don't miss their sesame pancake
North Dumpling
cheap eats
giant fluffy scallion pancake for only $2! locals-only traditional chinese lunch spot. endless options from hong kong bbq, to $8 rice and meat/veggie platters, to any baked good you can imagine
Deluxe Food Market - 79 Elizabeth St, New York, New York - Yelp
my FAVORITE spot in all of chinatown for pork buns. so saucy and flavorful, better than what i've had in china. $5 for 6 huge pork buns. location in an abandoned mall, go downstairs and trust the process
Fu Zhou Wei Zhong Wei Jia Xiang Feng Wei
best banh mi i've had in nyc. must get the bbq pork, add an egg, add pate (important!!)
Bánh Mì Saigon
malaysian cafe - what people don't talk about is their weekly rotating food entrees! check their instagram for their weekly menu, MUST GO when they have the salted egg chicken rice! huge platter of delicious umami salted egg chicken for less than $15...
Kuih Cafe
iconic $1.50 roast pork pineapple bun. the line gets long but it's part of the nyc chinatown experience :) absolutely worth a try if it's your time
Mei Lai Wah
5-6$ beef pancake! super authentic and homey. also known for their big tray chicken (traditional spicy chinese chicken stew, add hand pulled noodles!)
Spicy Village
the fluffiest chinese steamed buns - by the pack or individual! salted egg yolk buns, pork buns, pumpkin buns, & more
Golden Steamer
bakeries/sweets
traditional chinese bakery - my favorite red bean egg yolk pastry in the city! everything is handmade and they have all the classics (bbq pork buns, scallion buns, chinese almond cookies, egg tarts, you name it)
AUDREY BAKERY & CAFE - Updated September 2024
an institution of nyc <3 family-run! iconic egg tarts. also go for their traditional mooncakes! all made by hand in the back every morning during mid-autumn season
Double Crispy Bakery
iconic ice cream parlor with so many asian-inspired handmade flavors - think almond cookie, black sesame, thai iced tea, lychee, and more
The Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory