Your city's Chinatown

[Docere]

Originally Posted by McBane

No one's mentioned Chinatown in Philadelphia. https://goo.gl/maps/SlD41

That's not true.

Report on the gentrification of Chinatowns in Boston, NYC (Manhattan) and Philadelphia.

It doesn't break down Chinese specifically, though the Asian populations are overwhelmingly Chinese.

http://aaldef.org/Chinatown%20Then%2...w%20AALDEF.pdf

It puts the Asian populations at around 53,000 (45%) in Manhattan, 6,000 (46%) in Boston and 2,500 (42%) in Philadelphia.

[simms3_redux]

Originally Posted by Docere

Summing up by approximate Chinatown Chinese population. All from census tracts unless otherwise stated.

Manhattan 50,000 (report on NY/Boston/Philadelphia Chinatown)
San Francisco 19,000 (94108 and 94133)
Chicago 8,000
Toronto 7,500
Boston 5,500
Los Angeles 5,500
Oakland 4,000
Vancouver 3,000
Philadelphia 2,500
Seattle 1,000
Montreal 500
Washington less than 500

This sounds about right. I will add, though, based on my experiences, that while there is apparently a huge gap in population between Manhattans and SF's Chinatown Chinese populations, there is not so much a gap in the intensity of those Chinatowns or the extensiveness or authenticity of each. There IS a large gap to the other Chinatowns in this country and I'd go so far as to say from a tourist's perspective, the only Chinatowns worth visiting are the two in Manhattan and SF.

Originally Posted by McBane

No one's mentioned Chinatown in Philadelphia. https://goo.gl/maps/SlD41

It's supposedly the largest Chinatown in the country outside of NY and SF. But that can't be correct because the figures I'm seeing show a population of only 1400 people, which seems very low to me. The same data shows the population to be 80% Asian. Unlike some other Chinatowns, other Asian immigrants have built their own, separate communities, so it's fair to say that Philly Chinatown is very much Chinese. The Vietnamese live in South Philly and the Koreans have an enclave in North Philly.

Most residents live in walk-up apartments above storefronts. The area is bustling but hemmed in by an expressway, a convention center, and a major thoroughfare. The commercial core is about 3 blocks by 5 blocks, although some residents and wholesale operations are moving north of the expressway. There's a ton of restaurants, along with grocery stores, tea shops, banks, knick knack shops, travel agencies/currency exchange, and other professional services. Plus, an obligatory Chinatown arch. The one in Philly was actually made in China (ironic, huh).

Philly's has been mentioned a few times but in the grand scheme of things is negligible (like DC's). Sorry to say. NYC and SF have several bona fide Chinatowns *much* larger than the one in Philly. Chicago's, LA's, and Toronto's are also much larger. I believe Boston's is as well if Downtown Crossing area is sort of it.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by simms3_redux

T There IS a large gap to the other Chinatowns in this country and I'd go so far as to say from a tourist's perspective, the only Chinatowns worth visiting are the two in Manhattan and SF.

Manhattan Chinatown is no better than 3rd best in NYC. Flushing is, without question, the best urban/traditional Chinatown.

And the SGV is the best suburban Chinatown.

[simms3_redux]

^^^As a mere visitor to NYC who typically stays in Manhattan, I'd definitely go to Manhattan's before Flushing's. To me it's like Inner Richmond in SF - it's better and larger, but more difficult to get to and offers less for visitors/tourists and more for residents. Flushing and Inner Richmond are also both not photogenic, at all. Meanwhile, Manhattan's and SF's Chinatowns are two of the most photogenic in the world (personally I'd say SF's even more so than Manhattan's).

But other than that, I get your point. If I lived in NYC and wanted better Chinese food and not to deal with any touristy stuff and had more time and knew the transit system better, I could easily see going to Flushing or any number of other NYC Chinatowns before the one in Manhattan.

[McBane]

Okay, let's not too carried away with Manhattan's Chinatown. Yes, being in Manhattan subjects the neighborhood to more non-Asian visitors, higher costs, and stronger gentrification pressures. But other than that, the neighborhood is just as important and just as authentic as Flushing. Some of the comments here are making it seem like Manhattan Chinatown is a sanitized Disneyfied tourist mecca. It's still dirty, smelly, crowded, and home to thousands of Chinese immigrants.

[dktshb]

According to the LA Times as of the 2000 census Los Angeles’ Chinatown population is 55% foreign born from China and 56% Chinese. LA’s Chinatown functions like a true immigrant neighborhood. Also, in the city of Monterey Park, just east of Downtown 47% of its residents are of Chinese descent.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by McBane

But other than that, the neighborhood is just as important and just as authentic as Flushing.

That's definitely not true.

Manhattan Chinatown has been declining in Chinese population for a couple of decades, and hasn't been a major immigrant center for a long time. Almost all new Chinese immigrants to NYC go to Brooklyn and Queens, and this has been true for decades.

In contrast, Flushing has gone from basically zero Chinese presence to the biggest Chinese neighborhood on earth outside of Asia. It's a total boomtown.

Originally Posted by McBane

Some of the comments here are making it seem like Manhattan Chinatown is a sanitized Disneyfied tourist mecca. It's still dirty, smelly, crowded, and home to thousands of Chinese immigrants.

This is all true, but doesn't follow from your first sentence. Just because Manhattan Chinatown still has tons of longtime Chinese (thanks to rent regulation laws) doesn't mean it's "just as authentic as Flushing". It's slowly, but surely, fading away, with no newcomers to pass the elderly passing on.

On the Chinatown authentic-o-meter, yeah, it's still very "real", but can't hold a candle to Flushing or Sunset Park (another neighborhood that had like zero Chinese population 30 years ago).

[TarHeelJ]

Atlanta doesn't have an actual Chinatown, but does have an international corridor along Buford Highway with a substantial Chinese population(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buford_Highway). It isn't a traditional historical community but more of a suburban/later 20th century creation. Lots of U.S. cities that experienced large international growth in the last 50 years have these.

"There are more than 1,000 immigrant-owned businesses owned by and patronized by a wide variety of ethnic groups, notably Korean, Mexican, Chinese and Vietnamese, and also Indian/South Asian, Central American, Somalian and Ethiopian. The Buford Highway community is home to one of the highest concentration of foreign-born residents in the country."

[Bikemike]

Originally Posted by dktshb

According to the LA Times as of the 2000 census Los Angeles’ Chinatown population is 55% foreign born from China and 56% Chinese. LA’s Chinatown functions like a true immigrant neighborhood. Also, in the city of Monterey Park, just east of Downtown 47% of its residents are of Chinese descent.

The San Gabriel Valley stretching from Monterey Park all the way to Arcadia and south to the Puente Valley is the single largest Chinatown of all the ones being compared. It's just more spread out and suburban. It's much more authentic than all of the traditional urban Chinatowns save for perhaps Flushing and some of the newer but much smaller Chinaburbs of Toronto, the South Bay of the SF Bay area, and suburban Vancouver, all of which are just as authentic as the San Gabriel Valley.

[Tom Servo]

Originally Posted by Docere

Summing up by approximate Chinatown Chinese population. All from census tracts unless otherwise stated.

Manhattan 50,000 (report on NY/Boston/Philadelphia Chinatown)
San Francisco 19,000 (94108 and 94133)
Chicago 8,000
Toronto 7,500
Boston 5,500
Los Angeles 5,500
Oakland 4,000
Vancouver 3,000
Philadelphia 2,500
Seattle 1,000
Montreal 500
Washington less than 500

Where are you getting these numbers? Chicago's Chinatown is home to over 20,000 people of Chinese decent.

Originally Posted by simms3_redux

^^^As a mere visitor to NYC who typically stays in Manhattan, I'd definitely go to Manhattan's before Flushing's. To me it's like Inner Richmond in SF - it's better and larger, but more difficult to get to and offers less for visitors/tourists and more for residents. Flushing and Inner Richmond are also both not photogenic, at all. Meanwhile, Manhattan's and SF's Chinatowns are two of the most photogenic in the world (personally I'd say SF's even more so than Manhattan's).

But other than that, I get your point. If I lived in NYC and wanted better Chinese food and not to deal with any touristy stuff and had more time and knew the transit system better, I could easily see going to Flushing or any number of other NYC Chinatowns before the one in Manhattan.

And since when is Flushing, Queens not photogenic? Manhattan's Chinatown is comparatively kind of lame IMO.

[tech12]

Originally Posted by Bikemike

The San Gabriel Valley stretching from Monterey Park all the way to Arcadia and south to the Puente Valley is the single largest Chinatown of all the ones being compared. It's just more spread out and suburban. It's much more authentic than all of the traditional urban Chinatowns save for perhaps Flushing and some of the newer but much smaller Chinaburbs of Toronto, the South Bay of the SF Bay area, and suburban Vancouver, all of which are just as authentic as the San Gabriel Valley.

This thread is about "your city's chinatown". The San Gabriel valley is not a "chinatown", it's a region made up of dozens of different cities.

Originally Posted by Nineties Flava

I'm pretty familiar with SF Chinatown, overwhelmingly what I've heard and personally noticed is that a lot of the chinese food in SF Chinatown is worse than what you find in most of the rest of the City (i.e. the Richmond or Sunset districts) even on Stockton, Broadway or the sidestreets.

I've heard this a million times too, and I still find it to be a little exaggerated. There are plenty of shit restaurants in Chinatown, because there are plenty of tourists there who don't know the difference between good Chinese food and their ass (and Chinatown is also pretty poor, so there are some spots that are low-quality/cheap/bad based on that alone), but there's also tons of good authentic stuff. It's a majority Chinese area (by far) that's been majority Chinese for well over a century, and it's full of immigrants...how could it not be full of authentic Chinese food?

Originally Posted by Nineties Flava

when it comes to eating I'd much rather be in Oakland Chinatown.

Fair enough. But for the record, I've literally never heard anyone claim that Oakland Chinatown has more authentic food than the downtown SF Chinatown, until you made that post. I've heard people claim that the Richmond district, or Milpitas, or San Jose, or (insert south bay city here) has a larger amount of authentic food though.

[JManc]

Originally Posted by FREKI

Copenhagen doesn't have one - here immigrants are typically spread out across the city, the Chinese typically settles in surburban areas

That's how it is in Houston as well though there is a Chinatown (two actually) but the populations are scattered and integrated. Plus the Chinatowns have a heavy Vietnamese influence due to large Vietnamese population as opposed to Chinese.

[Docere]

Originally Posted by Tom Servo

Where are you getting these numbers? Chicago's Chinatown is home to over 20,000 people of Chinese decent.

Census tracts. Your "20,000" figure is for a 4 square mile area including Bridgeport, far more than the Chinatown.

[Tom Servo]

Chicago's Chinatown, the part of the city that is home to a highly concentrated population of the city's Chinese and many Chinese restaurants, shops, and other places of business, looks like this:

Census Tract 8411
7,254 Total population
6,447 Chinese

Census Tract 6004
3,891
2,182

Census Tract 8401
2,935
1,815

Census Tract 3404
1,900
1,466

Census Tract 8402
2,338
1,359

Census Tract 3403
1,786
1,343

Beyond this small cluster there is still a large Chinese population, but it becomes more dispersed. So even if you exclude the larger area (the total Chinese population between the 60616 and 60608 zip codes), our Chinatown still far exceeds whatever number you came up with.

An approximate population 15,000 according to the 2010 census.

[Cro Burnham]

Originally Posted by simms3_redux

Philly's has been mentioned a few times but in the grand scheme of things is negligible (like DC's). Sorry to say. NYC and SF have several bona fide chinatowns *much* larger than the one in Philly. Chicago's, LA's, and Toronto's are also much larger. I believe Boston's is as well if Downtown Crossing area is sort of it.

Gotta rep for my town, I kind of don't think you really know what you're talking about.

For sure, NYC, Toronto, SF arein a class of their own.

But to compare Philly and DC chinatowns is just silly. Philly's Chinatown is actually a real Chinese neighborhood - and an increasingly vibrant one - as opposed to a cartoon gate with a PF Chang's and Pei Wei Cafe nearby like you might find in DC.

It draws Chinese people from all over the region and its daytime and late night population is far in excess of the figure you posted.

It has three main streets - Arch, Race, and 10th, each of which run anywhere from 2 to 4 blocks in length, and several secondary commercial and residential side streets (9th, 11th, Cherry, Spring, Winter).

Philly's is pretty much about the same as Boston's but with better long term prospects given less gentrification pressure. I've never been to Chicago chinatown, but anyone I've known who's been there puts it firmly in the second tier with Boston and Philly rather than NY, SF or Toronto.

DC is a remote 3rd or 4th tier Chinatown.

Bottom line is those population stats, whether accurate or not, are not a good measure of the size/quality of the chinatown.

[logan5]

All due respect to Toronto, but I don't understand how Toronto's Chinatown can be seen as comparable to NYC's or San Frans - it's not even close.

[Docere]

Originally Posted by Tom Servo

Chicago's Chinatown, the part of the city that is home to a highly concentrated population of the city's Chinese and many Chinese restaurants, shops, and other places of business, looks like this:

Census Tract 8411
7,254 Total population
6,447 Chinese

Census Tract 6004
3,891
2,182

Census Tract 8401
2,935
1,815

Census Tract 3404
1,900
1,466

Census Tract 8402
2,338
1,359

Census Tract 3403
1,786
1,343

Beyond this small cluster there is still a large Chinese population, but it becomes more dispersed. So even if you exclude the larger area (the total Chinese population between the 60616 and 60608 zip codes), our Chinatown still far exceeds whatever number you came up with.

An approximate population 15,000 according to the 2010 census.

That's the Asian population, not the Chinese population, but this is a minor quibble as they make up the vast majority of the Asian population. I get 14,000.

So it's fair to say my 8,000 figure was too low and your "more than 20,000" figure was too high.

[EMArg]

The Chinatown of Buenos Aires (part of the Belgrano neighborhood):



• Video Link

[montréaliste]

Originally Posted by logan5

All due respect to Toronto, but I don't understand how Toronto's Chinatown can be seen as comparable to NYC's or San Frans - it's not even close.

Which Chinatown? The Spadina one? It's way up there and just as good as the San Francisco or New York ones. I am not the biggest fan of Toronto, but give it its due, it has a superlative Chinatown!!!

[softee]

Little video I shot yesterday afternoon at Spadina and Dundas:

• Video Link