Feeling aftershocks of the Covid-19 pandemic, restaurants and small businesses across Chinatowns in the U.S. are facing increasing costs of food and rent, leading to more closures. NBC News’ Vicky Nguyen reports how important Chinatowns are to the greater Asian community in American cities.
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#Chinatown #Covid19 #NBCNews
Go to Korean restaurant
They’re open and they’re also clean and more healthy without oil and MSG! Don’t go to Chinese copy of Korean restaurant!
Most Chinese people today live in the suburbs and don’t care for the original ethnic enclaves. They made it out the hoods and turned their back on everything that made them who they are.
not really, most chinese nowadays just came recently from china and have money to live in high income areas with a ton of chinese restaurants and supermarkets. idk where you’re from but most chinese people in big cities across the US nowadays are high income immigrants from mainland china
@ you’re only talking about a 25 of Chinese people. I’m from one of the richest States in the US.
Back in the 80s and 90s. Chinatowns were full of young families. That generated a lot of business opportunities. But now the kids are grown up. They moved out to suburbs. The parents are older, they don’t spend as much, go out less. The shopkeepers too are aging. Their kids work corporate jobs instead of running restaurants.
For Chinatowns to survive they need new blood. That means finding ways to entice younger people to live there. Higher density and more affordable housing
Racism at its best after the Pandemic, Best advise for us Asians is to leave USA let it rot.,
But Asians worship whlte men.
Ah yes, the typical “NYC is only Manhattan below 59th street” report from NBC. Meanwhile, Brooklyn and Queens Chinatowns are thriving. New World Mall is at 100% occupancy. And D.C. Chinatown is a joke, has been since they built the Capital One Arena.
My Chinese barber at NYC Chinatown told me a lot of Jewish people moved into Chinatown in the last few years while a lot of Chinese have moved out
They are there to get Asian glrlfrlends.
Sad all the places I grew up with closed in nyc chinatown
It’s because people don’t trust anything with China on it because of the virus that China let loose.
We’re did Covid 19 come from the china virus that were it came from and if u say it they tell u to edit your post
When price (cost of living) go up, people move out, it doesn’t take a genius to figure it out. Sooner or later the Chinatown in Manhattan will be pushed to other lower cost areas.
Thank god, no more smelly smells, no more suspicious peoples, & more real estates up for grab for that luxurious city condos with a starbucks & wholefood.
And the government allows this to happen.
This is sad to hear. Honestly, there’s nothing more that I enjoy on regular basis than general tso’s chicken with pork fried rice, with a side of hot & sour soup. It’s an explosion of flavor in my mouth. Sweet, Salty, Sour, Umami. All for $10 lunch special.
Chinatowns have started to cater to white people long ago.
That means less spicy, too sweet, more expensive and no longer authentic.
They figured out that white people will pay more for much less since they can’t tell the difference. Also chinatowns have nothing but big chain restaurants these days.
It is no longer unique and they have forsaken their original customer base.
Whlte guys go there to get glrlfriends.
Blame Democrat policies like $15 minimum wage laws and high taxes.
Let’s see if Trump can Make America Great Again! The majority voted for him, what will he do for all these Chinatown’s across the USA 🇺🇸
The American dream happened. the immigrant parents came, worked hard, kids studied hard got fancy degrees, great jobs, and moved their parents into the suburbs with them.
$30 Fried Rice, nuff said. (plus tax and tip)
Chinatown in downtown LA was struggling way before the pandemic. I was there in 2017 and it was vacant-shops, trashy, urine smelled,…but San Gabriel/Rosemead/Monterey Park was/is blooming and blossoming….
the old-old chinese restaurants are mostly all Guangdong/fujian food while most chinese people in LA nowadays are from all over the country. hotpot, boba, bbq and other things popular in china nowadays are doing much better. the chinese people in san Gabrie, Rosemead, Monterey mostly came recently
People noticed they are just mixing soy sauce and vegetables to make fried rice.
Another empty hollow story by MSM. That’s why nobody is watching them
But there are also other and more Asian restaurants and food trucks that compete and include Chinese cuisine on their menus…..Thai, Vietnamese, Filipino, Korean, Japanese, etc.
People have to understand Chinatown culture is old school Chinese (Cantonese) culture from immigrants mainly from HongKong and Guangdong province who came here in the previous generation.
New Chinese immigrants are from mainland China after the post modern development and tend to be in the top 5% affluent population of the country. So when they get here they don’t flock to the Chinatowns and are in completely distinct worlds and social class.
Thank you for this story!
Stop voting for Republicans.
No one wants fake illegally imported horse meat buffet. “No MSG” but then you end up at doctor with msg “overdose”.
Chinatown struggle because they only open till 6pm or 8,9pm. They don’t want evening businesses when the working people get off work to shop. Chinatown no longer caters to the working professionals. The young Chinese goes to K-town that opens to 11pm and sets the price 3x to that of Chinatown.
The places here close early. Why places close at 6-8pm when people want dinner is beyond me
I love Chinese culture and would love to visit Taiwan someday
China towns are for the older generation or tourists. However, the young generation does not that much bonding with the culture, thus, “safety” is the key factor to a tourist.
high crime rates. chinese restaurants not having parking, no English speakers, no delivery or ez pickup in a world of on demand food delivery apps. a lot of chinese passing away and younger generations not being interested in chinatowns. basically Chinatowns are generally in big cities… no one wants to deal with traffic and parking… no one. even when u do, some places dont speak English, some dont have card readers…. its not a place for younger generations as time goes on. some of the younger generations would rather go to panda Express than to go to Chinatown
Cute
Immigrant kids majority do not take over the business and prefer white collar work. Who wants to slave away in a store for hours on end and on weekends? They want better for their kids. Plus… downtown in most cities have become undesirable to go and no parking etc. Huge asian supermarkets in the suburbs dominate and take away from chinatown… most look rundown.
That wasn’t Chicken you ate❗️🥠 😳 🤔ever wonder…
How they pay no taxes, cash only restaurants
Closed at 7.30pm??? 😲
You mean post Plandemic news station right. On purpose plandemic to reconstruct the whole world😐
Houston Chinatown is alive and booming.
I don’t know how accurate this is. Every Chinatown I visit in the Western world is like the most packed section of the city from London to LA. Everyone loves Chinatown, not just for the food, but the buzz, atmosphere, culture, cheap shopping etc. It’s a definite popular destination for everyone in any major city that has one.
Only for people who eat Dogs. Forgetting where Covid came from eh? 🙂
Oh no, what a shame. /s
great story, and true in many facets. However, many ex-chinatown businesses are following their chinese residents, out of chinatown and into the suburbs. Edison, NJ is one prime example of asian businesses and population offsetting the chinatown flight. i don’t think this is specific to chinese-run businesses, since italian bakeries and deli that used to occupy neighboring little italy are reopening and reinventing their identities in these outer surburbs as well, e.g. Alleva Dairy now in Lyndhurst, NJ.
Whlte guys go there to buy glrlfrlends.
What are they talking about? Here in Vegas chinatown is doing just fine.
China should have closed their borders when found out a virus was going around and yet they didn’t care….
Contributors to this story
Sum Tin Wong
Dim Sum Oh Gong
Wi Kuk No Mo
Ki Chen Ku Low Zuh
Wu Han Bik Tong
I hope our Old Chinatowns are able to thrive, many are here for more than a century and a half!
Hopefully “Chinatowns” can be separated into “HongKongtowns” “ToisanTowns” “HakkaTowns” “TaiwanTowns”
Chinese immigrants want better for their children, they end up going to college and have no desire to work in restaurants or small businesses. Therefore these Chinese businesses struggle as the next generation works higher paying jobs.
Sad… Has crime had an impact on these areas and businesses?
Chinatown in my city died over a decade ago, they do not keep up with renovations and then got pushed out by the homeless. Sad, used to eat there all the time.
Good luck finding a parking space anywhere near a huge Chinatown in Houston. Always so packed with people, especially on weekends. It’s impossible to……..
It is not isolated to Chinatown. The same retail businesses failed during the last 4 years under Biden’s hyper inflation!
The Chinatown in Chicago is growing. Its thriving and its very deversified. A lot of people live here. There is a business I have been patronizing since 2017. It stays busy 365 days a year. We support our chinatown in Chicago. Chicago’s Chinatown is bustling 365 days a year.
Do a huge coalition of class action lawsuites for failure to protect from harm and gentrafacation
And there also Americans historical culture sites that need more than adiquit protection
As a former patron myself and many of my non-Asian colleagues faced severe racism in Chinatowns. The business owners and their employees treated us as if they didn’t want our buisness. We all thought that these were one off experiences but after a few more very negative experiences we never returned. And this was way before the pandemic.
Why did they behave that way ?? They’re open for businesses… So… Shouldn’t they ought to serve you as well ? It’s funny. I get so criticised by not being able to speak mandarin here in the UK. It’s like…. Erm….
“permanent foreigners”
Who wants Chinese food when you can have Korean BBQ, Vietnamese Pho, Thai Curry and Banh Mi??
Know it is different governments between CCP and China town but when I hear about gutter oil in China Chinese restaurants can’t help but make the connection between CCP and China town in U.S. also the reputation of cleanliness in Chinese restaurants are not the greatest. Only eat Chinese food at Panda Express because they are the cleanest.
…. 😂🤣…. So you associate the bad language, and their inabilities to speak English automatically means gutter oil ? …. 😄😆…. Maybe these Chinatown areas need a young mayor.
The illegal immigrants thats why
reason why chinatowns are dying is simply because of the lack of parking spots. or expensive af parking spots. latter generations moved to the suburbs where parking is basically free and plenty.
easier to do business or errands or what have you. it is that simple.
And youngsters most like to drive etc. So it’s miss miss. That is why.
As a Torontonian, I used to hit New York every so often maybe a couple years or so and would check out China town. Now I wouldn’t even want to visit as a tourist to NYC because of the crime I see on social so may have impacted overall tourist visits since the pandemic
In a VERY HARD REVERSAL to this story our China-town AND Korea-town in Las Vegas is absolutely crowded full tilt especially on the weekends. 😅
Asians are the best
The real question is why were they the only ones to stay afloat while other small businesses suffered during COVID?
Most Chinatown area has become crime ridden or homeless cesspool. Why put myself into such dangerous scenarios of possibilities?
Chinatown in London UK heading the same direction. However it’s the government’s bad policy that has killed it. By charging Londoners to drive into London and by making it almost impossible to park. And even if you want to use public transport, it’s very expensive for a family of 4 to afford it. It’s sad to see the shops and restaurants I used to visit as a kid are now gone.
Mostly retirees get free bus passes that would go. Plus Londoners that have monthly tickets would go. So… They’ve paid for it anyway, so….
@MeiinUK Yes, I’ve noticed the OAP in Wong Kei and Loon Fung.
LA China town is the place you can find fake goods form China.
Stop building homeless shelters and jails around Chinatowns across the U.S.!!!!!!!!!!
unfortunately, years of democrat pro crime policies have destroyed chinatowns and downtowns in general.
Chinatown in Houston, Texas is growing like fire! Come to Houston, Texas! We are open for business.
Americans are struggling while in China their are doing a lot better. Most Chinese cities and tourist attractions are packed with their own Chinese tourists.
When you vote for Joe Biden, you get what’s coming.
Haven’t businesses in Chinatown NYC just moved to Flushing?
Biden should just reduce the prices and then everyone will stop hating him
If you want a glimpse of Chinatown evolution, take at a look at Markham, Ontario in Canada. In its place, the Chinese business community has opted to spread out the city, so where leases and tents were concentrated and on the rise, businesses choose to do business where costs can be lowered. Given the popularity of these enterprises, they can diversify locations and do business profitably as they see fit.
That is why you guys literally caused a financial crash that rippled across the world !!!!! Don’t do that !!!!
I stopped going to Chinatown in Boston, MA..Only old people hangout there..
The good food with affordable prices is the main reason why I travel to NYC.
Why would I want to eat Dog Meat when I can just buy a Perfectly Normal Burger from McDonalds? 🙂 Forgetting where Covid came from eh?
Things are evolving they are not disappearing. Many businesses need lower costs to survive meaning less taxes, nyc is not the place to grow anymore, maybe to start but not to grow.
Sgv is the new Chinatown in LA
In Los Angeles, Chinatown has been dead for awhile now. They have slowly been moving East, like Alhambra, Arcadia, Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, and Diamond Bar. When I was growing up in Rowland Heights in the 80’s, there were very few Chinese Americans but a lot of Koreans and Japanese Americans. Today, there are so many Chinese stores, I don’t even recognize my own hometown I grew up in.
Oakland Chinatown isn’t doing so well… we know why but the media won’t say it. San Francisco Chinatown is struggling too… but they won’t say why. I was in Boston, actually Chinatown is prospering! It’s busy out there!!
I am very very very happy to know that Chinatowns in America are struggling to survive and I hope the trend will continue
This is very very disturbing please do not close if you need security I need id and weapons and vehicle were on when this happens you know what I like ask around
Who spends any money these days? I sure don’t.
Sadly, all these Chinese or Asian ladies who speak really good English
in this video probably get asked, “Where are you really from? wherever
they go in the U.S. for just being Asian, even if they were born and raised
in the U.S.!! Or “Where did you learn your English?”
When more new Mainland Chinese migrants come overseas and start the food business, the quality deteriorates. They are not all trained cooks. The established Chinatowns are also going through the aging phase. Everywhere is the same.
I’ve been in Carrolton TX ‘s Koreatown and Japantown/ Chinatown malls and they’ve been hopping and upbeat. They’re anchored by supermarkets and the clientele has been very diverse
PS the whole town is a far suburb of Dallas, so the Asisn communities are suburb dwellers also. I rarely go to downtown Dallas
As most chinese people in our family we visit family, talk, eat, relax.
..why would we go to a restaurant??
I’m going to miss Chinatown if it goes away. No where else can I get cheap quality food in my city. I enjoy walking around there as well. Lots of cool shops and cafes.
The Chinese are for the Chinese and many still are loyal to the PRC so no thanks. Are there any American towns in China? Didn’t think so. The Chinese doesn’t even like America or Americans
Chinatowns will turn into luxury apartments and electric scooters Sprouts, Wholefoods, publixs
Who cares …. fruk dimsum least american immigrant demo
Improve customer service and be more open to other groups… I can say that after recent events like “affirmative action” It left a lot of folks feeling pretty sour.
National Security risk….
Too many China people and over breeding
SF Chinatown is a pain to go there esp with the parking issues and crime. Many stores and restaurants have moved to other areas and still remain relevant.
Stand strong, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles
Why isn’t anyone blaming government for the lockdowns? They didn’t give a solution. They expected small business to figure it out themselves.
Meanwhile, Breed, Newsom, Pelosi, Liccardo broke Covid rules and expected you to follow.
It’s not just about bad economy, people have realised, these supposedly harmless communities are trojan horses for the CCP