The Chinese restaurant
A terrible thing happened last year. The Chinese restaurant that my family has been going to for ten years suddenly shut its doors. Well, I guess it wasn’t really that sudden. They had been complaining of diminishing profits since 9/11, as had many Chinatown businesses. Then one sad evening, we showed up for dinner and the place was deserted. I called my husband in disbelief. No more crisp and delicious salt and pepper squid. No more al dente lo mein (my dad’s favorite). Sigh. Once we got over the initial shock, we realized that we had to get serious about the task ahead — we would have to find a replacement for our beloved Kam Chueh (RIP).
Chinese Restaurants are as American as apple pie. Chinese food, as we know it, was invented in America in the mid-1800s. Chinese immigrants headed west to the California Gold Rush like everyone else, but were discriminated against and denied mining jobs. They quickly learned to adapt, opening restaurants for the miners and railroad workers. They served dishes like General Tso’s chicken and chop suey, which the workers ordered by number rather than attempt to pronounce the strange, new, words.
As the Gold Rush came to an end, violent crime surged out West. Chinese workers headed towards the Northeast where there were better job opportunities and less ethnic discrimination. In 1878, the first Chinese grocery store, Wo Kee, opened on Mott Street. That same year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Chinese Immigrants would not be permitted to gain American citizenship. The next 60 years were incredibly difficult for the Chinese living in America, as several laws were passed making it nearly impossible for any new Chinese citizens to enter the United States, including the wives and children of the men already here.
Finally, in 1941, things began to change. China allied itself with the U.S. in WW II, and laws against Chinese Immigrants in America were repealed. Women and children started arriving by the boat load and Chinatown quickly became a self-sufficient city within a city. The rest, as they say, is history.
Anyway, back to my problem. The search was on for a Kam Chueh replacement. We started acting like tourists, trying out random Chinatown restaurants, hoping for a lucky break. Recently we’ve made a temporary home at Mandarin Court (61 Mott St.). Great Dim Sum, but I know we can do better. We’ve even tried fancy Chinese (Shun Lee Palace and Our Place, both in Midtown) but that’s a whole different ballgame and not what we’re looking for here.
So please, share your family’s Chinese restaurant with me! (NYC’s Chinatown preferred). And now a moment of silence for Kam Chueh Chinese Restaurant:
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why??!!! this is awful news. this was my favorite resteraunt in the entire city. damn economy.