Latest news with #Chinatowns
Miami Herald
7 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Two beloved local businesses close forever, jeopardizing a town
Anyone who has lived in one of America's larger cities has probably experienced an ethnic neighborhood like Chinatown in San Francisco (or New York or Washington, D.C.), Little Italy in New York, or Polish Downtown in Chicago. Enclaves like these were historically places where immigrants could find social networks and the comforts of their homeland - from food to houses of worship - while also preserving and celebrating culture. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter These ethnic neighborhoods also helped refugees and immigrants find jobs, according to a 2019 Stanford study. Chinatowns formed for a uniquely compelling reason: Well into the 20th century, Chinese immigrants were excluded from the rest of society thanks to the Chinese Exclusion Act (repealed in 1943), and they responded by building their own mini-cities within major metropolises. Today, there are at least 50 Chinatowns across the country. They stand as symbols of resilience - and also as reminders of how immigrants were forced to adapt in the face of hostility in the U.S. Now, Chinatowns are shrinking across the country, and the city with the biggest risk of losing its special enclave altogether is the nation's capital. Image source:For decades, Full Kee Restaurant and Gao Ya Hair Salon stood as quiet fixtures in Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown. This month, both closed for good, casualties of the city's relentless redevelopment boom. In early July, the two legacy businesses shuttered to make way for a $75 million Marriott Tribute Hotel. Their exit leaves D.C.'s once-thriving Chinatown with just a handful of remaining Asian-owned storefronts. Activists now warn that the neighborhood's cultural identity is hanging by a thread. Related: Beloved local family restaurant closing after nearly 63 years "It's like watching a museum get dismantled in real time," said one longtime customer, reacting to the closures in a report on Washington, D.C.'s Fox5. The businesses weren't flashy. Full Kee served Cantonese comfort food in an unassuming dining room. Gao Ya Hair Salon quietly welcomed generations of Chinese American women. In a neighborhood that has already lost its Chinese grocery store, bakery, and most of its restaurants, their closures feel like a tipping point. D.C.'s Chinatown has been steadily shrinking for decades. Once home to thousands of Chinese American residents and dozens of Chinese-owned businesses, the area saw a sharp decline starting in the 1990s as rising rents and new developments, including the nearby Capital One Arena, changed the economic landscape. By 2020, fewer than 300 Chinese Americans lived in the neighborhood. Today, only a handful of Chinese businesses remain. Many storefronts now feature national chains like Chipotle, CVS, and Shake Shack, beneath awnings still printed with Mandarin characters. Related: One of Texas's oldest BBQ joints is closing permanently after 34 years Earlier this year, Jackey Café closed its doors after struggling through the pandemic. Tony Cheng's Seafood, another landmark restaurant, was shuttered by city officials in March due to unpaid taxes totaling over $500,000. The owners blamed lost revenue from the pandemic, rising costs, and delayed tourism recovery. The wave of closures in D.C.'s Chinatown is a microcosm of what's happening in similar cultural districts nationwide. Between post‑pandemic fragility, inflation, real‑estate pressures, and tariff‑driven cost spikes, ethnic enclaves are in crisis. Supporters say that without targeted economic, cultural, and legislative interventions, they could disappear from the urban fabric, erasing chapters of immigrant America. "It's not just about a restaurant and a hair salon, it's about community and institutions that serve the community and the remaining residents in Chinatown," Cassie He, a member of the Save Chinatown Solidarity Network, told Fox5. Related: Beloved local family diner closing after nearly 40 years The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Time Out
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
‘Big' Sam Young and partner Grace Chen are opening a Chinese restaurant in Potts Point
If you're not following chef-owner-restaurateur-lobster-enthusiast 'Big' Sam Young on Instagram, what have you been doing? The co-owner of Castlecrag's luxe bistro S'more – known for its top-quality produce, bougie offerings and truffle-on-everything energy – posts non-stop pictures of delicious food and private dinners at multi-million-dollar homes. He's also prolific when it comes to being a hustler, which comes from his lived experience of moving to Australia from Hong Kong at 13 – only to have everything, including his passport and money, stolen days later. Being an immigrant and working hard has shaped his ethos. Now, he and partner Grace Chen are opening their second venue dedicated to that journey: a Chinese restaurant called Young's Palace, opening this August in the excellent former home of Raja and Teddy on Kellett Street in Potts Point. 'We've been sold this outdated image of immigrant-run restaurants as cheap, fast and scrappy. That was survival. But now, we want to tell a new story – one that honours hard work but also values quality, creativity and pride,' Sam says, who has also spent time in the kitchens of Queen Chow and Lotus. Young's Palace is also inspired by the couple's travels – particularly the Chinatowns they've explored in cities like Paris, Amsterdam, New York, Vancouver and Sydney. 'Grace and I always find ourselves hunting down a plate of fried rice or chow mein, no matter where we are in the world. Young's Palace is about recreating that joy – classic Chinese dishes that are simple, comforting and utterly craveable,' says Sam. Sam says don't expect laminated menus with a hundred-plus options, fluorescent lighting or any compromise on quality for convenience. And absolutely no modern Asian-fusion. What you can expect, however, are two menus: one with nostalgic crowd favourites – think sweet and sour pork, honey king prawns, General Tao's chicken and lemon chicken – and the 'Chairman's Menu', which is BSY to a T: luxe dishes like lobster, giant mud crab and claypot abalone rice crowned with truffles and caviar. 'There's no reason a bowl of noodles can't be treated with the same respect and price tag as a plate of pasta. We're not here to follow rules. We're here to create something we're proud of,' adds Sam. See you there later this year!
The Age
27-06-2025
- The Age
The must-do highlights of Bangkok in three days
Bangkok defies metaphor. An enigma wrapped in a traffic jam? The place where feudalism meets futurism? Just step out and surrender to its din and aromas, the combo of urgency and 'mai pen rai' (no worries) solutions. This city of 11.5 million people on the Chao Phraya River doesn't have a clearly defined centre and its hotel accommodation is scattered wide. Which means, depending on your location, think of the following day itineraries as adaptable, mix-and-match suggestions. Hint: cross-city travel can be slow (and hot) so don't over-plan your day. Day one Make an early start for the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) in the Grand Palace complex, preferably arriving by 8.30am to beat the crowd. It'll be busy anyhow. Spend a couple of hours in this ornate royal compound but don't attempt to photograph the tiny Emerald Buddha statue. Make time for the adjacent temple, Wat Pho, home to one of the city's great icons, the 46-metre Reclining Buddha. Catch a meter taxi to nearby Yaowarat Road, Chinatown, for lunch. (Tuk-tuks in this area are a rip-off.) The grazing choice is enormous, from hawker carts to side-alley restaurants. Try a local favourite, guay chap flat rice noodles in pepper soup, but skip the common 'delicacy', shark-fin soup. Afternoon You're in one of the world's largest Chinatowns, where the main attractions include Wat Traimit, home to a massive 5½-tonne golden Buddha statue, and to Bangkok's most important Chinese Buddhist shrine, Wat Mangkon Kamalawat (Dragon Lotus Temple). Then make your way to Sathorn Pier near Saphan Taksin BTS Skytrain station to join the Chao Phraya Tourist Boat. An all-day pass will allow you to hop on and off wherever you please at the ferry's 10 stops, including Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn), Khao San Road and attractions like the Asiatique theme park. Evening Bangkok has around 40 high-rise sky bars, most of them brilliant for sunset cocktails with spectacular views, plus dinner if you kick on. Not far from wherever you are there's probably a sky bar with an intriguing name like Paradise Lost, Cooling Tower, Vertigo or Flashback. If you're looking for sophisticated dining at a lower altitude, consider Red Rose in the Shanghai Mansion hotel on Yaowarat Road, or a choice of excellent French, Italian or Cantonese options in the Four Seasons Bangkok Hotel at Chao Phraya River. Or, further inland, the celebrated restaurant in Soi 53 Sukhumvit at Thong Lor.
Sydney Morning Herald
27-06-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
The must-do highlights of Bangkok in three days
Bangkok defies metaphor. An enigma wrapped in a traffic jam? The place where feudalism meets futurism? Just step out and surrender to its din and aromas, the combo of urgency and 'mai pen rai' (no worries) solutions. This city of 11.5 million people on the Chao Phraya River doesn't have a clearly defined centre and its hotel accommodation is scattered wide. Which means, depending on your location, think of the following day itineraries as adaptable, mix-and-match suggestions. Hint: cross-city travel can be slow (and hot) so don't over-plan your day. Day one Make an early start for the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) in the Grand Palace complex, preferably arriving by 8.30am to beat the crowd. It'll be busy anyhow. Spend a couple of hours in this ornate royal compound but don't attempt to photograph the tiny Emerald Buddha statue. Make time for the adjacent temple, Wat Pho, home to one of the city's great icons, the 46-metre Reclining Buddha. Catch a meter taxi to nearby Yaowarat Road, Chinatown, for lunch. (Tuk-tuks in this area are a rip-off.) The grazing choice is enormous, from hawker carts to side-alley restaurants. Try a local favourite, guay chap flat rice noodles in pepper soup, but skip the common 'delicacy', shark-fin soup. Afternoon You're in one of the world's largest Chinatowns, where the main attractions include Wat Traimit, home to a massive 5½-tonne golden Buddha statue, and to Bangkok's most important Chinese Buddhist shrine, Wat Mangkon Kamalawat (Dragon Lotus Temple). Then make your way to Sathorn Pier near Saphan Taksin BTS Skytrain station to join the Chao Phraya Tourist Boat. An all-day pass will allow you to hop on and off wherever you please at the ferry's 10 stops, including Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn), Khao San Road and attractions like the Asiatique theme park. Evening Bangkok has around 40 high-rise sky bars, most of them brilliant for sunset cocktails with spectacular views, plus dinner if you kick on. Not far from wherever you are there's probably a sky bar with an intriguing name like Paradise Lost, Cooling Tower, Vertigo or Flashback. If you're looking for sophisticated dining at a lower altitude, consider Red Rose in the Shanghai Mansion hotel on Yaowarat Road, or a choice of excellent French, Italian or Cantonese options in the Four Seasons Bangkok Hotel at Chao Phraya River. Or, further inland, the celebrated restaurant in Soi 53 Sukhumvit at Thong Lor.
18-05-2025
- Business
Students and the Wealthy Drive Growth in Japan's Chinese Community
As Japan's Chinese population continues to grow, the latest arrivals include many students, as well as wealthy people hedging against future uncertainty in China. Waves of Migration Since the 1980s Chinese people living in Japan have become a growing presence, with the total population rising to 870,000 as of the end of 2024—2.6 times higher than in 2000. Some are fourth- or fifth-generation descendants living in Chinatowns in cities like Yokohama and Kobe. In this article, however, I will look at the shinkakyō, or new overseas Chinese, who settled after China's reform and opening up in 1978, as well as the more recent shin-shinkakyō—'new newcomers'—and examine how these groups differ. A store in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, selling foods targeting Chinese residents. Nearby are many Chinese restaurants. Photo taken March 21, 2025. (© In the wake of China's economic reforms, the first arrivals were mainly government-sponsored science students in their thirties or older. By the 1980s, these were joined by younger students in their twenties, including those studying the humanities. Many returned to China after their studies, but some remained and became the shinkakyō. One woman I know came to Japan in 1985 to join her husband who was studying here. She enrolled at a Japanese university and has lived in Japan for 40 years. Her friends are in the same generation, in their mid- to late sixties, and some are already retired. When they first arrived, there was a huge income gap between Japan and China, so even the elite, state-sponsored students had to work part time, including in physical labor. Through efforts to learn the language and integrate into Japanese society, many have established successful careers here. Some, whose parents in China have already passed away, have acquired Japanese citizenship and intend to stay permanently. The 1990s through the 2000s saw a rapid rise in the number of self-funded Chinese students and labor migrants who are now in their forties and fifties. Many who came to study at a Japanese university were in their twenties and have since become fluent in the language. They are also well versed in the rules and customs of Japanese society, largely because they needed to adapt quickly, given that there were not as many Chinese people in Japan at the time. Their second-generation children are often native Japanese speakers. Tokyo is home to 270,000 Chinese residents—about a third of the total in Japan—but the generation that arrived in the 1990s and 2000s has increasingly moved out to neighboring prefectures like Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba. More than half of residents of the Shibazono public housing project in Kawaguchi, Saitama, for example, are from China. A Post-Pandemic Shift The latest arrivals from China have quite different motives and backgrounds from their predecessors. These are people who came to Japan after around 2017, when the government of Xi Jinping began tightening its grip on Chinese society, even as the country gained unprecedented economic clout. Their numbers have risen sharply since the COVID-19 pandemic, and they are clearly of a younger, wealthier demographic. These 'new newcomers' come on student or work visas, as well as under business manager visas required to run a business in Japan; according to the Immigration Services Agency, 19,000 Chinese nationals in Japan had business manager visas as of the end of 2023. The ages of the recent arrivals vary widely, from their twenties to their sixties, with most students belonging to Generation Z. The number of Chinese people seeking to enroll in Japanese universities has increased since the early 2010s. Cram schools have capitalized on this trend, and there are now many schools for Chinese students in neighborhoods like Tokyo's Takadanobaba. Attending only a Japanese language school is not enough to pass a university entrance exam, so many Chinese students attend both kinds of school. A cram school poster aimed at Chinese students features former students who have gained admission to top universities, including the University of Tokyo. Photo taken in Takadanobaba March 21, 2025. (© Academically inclined students set their sights on elite national universities like the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University, as well as prestigious private institutions that are well known in China, such as Waseda University. But art colleges have also seen a sudden boom in popularity among Chinese students. This is likely because anime like Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya, One Piece, and Slam Dunk have been hugely popular in China since the late 1990s. Many who grew up watching these series and who admire the works of Studio Ghibli's Miyazaki Hayao and Suzume and Your Name. director Shinkai Makoto now come to study animation, filmmaking, and art in Japan. Contemporary visual artists like Nara Yoshitomo and Murakami Takashi also have a huge following in China. In the past, the parents of these students might have encouraged them to study economics, law, science, technology, or other subjects more conducive to a successful business career, but now that they are financially secure, they are more willing to support their children's personal aspirations. A February 8 article in the Nikkei Shimbun detailed the ongoing rise in Chinese students at Japanese art colleges; at institutions like Kyoto Seika University and Kyoto University of the Arts, they account for around 70% of all international students. While China has famous art colleges like the Central Academy of Fine Arts, their numbers are limited compared with the country's population, making admission intensely competitive. This makes the idea of studying in Japan—the home of many celebrated creators—more attractive to many young Chinese. According to cram school teachers, these students receive generous allowances from wealthy parents in China and do not need to work part-time. During my reporting, I have encountered students who receive more than ¥500,000 each month. 'Running' from Uncertainty Apart from students, there has been a huge recent increase in middle-class and wealthy Chinese people of all ages moving to Japan. This is not due to an interest in Japan's economy or society but rather a desire to escape China's restrictive policies seen during the Zero-COVID campaign in 2021 and 2022, which tightened state control over movement and information. A feeling of being trapped amid an economic slowdown prompted many to leave the country, either as a hedge against risk or out of concern about their children's future. During the Shanghai lockdown from the end of March to the end of May 2022, the word 润 (run) became popular in China. This has the meaning 'profitable' or 'to moisten,' while its romanization evokes the English word 'run,' and it has been used as a form of slang meaning to flee for a better life. Many chose destinations like Singapore and Western countries, while others opted for Japan, where they could rely on established Chinese communities. Other reasons to choose Japan included similarities in the language through its use of Chinese characters, a sense of security from being in East Asia, relative affordability, and social stability. An added incentive was the Japanese government's easing of visa requirements. A high-rise condominium in Toyosu, Tokyo. Such residences are popular with wealthy Chinese living in Japan. Photo taken February 2023. (© Nakajima Kei) Those in the affluent class sell their property in China or use part of their financial assets to buy luxury high-rises in central Tokyo. Many of them are well-educated corporate executives, and not a few have a negative view of China's current political leadership. These 'new newcomers' have high social standing in a country with a bigger economy than Japan. Those who own companies or maintain personal connections in China regularly shuttle between the two countries. Although they live in Japan, they do not necessarily intend to settle here for life. The latest group of arrivals is smaller in number than earlier generations of overseas Chinese, but they have economic clout and are attuned to the latest events in China, so they have a large voice in the community. If China's political system does not change, migration to Japan and other countries is likely to continue accelerating. (Originally published in Japanese on April 1, 2025. Banner photo: Cram school ads for Chinese students in Takadanobaba, Tokyo. Photo taken March 21, 2025. ©
