My family's tradition of eating out on Christmas day was thwarted this year by the sheer number of diners that descended on Chinatown. We have about a half dozen restaurants that we frequent with a few all time favorites, including Hop Lee at 16 Mott St., and Hop Kee at 21 Mott St., and the new Chatham Restaurant on Chatham Sq. We thought that out of that many restaurants surely we'd be able to fit 10 people in for dinner somewhere, Ha! I walked from restaurant to restaurant with my cellphone in hand, reporting back to my mom that every single one of our favorite places was packed to capacity.
We ended up eating at my mom's house, ordering takeout (which is so easy to do when you live amongst Chinatown's best restaurants) and enjoying a peaceful meal at home.
Chinatown's restaurants needed that injection of commerce to get things really moving as we enter the new year. It was great to see, and although we didn't get to eat out that day, it was encourageing to see Chinatown's restaurant business flourishing.
I guess it's a double-edged sword - for a while after 9/11, Chinatown was almost a ghost town, and businesses suffered. It's good to know that the neighborhood is once again being visited.
ReplyDeleteAs for making restaurant reservations, it's always prudent to play it safe and rserve. In Singapore, if I'm dining with even one other person, I've learned to always make reservations.
My family and I had Christmas lunch at my place where we opened prsents, and then I had friends over for dinner.