Dragon Gate in Grant with Bush
It's hard to forget the first time you walked through a Chinatown. Either to try to buy cheaper loose tea, to get hold of some Asian kitchen utensil or simply to be a tourist. Chinatown branded by its concentration of colors, odors and almost instantaneous transport to Asia even though you are not on that continent. Nothing like visiting the san francisco chinatown, Existing since the mid-nineteenth century and the oldest in northern Mexico, to have the full experience. But this historic Chinatown is not even the only one that exists in the city, we suggest a visit to this and two more Chinatowns in the area.
The best advice we can give you to face the chinatown challenge is that, if possible, do not go crazy from the start and start buying everything you see. The route is long and full of places to buy souvenirs, exotic vegetables, animals in different stages of processing (from live to lacquered or directly chopped and in the form of dumpling filling), sweets wrapped in the most striking packaging, various sweets and even skimmers and chopsticks.
Here you buy, live, eat, feel China
HISTORIC CHINATOWN
Start with the most classic, and typically touristy, view of San Francisco's Chinatown. In line grant street up after photographing the dragon gate on the corner with bush street . Souvenir shops do not wait. After the intersection with California, the red lanterns hanging from the buildings that line the street . Many of the facades are painted in vivid colors. Let yourself be impregnated by the narrowness of the streets, the charm and the authenticity of it all. Look from side to side to not lose detail of the bay bridge appearing and disappearing around every corner.
Pause at Red Blossom for a drink a tea with jasmine pearls or, better yet, one of their infusions that open into a flower when put in hot water, like the Jasmine Lily . If you're not thirsty yet but you're addicted to theine, Nam Hai Corporation it can be a good option to buy tea in bulk.
Tea in San Francisco like in China
Exit the main artery and go through Waverly Place and Ross Alley. They are two alleys parallel to Grant that, despite being so close to such a tourist area, will convince you that you have escaped to one of the most remote corners, and almost trapped in time, from the old city of Shanghai. Don't miss the art gallery at 41 Ross, where there is currently an exhibition on fashion and clothing among the neighborhood's older population.
If you want an even closer perspective on what it's like to live in Chinatown, go down to stockton street , between Broadway and Washington, and shop with your neighbors. In it, there are many greengrocers with vegetables on the street whose name you will be unable to guess (and for which the signs in Chinese do not help much either), fishmongers, butchers with lacquered ducks hanging from hooks in the windows, grocery stores with all sorts of exotic delicacies wrapped in brightly colored packages... If you get hungry and don't mind queues, Good Mong Kok Bakery is a good place to buy some food to go. Don't be intimidated by the menu and opt for the pork stuffed buns ( pork buns ) , the dumplings steamed buns stuffed with prawns or, for something vegetarian, the bun stuffed with red bean paste ( bean bun ) .
CLEMENT STREET
Now that you have experienced the most common face of Chinatown, escape to the untouristy Inner Richmond (famous for the mist that often ruins and cools their summers) to see a slightly different but decidedly just as authentic Chinatown. Its epicenter is much less defined and its wide and soulless avenues take away a bit of its charm, but you will soon realize how much it is worth. Focus on Clement Street , between fourth and tenth avenues.
If you're hungry and you've been wanting more pork stuffed buns, try the takeout Chinese caps from Good Luck Dim Sum. If you prefer something different, nothing like a spring onion or shrimp crêpe with chives in Xiao Long Bao.
Postcard of the beginnings of Chinatown in San Francisco in the mid-19th century
With a full stomach you can start browsing the assortment of some of the bazaars that are on the street, ideal for buying the typical Chinese or spider skimmers that should not be missing in any kitchen and that they have here at prices that are difficult to beat. But if you're serious about shopping, there's nothing like walking into Kamei Housewares & Restaurant Supplies and trying not to go too crazy. They have everything: metal chopsticks, Japanese cast-iron teapots, rectangular sushi plates, soy sauce pots, cups without handles... You will want to take it all.
A sensation that is repeated in the supermarket Richmond New May Wah . Try not to draw too much attention by pointing out the giant, crab-filled or razor-sharp ponds in the fishmonger's section. Try to decipher the names of some of the brightly wrapped products in the candy section. And it asks you again what some of the fruits and vegetables on display are. It is best to choose a Japanese pears or dragon eyes (very similar to lychees). It is also mandatory to buy some Matcha Tea Kit Kat (I don't recommend those with beans to anyone).
If you're a fan of cheap second-hand books, pay a visit to Green Apple Books (at the corner of Clement and Sixth). It's nothing like Chinatown, but book addicts can get doubly good on the trip.
For book addicts in the middle of Chinatown (although without an oriental character)
CHINATOWN IN OAKLAND
Not in San Francisco anymore but across the bay and in the center of the area's trendiest city, Oakland, its Chinatown is a kind of ecosystem of its own. It's best to go on a weekday morning and mingle with the neighborhood in the midst of a home shopping spree.
Here, as in downtown San Francisco's Chinatown, the narrow sidewalks and crowds often mean small crowds and difficult walking. It is part of its charm.
Start your visit with a snack of custard tarts, green tea and bean muffins, or ham and chive pastries at Napoleon Super Bakery, on Franklin Street (between Eighth and Ninth) . These apples and webster street comprise the heart of Chinatown, which you will be able to distinguish because the streets are doubly marked in English and Chinese and because at the intersections the ground is painted with floral motifs in red and yellow and it is even allowed to cross diagonally (a rarity in California but that makes it clear that there is usually a lot of pedestrian traffic in the area).
It is possible that by now you have ceased to be surprised or admired by the piles of Chinese cabbages on the street or the birds hanging and exhibited in the windows of small shops. If not, take a look around Eighth street between Webster and Franklin to admire all this once again and be interested in the variety of a wide selection of dried mushrooms. In the Tenth you will find bazaars perfectly equipped with everything you need to welcome the Chinese New Year, which is celebrated on February 8.
Chinese New Year is coming...
Although after visiting the supermarket in Clement, no other establishment of this type is going to seem up to the task, take a look at the selection of LG Supermarket (also in the Tenth) . In it you will find a pond full of live frogs at the modest price of $3.99 per pound.
Just opposite and if you fancy a very neighborhood experience, go to the Draline Tong Herbs herbal shop. Its owner not only sells all kinds of remedies, but also offers consulting services.
To end the visit, you have to taste a little more Chinese tapas. This time opt for the pork and vegetable stuffed buns or the pork and cabbage dumplings at Tian Jin Dumplings . You can eat in the open-air interior courtyard of the mall between Franklin and Webster, below Eleventh, and end the day with an iced taro milk tea at the non-traditional i-Tea.
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