Chinatown in Flushing

November 10, 1:50 PMNY Ethnic Food ExaminerAimée Kligman

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the NY Ethnic Food Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Insert photo caption or credit here

You've heard me rave about this area of Queens, and it's worth a trip from Manhattan if that's where you hang your hat when you visit. If you take the # 7 train eastbound to the last stop, you'll be exactly where you want to be. The cheek-to cheek birds are just one example of what you can find, but it's hardly scratching the surface. 

When you land on Main Street, walk towards Kissena Boulevard, which is in the direction of the El (elevated lines in NY), and make a left hand turn right on Kissena. About half-way up the block will be the largest ethnic foods market anywhere. It's mostly  Chinese, but there is an awesome variety of other Asian foods, and what they call the International aisle is American made products. 

Forget the ethnic foods for a moment, if you can. Any gourmet worth their mettle believes in the freshest ingredients when preparing a meal. For vegetables, herbs and fruit, you will not find anything fresher than what this place has on display. It caters to the locals, but also to Anglos that have discovered it, and will not shop anywhere else. 

What is equally amazing is that fresh vegetables and fruit are at a premium anywhere you go. Here, not only are they alive with color and quality, they are cheaper than any other place. And if you do want to try something new and exotic, get the Dragon Fruit, which I sampled in Vietnam. It's reddish/fuchsia on the outside, and white with black seeds on the inside. You can see a bit more about it here. 

You can also get creative with a straw basket, and throw some assorted nibbles for a gift when you go visiting for the holidays. We'll explore that option next.