Finding West China in Flushing, Queens

Flushing's Chinese supermarkets are the real deal

When it comes to Chinese food there’s different levels of authenticity.  There’s Chinese takeout – those white paper cartons of greasy fried rice. There’s dim sum and Sichuan places that are packed on Sunday with Chinese families ordering from the secret Chinese menus. And then there’s Flushing, Queens, a place that so eerily resembles Beijing, it inspired flashbacks.

Given this blog’s history of Anthony Bourdain stalking (see here and here), I want to say that I came up with the idea of visiting Flushing, Queens, all on my own. Not true. Although, I’ve heard of the place, it was “No Reservations” that pushed me over the edge.

I spent 3.5 years after college living in Beijing. Since I’ve returned to the US, I’ve been on a continuous hunt for the most authentic Chinese food – especially the noodle dishes common in Northern China. I’ve looked nearly everywhere in DC. But like most places in the US, its Chinese population and cuisine hails from Sichuan (the central western province known for its spicy food) and Hong Kong/Fujian/Guangdong, the southern region famous for dim sum.

Finding the dishes common to northern cities such as Beijing and Xian, home of the famous terracotta warriors, is another matter.  I do, however, love this noodle place in DC. Authentic and cheap!

Flushing is amazing. Not just because it has excellent Chinese food, but because its northern and western Chinese food. Think lots of lamb, lots of cumin (taco spice) and lots of cilantro. Its hearty food made for cold, dry winters. And its streets look eerily like Beijing. The shop fronts are piled on top of each other, creating a mess of overlapping neon signs. There’s even people standing on the street forcing flyers into passersby’s hands – another ubiquitous feature of Beijing.

Golden Shopping Mall

Check out the Golden Shopping Mall (Link to Serious Eats’ great overview) at 41-28 Main Street, Flushing NY 11355. It’s a mind boggling collection of food stands and their bewildering Chinese menus. Inside the mall is:

Xi’an Famous Foods: This is the place that Bourdain visited in the show. Find it by looking for the photo of him. The proprietor is an interesting man – prepare for him to try and sell you everything his restaurant. He does however, speak some English. I love the hamburger-ish dish – a chewy roll stuffed with lamb or pork. I also recommended the “liang pi,” a rice noodle tossed with chili sauce, cucumbers and spongy tofu. It’s an excellent dish for hot weather.

Lanzhou Handmade Noodle:  Lanzhou, like Xian, has a big Muslim population, and is famous for its … well… handmade noodles. We didn’t visit the stand in Golden Shopping Mall. I was stuffed from my encounter with Xi’an Famous Foods.  But wanted to order “chow pian,” one of my favorite foods in China. It’s flat, square noodles fried with lamb, tomatoes and variety of other veggies.

Grocery shopping

Chang Jiang Supermarket:  Outside the shopping mall near the intersection of Kissena and Main St, is this amazing grocery store. There’s an entire aisle of instant noodles and a seafood selection so extensive I couldn’t even name the critters. We picked up some amazing fresh ramen. Imported from Japan, it comes with pickled ginger and noodles that need to be refrigerated.  

For more photos of this trip, check out our Facebook page.

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