Businesses in Chinatown are required by law to put up signage in Chinese as well as English, that's why even non-Chinese restaurants like Nando's have Chinese signage outside
China town is always beautiful every where in the world, this is what I like about China town... Thanks actionkid for sharing this town... It's really nice
Welcome to Washington DC's China Town AK....the 618 China garden restaurant front decor is uniquely special...very traditional and stylish...however many shops remains closed which is sad....hope it will comes back to live soon...regards from Kuala Lumpur Malaysia....
DC's been having some trouble, particularly in that general area (Penn Quarter, Chinatown, etc.), for several years. Rents are WAY too high for anything but the biggest national/international chains. There are a lot of empty store fronts, sometimes for years upon years in spite of being prime locations, because when the lease is up, most places close or move. I worked nearby for almost 5 years, and it was a war of attrition trying to find somewhere to grab lunch. Seemed like every month a restaurant closed & wasn't replaced. The business I worked for moved a couple years before Covid hit, which must have absolutely hammered the businesses still in the area, as so many of them catered to office workers, either for lunch or happy hour. There's not a ton of tourist spots or residential in those blocks.
Maybe short but quite nice looking Chinatown in Washington D C ! That Dragon mural loooked quite impressive 🙂!! Overall quite pleasant walk , nice restaurants so ….! Thank you for sharing A K 👍!!!
Love the entrance it's magnificent. This was a beautiful walk , thanks for the experience I like the history of the families who restaurants still remain to this day. 💛✌
Chinatown in the DMV has moved to the suburbs, particularly scattered around Montgomery County and parts of Fairfax. There’s only a handful of real Chinese businesses left in DC Chinatown. Also, my relatives own some of the buildings and couple of the businesses there too.
Kenneth that dragon mural at the beginning is absolutely beautiful. The entrance gate is magnificent. It is sad that there are not more businesses etc here. Thanks as always for the great tour of this area. I enjoy the videos as always. Take care.
I was visiting Washington (from Toronto) around 2016. We ate at a very nice Vietnamese restaurant that was near the edge of Chinatown. It looked very upscale but the prices were moderate. I am trying to spot it in your tour. It was in one of those businesses that you go up a flight of stairs. No luck.
The Washington DC Chinatown entrance gate is beautiful! 😍 I'm glad you documented what's left of Chinatown, because who knows how things will continue to change due to gentrification. I really hope the businesses will sustain here. 🙏 Sadly, I don't feel the Chinatown vibes albeit seeing the Chinese style architecture gate and a few store fronts with Chinese characters, not sure if it makes any difference during the day time or weekends. ☹ Also, it was interesting to see Chinese characters for Yard House and Walgreens. Thank you so much for sharing this informative walk, AK! 🤗 This will be on my to visit list in the future! 😃
DC Chinatown has been small and struggling. I moved to Virginia in 1998 and it was struggling from back then. Covid 19 pandemic definitely di not help them.
Was in DC 4 years ago and stayed near Chinatown. Was disappointed at how small it was and found the Chinese signs at McD’s and CVS funny. Also at night the area gets sketchy.
Covid restrictions took their toll on DC restaurants and nightlife across the entire city. While the Chinatown element has always been minimal, that area was much more bustling before Covid. Unfortunate.
is "New Big Wong" related to the famous old staple here in Manhattan Chinatown? Also, very cool video AK. Just by watching a dozen minutes, I've added a whole new neighborhood into the visual databank in my head
Nice video. I can cross this Chinatown off my must see list. Does not look like a safe area. Maybe I'm spoiled by other great Chinatown's that I've been to like Manhattan, Flushing, Brooklyn, and San Francisco. I doubt that the Washington DC local government has any intention of saving this Chinatown. They might as well start removing the Chinatown gate cause this Chinatown is on it's way out. You do not need to go to a bad neighborhood to eat Chinese-American food.
Nice video of Chinatown. Some of my folks - who were largely from Germany and that area of Europe - had lived in that neighborhood during the Civil War. That area of DC became Chinatown by the Federal Government beginning in the 1930's when they appropriated land along Pennsylvania Avenue and the Federal Triangle area for the large Federal buildings you see today. Previously, 7th and Pennsylvania Avenue/Constitution Ave area was the site of DCs main market - Center Market- and Chinatown was located around that area - so the Chinese had to relocate. A lot of the old German neighborhood remains - like the Surrat House shown in the video (Ford's Theatre is around the corner). Also - there was a large Jewish community centered around the Synagogue shown at 6th and I which is considered part of Chinatown. I know some folks who grew up in Chinatown and it still has family associations that are headquartered there as well as the Chinese Christian Church. A lot of the Chinese residents are elderly - many live in the Wah Luck house in DC and in the Museum Building further north. They were telling me that the Wah Luck house is threatening with redevelopment as it was built with HUD loans that require low income housing - for 30 years - and the building were built I think in the 1970s. But its a real Chinatown with a real history and not some creation for tourists.
13:49 Can someone tell me what zoning ordinances allow for this level of metal gating of a property on a mixed commercial/residential street and why it is necessary? It can NOT be “security” because a person can hop this gate?!? What is the PURPOSE and FUNCTION of all of the metal RAILING of windows and stairwells in the H and 6th Street block of “Chinatown”? Secondly, for a city to ensure “ECONOMIC VIABILITY” for business owners/developers in a community, it makes no sense to approve permits of IDENTICAL BUSINESS TYPES to lease space ADJACENT to one another. (The same is true of CHURCHES or other religious buildings) If the “theme” is a simulated tour of East Asian Countries for TOURISTS, there is more available in the heritage of those cultures than restaurants serving the SAME VARIATIONS of food. The competition for tourism (or even local economic use) in that area for that design is USELESS. Who is responsible for permits, zoning and regulations (and more importantly, are those people cognitively functional). 🤷🏽♀️🙄🧾🚨🚔⚖️
Some of the food looks kinda fake. At least two of the restaurants in the first 7 minutes have Chinese-takeout type menus, and not real Chinese dishes, and that's really lame.
Businesses in Chinatown are required by law to put up signage in Chinese as well as English, that's why even non-Chinese restaurants like Nando's have Chinese signage outside
Thanks for the info!
China town is always beautiful every where in the world, this is what I like about China town... Thanks actionkid for sharing this town... It's really nice
You’re welcome!
@@baliwalknshops1517 have you been to Chinatown in NY 🤣🤣🤣
Great walk tour around the beautiful Chinatown District. In just a click of my fingertip...I travelled far to Washington DC. Tnx4sharing 😊
My pleasure, thanks for watching!
My hometown Chinatown - was crazy watching it change (for better and worse) over the years after MCI Center (now Capital One Arena) was built.
I can only begin to imagine
Welcome to Washington DC's China Town AK....the 618 China garden restaurant front decor is uniquely special...very traditional and stylish...however many shops remains closed which is sad....hope it will comes back to live soon...regards from Kuala Lumpur Malaysia....
Yes, I hope someday it can come back to life! Thanks for watching!
DC's been having some trouble, particularly in that general area (Penn Quarter, Chinatown, etc.), for several years. Rents are WAY too high for anything but the biggest national/international chains. There are a lot of empty store fronts, sometimes for years upon years in spite of being prime locations, because when the lease is up, most places close or move. I worked nearby for almost 5 years, and it was a war of attrition trying to find somewhere to grab lunch. Seemed like every month a restaurant closed & wasn't replaced. The business I worked for moved a couple years before Covid hit, which must have absolutely hammered the businesses still in the area, as so many of them catered to office workers, either for lunch or happy hour. There's not a ton of tourist spots or residential in those blocks.
As someone who admires Chinatown, thank you for making this. I really enjoyed it
What's left is still quite beautiful....🌷
I lived in DC an loved it so much. I miss it a lot, your walking videos bring up so many memories for me! Thanks AK
Maybe short but quite nice looking Chinatown in Washington D C ! That Dragon mural loooked quite impressive 🙂!! Overall quite pleasant walk , nice restaurants so ….! Thank you for sharing A K 👍!!!
You’re welcome, it’s an organized Chinatown. Glad they’re able to keep some of the culture alive in Washington DC!
Love the entrance it's magnificent. This was a beautiful walk , thanks for the experience I like the history of the families who restaurants still remain to this day. 💛✌
The entrance is absolutely gorgeous!
Really appreciate the work that went into your DC videos AK - thanks.
Thank you very much!
Chinatown in the DMV has moved to the suburbs, particularly scattered around Montgomery County and parts of Fairfax. There’s only a handful of real Chinese businesses left in DC Chinatown. Also, my relatives own some of the buildings and couple of the businesses there too.
Interesting! Maybe I’ll have to take a visit to some of the surrounding areas.
@@ActionKid Annandale, VA has a lot of Korean restaurants. Eden Center, in Falls Church, VA is known for its Vietnamese places.
Kenneth that dragon mural at the beginning is absolutely beautiful. The entrance gate is magnificent. It is sad that there are not more businesses etc here. Thanks as always for the great tour of this area. I enjoy the videos as always. Take care.
Good to see the dragon mural and Chinatown gate, but I hope more businesses can move in here to revitalize the area.
At 0:45, the Barnes Dance (or scramble) intersection, where the light allows for people to cross diagonally.
I was visiting Washington (from Toronto) around 2016. We ate at a very nice Vietnamese restaurant that was near the edge of Chinatown. It looked very upscale but the prices were moderate. I am trying to spot it in your tour. It was in one of those businesses that you go up a flight of stairs. No luck.
Very cool! It sounded like a great place but I hope it survived. M
I really wish I could’ve visited Chinatown in the 90s-70s
The Washington DC Chinatown entrance gate is beautiful! 😍 I'm glad you documented what's left of Chinatown, because who knows how things will continue to change due to gentrification. I really hope the businesses will sustain here. 🙏 Sadly, I don't feel the Chinatown vibes albeit seeing the Chinese style architecture gate and a few store fronts with Chinese characters, not sure if it makes any difference during the day time or weekends. ☹ Also, it was interesting to see Chinese characters for Yard House and Walgreens. Thank you so much for sharing this informative walk, AK! 🤗 This will be on my to visit list in the future! 😃
The Chinatown gate is a nice touch, but I don’t really see too much of a Chinatown there anymore. It’s still worth a visit though!
Thank you for sharing video nice place Restaurants Chinatown and Washington DC area great Enjoyed 👍
DC is tied with Boston for my second favorite US city behind NY. (I love Miami too, but it's not a true city IMO like the old East Coast ones.)
All of them are great cities!
@@ActionKid I agree.
I really like the "old city" energy.
@@mn9159 Me too.
I was at the “hotel motto by Hilton” next to the Chinatown gate, and I took pictures of some signs in Chinese including the “psychic reader”.
Still some interesting older architecture in the neighborhood!
DC Chinatown has been small and struggling. I moved to Virginia in 1998 and it was struggling from back then. Covid 19 pandemic definitely di not help them.
You mean govt shutdowns.
CHINATOWN IS THE BEST !
Was in DC 4 years ago and stayed near Chinatown. Was disappointed at how small it was and found the Chinese signs at McD’s and CVS funny. Also at night the area gets sketchy.
Ive been to DC Chinatown about 3 times now and its one of the cleanest Chinatowns ive been too but it doesnt feel like Chinatown. Were from Philly.
Nice area thanks for the walk AK
happy you came to the city where I live. Cheers
I went when I was a kid many years ago it was lit and I was only a kid so you know back then was crazy.. things change tho lowkey sad
This is Awesome
17:55... one of the menu items in the restaurant is really called " Not your mama's eggplant" lmao
Certified Fresh Vanilla Cakes For Very Very Excellent
i'm not aware DC has a little chinatown, and many thanks to AK for this amazing video!
Merci pour cette promenade interessante ! Amitie
Kinda sad. I hope they bring back more businesses.
Ikr i agree
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner For Very Very Incredible
Wonderfully vibrant 🪁
I Love It A Lot
LOL 🤠👍🏽🤭Cartwright Number 5!!
Covid restrictions took their toll on DC restaurants and nightlife across the entire city. While the Chinatown element has always been minimal, that area was much more bustling before Covid. Unfortunate.
Can you make it a goal to feature chinatowns around the country (and maybe even internationally)? I think that would be so cool!
That would be a cool concept, I think I would visit a city’s Chinatown anyway if I happened to be in the area.
nice action kid
I live with in a hour from there, they have the up town theater there and the zoo not far, I love Connecticut Ave the best. Good food at Babes
Very Nice.
I went the next day to see New Edition and Charlie Wilson perform
You have to go outside dc for a decent Chinatown in that area. The main one should be in Arlington kinda near the cemetery.
is "New Big Wong" related to the famous old staple here in Manhattan Chinatown? Also, very cool video AK. Just by watching a dozen minutes, I've added a whole new neighborhood into the visual databank in my head
yes my friend
🤭wow! China town every where like manila binondo china town..
🦜~ 🤟🏻AK. That was nice.
my dear, Good day- yeah-you did incredbile ~📹
Could you do a Washington Metro Ride Video?
Greetings from Peru ;)
You mentioned in this video that chinatown was bigger before. Why did it decrease in number?
Please do an update with comments on wheelchair accessible businesses.
Your title indicates this is recorded in April, but then you say it was recorded in March at the beginning of the video.
Is this china town a walking distance from Washington DC n it’s monument, n train station?
@Joan In Florida thank you
Nice and sad 😔 😟 to see at the same time ak such a shame sum of these business can't survive anymore
The Ming´s is a Chinese Restaurant, not Mongolian, right, because Ming and Cheng are Chinese names!
Nice video. I can cross this Chinatown off my must see list. Does not look like a safe area. Maybe I'm spoiled by other great Chinatown's that I've been to like Manhattan, Flushing, Brooklyn, and San Francisco. I doubt that the Washington DC local government has any intention of saving this Chinatown. They might as well start removing the Chinatown gate cause this Chinatown is on it's way out. You do not need to go to a bad neighborhood to eat Chinese-American food.
Doesnt look busy at all. Is it worth checking it out? Not a lot asian tourists like most chinatowns
What’s your next stop, AK?
Looks more like manhatab
Nice video of Chinatown. Some of my folks - who were largely from Germany and that area of Europe - had lived in that neighborhood during the Civil War. That area of DC became Chinatown by the Federal Government beginning in the 1930's when they appropriated land along Pennsylvania Avenue and the Federal Triangle area for the large Federal buildings you see today. Previously, 7th and Pennsylvania Avenue/Constitution Ave area was the site of DCs main market - Center Market- and Chinatown was located around that area - so the Chinese had to relocate.
A lot of the old German neighborhood remains - like the Surrat House shown in the video (Ford's Theatre is around the corner). Also - there was a large Jewish community centered around the Synagogue shown at 6th and I which is considered part of Chinatown. I know some folks who grew up in Chinatown and it still has family associations that are headquartered there as well as the Chinese Christian Church. A lot of the Chinese residents are elderly - many live in the Wah Luck house in DC and in the Museum Building further north. They were telling me that the Wah Luck house is threatening with redevelopment as it was built with HUD loans that require low income housing - for 30 years - and the building were built I think in the 1970s. But its a real Chinatown with a real history and not some creation for tourists.
Maybe the rent is high. Why didn’t you speak with the Asian community leaders in that district?
13:49 Can someone tell me what zoning ordinances allow for this level of metal gating of a property on a mixed commercial/residential street and why it is necessary? It can NOT be “security” because a person can hop this gate?!? What is the PURPOSE and FUNCTION of all of the metal RAILING of windows and stairwells in the H and 6th Street block of “Chinatown”?
Secondly, for a city to ensure “ECONOMIC VIABILITY” for business owners/developers in a community, it makes no sense to approve permits of IDENTICAL BUSINESS TYPES to lease space ADJACENT to one another. (The same is true of CHURCHES or other religious buildings) If the “theme” is a simulated tour of East Asian Countries for TOURISTS, there is more available in the heritage of those cultures than restaurants serving the SAME VARIATIONS of food. The competition for tourism (or even local economic use) in that area for that design is USELESS. Who is responsible for permits, zoning and regulations (and more importantly, are those people cognitively functional).
🤷🏽♀️🙄🧾🚨🚔⚖️
Ramadan Kareem, and blessed Friday, and you're creative keep going✨✨✨✨✨..
Sender: your brother (Baraa) from Palestine
🇵🇸🇺🇸
Ramadan Kareem....🌺
Why is china town allowed in a chocolate city ???
To many restaurants, how bout shopping stores?
The DC Chinatown is a fake Chinatown 😜
@Joan In Florida hello
Some of the food looks kinda fake. At least two of the restaurants in the first 7 minutes have Chinese-takeout type menus, and not real Chinese dishes, and that's really lame.