New York City's Bustling Queens Neighborhood Is A Delightful Day Trip To Savor Mouth-Watering Cuisine

Did you know that New York City has nine Chinatowns? While Manhattan's Chinatown is one of the best-known Chinatowns in America, Brooklyn and Queens also have multiple neighborhoods where you can find a substantial Chinese immigrant population and delicious restaurants. Flushing, Queens, is home to NYC's largest Chinatown, making it the perfect place for a day trip to savor mouth-watering Chinese cuisine. Come with an empty stomach so you can eat your fill of dumplings and noodles!

Flushing is located in north-central Queens, so depending on where you're coming from, you might be spending a lot of time on public transit (but trust us, it's worth it). Many Queens residents can easily stop by Flushing for a meal. But NYC residents living in other boroughs or tourists staying in a Manhattan hotel (like this boutique retreat with massive suites and a rooftop bar) often like to make their Flushing visit into a day trip.

To get to Flushing, you can take the 7 subway train to its last stop, Flushing-Main Street; ride the LIRR Port Washington line to the LIRR's Flushing-Main Street stop; or get on one of the numerous MTA buses that take you close to Flushing's downtown. Of course, you can also drive, but expect lots of traffic and very limited street parking. A bit of advice: Bring cash because some restaurants are cash-only.

You'll find a diverse range of Chinese cuisine styles in Flushing, from the spicy Sichuan hot pot to the savory Shaxian wontons, as well as Korean and Taiwanese restaurants. On Tripadvisor, Flushing's highest-rated Chinese restaurants include Shanghai You Garden, a popular sit-down spot for xiao long bao (soup dumplings) and pan-fried noodles; the Michelin-recommended Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings; and Happy Lamb Hot Pot, serving hot pot — a communal meal in which you place various small bites of raw meats and veggies into a boiling broth to cook them.

Don't trust online reviewers who might have a low spice tolerance and expect American-style customer service? Turn to NYC food critics, who recommend gems like Hunan Cafe, a former Michelin Bib Gourmand winner known for its beef noodle soup and pork belly; White Bear, a takeout-only spot for wontons; Eight Jane, another takeout-only spot, this one for jianbing, a crepe-like street food with savory fillings; and Xie Bao, one of the newer restaurants in the neighborhood, known for Shanghainese-style dishes incorporating crab roe. Want to try as many options as possible? Head to one of Flushing's popular food courts, such as New World Mall or New York Food Court, to sample cuisine from dozens of stalls.

Looking for Korean cuisine? Head to Mapo Korean BBQ for short ribs, neighboring Han Joo Chik Naeng Myun & BBQ for barbecued pork belly, and Keum Sung Food for naeng myun, a noodle dish. For Taiwanese meals, try the food court spot Taipei Hong for fried pork chops, coffee shop Main Street Taiwanese Gourmet for three-cup omelets, and the sit-down spot OK Canaan for braised pork and rice.

So now you're full and want to spend some time exploring Flushing before your next meal. Along with its restaurants and food courts, Flushing is also known for its shopping, including many Asian stores and brands that are hard to find elsewhere in the U.S. At Tangram Mall, you can browse home goods and stationery at a branch of the Chinese variety store Miniso, shop for Seoul-inspired streetwear at OS Society, and explore an anime utopia at Akiba House. Other popular neighborhood stores include Eglance Bookstore, a Chinese bookstore with an extensive stationery selection; Korean beauty shops including Aritaum, Besfren Beauty, and Etude House & Innisfree; and Japanese department store Tesolife.

Outside of Chinatown, but still in the neighborhood of Flushing, you'll find several underrated NYC attractions. For example, Flushing Meadows Corona Park is even larger than Central Park, and it's full of greenery and trails. It was the site of the 1939 and 1964 World's Fairs. The Unisphere, a giant steel globe statue erected for the 1964 World's Fair, is still standing and makes for a great photo opportunity (pictured above). Located in the center of the park, you'll find the Queens Museum, with a famous scale model of the NYC skyline. Depending on the time of year and your budget, you could center your Flushing day trip around taking in a game at Citi Field or the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, or attending the annual Governors Ball music festival in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. Just make sure you save time for dumplings!