Flushing
The largest and most regionally varied Chinese food destination in the United States, at the end of the 7 train, where a serious meal costs less than a sandwich in Midtown.
- What it costs
- Free to walk. Food-court stalls and noodle shops are very cheap; several are cash-only.
- Best in
- Any season
- Where
- Main Street & Roosevelt Avenue, Flushing, NY 11354
- Official site
- nycgo.com
Why it beats Chinatown
Manhattan's Chinatown is historically Cantonese, with Fujianese arrivals later. Flushing is where Taiwanese, Sichuanese, Dongbei, Shanghainese, Henanese, Xi'an, Uyghur and Korean communities all landed, and the food reflects every one of them.
It is bigger, newer, more varied and cheaper. It is also 35 minutes further out and considerably less charming to look at — this is a dense modern commercial district, not a picturesque one. You come for the eating.
Start in a food court
The basement food courts are the right first move — a dozen or more small stalls, each doing one regional thing properly, with photographs on the boards and prices in single digits.
New World Mall's food court under Main Street is the biggest and the easiest to navigate. There are several others within a few blocks.
The method: walk the whole court once, then buy two or three small things from different stalls and share. Hand-pulled noodles, lamb skewers, soup dumplings, stinky tofu if you're brave, and shaved ice to finish.
Beyond the food
Flushing Meadows-Corona Park is a fifteen-minute walk or one stop away, with the Unisphere and the World's Fair remains.
Flushing also has a substantial Korean presence, particularly along Northern Boulevard, with the barbecue and fried chicken to match.
Go hungry and with other people. Going alone caps how much you can try, which is the whole point of being there.
Getting there
The 7 to its last stop, Flushing–Main Street — about 35 minutes from Grand Central and much of it elevated, which makes it a decent ride in itself.
LIRR from Penn Station or Grand Central to Flushing–Main Street takes around 20 minutes and costs more.
You come up the stairs into the middle of it. There is no walk from the station; it starts at the exit.
Getting around once you're there
**Flushing–Main Street is an accessible station.** The streets are flat but extremely crowded, and many of the best food stalls are in basement food courts down a flight of stairs. New World Mall's food court has lift access.
Nearby
In these guides
- One day in Queens: a food crawl on the 7 train
- Three days in New York beyond Manhattan
- Free and cheap things to do in Queens
- Corona and Flushing Meadows: the World's Fair park, Armstrong's house and the Night Market
- New York in winter: the museums, the free skating and the empty parks
- Going to the US Open: getting to Flushing Meadows and what's around it