Spending a Day in Chinatown, NYC for Under $30, New York, New York

Spending a day in New York City and only spending $30 is challenging (to say the least), however this week I decided to focus on Chinatown. If there is one area in NYC that is cheap, this is it. The most difficult part of this challenge wasn’t saving money. The challenge turned out to be filling an entire day with this small chunk of the city. If you do decide to visit Chinatown when you’re in New York, you can honestly make this a half a day trip.

The day started with brunch at Jing Fong. This restaurant is unique because you don’t order from a menu. Instead, you are seated family style, and the wait staff pushes around carts filled with different delicacies. If you see a dish you like, they bring you a small plate, and if nothing wets your appetite they move onto the next table. It can be overwhelming and is not for the faint of heart. At least 50% of the time, you are unsure of what you’re consuming. Mostly the waitresses will say “shrimp” or “pork” when pointing to a dish that looks nothing like shrimp or pork. For those who feel adventurous and are comfortable diving in head first (or mouth first in this case), you will be in food lover’s heaven. My favorite dish was the shrimp dim sum. We ordered five dishes to share and only spent $10 each. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).