Within the five boroughs of New York City, there are 10 Chinatowns. One of the largest is located in Flushing, Queens. Much of the neighborhood is residential, but downtown Flushing is populated with retail and commercial businesses.
Many restaurants line the streets in Flushing, and offer traditional Chinese dining, dim sum and private Chinese banquet dinners. A Chinese banquet dinner is a gathering of family and friends to celebrate a holiday, like the New Year or a wedding or other special occasion. Unlike a regular Chinese meal when all the food is served at once, a banquet is about bounteousness – a host’s generosity and prosperity and the joy of a celebration. The food, typically served in 8 or 10 courses to all the guests who are traditionally seated at a round table with a lazy susan. The lazy susan is a rotating tray placed in the center of the table to aid in sharing the food among diners. Hot towels are distributed at the beginning of the meal and also at the end, to each guest to clean his/her hands.
At a Chinese banquet, the food itself is the medium communicating from the host his good wishes and the joy of the celebration. Food brings people together and serves as a common denominator among diverse people in a business or personal setting.
A birthday surprise by Vince:
A limo filled with ladies, some of my dear friends and family. Off we went to Flushing, first stop was the Leaf Bar and Lounge rooftop bar at the Sheraton hotel on 39th Ave. We enjoyed a specialty cocktail and then we all followed Vince and walked down the street to
New Mulan Restaurant.
