So I know this an unusual request, but I’m wondering if anyone can help me track down a Chinatown brothel. Er, let me explain. Way back in 2004, I’d just graduated from college and was scouring Craiglist for apartments when I came across a cheap room for rent in Chinatown – just $700 or so…
Next time you’re passing through Chinatown, take a look at some of the business signs on buildings and you’ll notice that most have a phone number posted, many with two or even three. Not that unusual in New York, and I never gave it a second thought until a few years ago, when I was…
Note: Chinatown Fair closed for good about two weeks after I posted this article. It’s in Chinatown, and it’s best to visit late on a Friday or Saturday night. From Canal Street, head south on Bowery past Chatham Square… …and turn right onto the dimly lit, deserted Mott Street. It’s at #8 Mott, though you’ll…
Pell Street is one of those iconic Chinatown blocks that filmmakers love to shoot on. Short and narrow, lined with brick apartment buildings, small storefronts, and an abundance of awnings and flags, the abrupt end at Mott Street gives it a sense of intimacy. While Pell Street is certainly one of Chinatown’s most iconic, one…
This past December, as I was driving over the Triboro Bridge toward Brooklyn, I was suddenly hit with that old familiar Triboro fragrance, best described as “week-old beef with broccoli.” To me, catching that whiff just after going through the tolls is usually the first olfactory sign I’ve arrived in New York City. I posted…
Way way back, when I first started Scouting NY, I did a post about a great tailor shop window I saw in Chinatown, writing “I love this sign lettering that is most definitely not nostalgic/ironic.” Of course, I had been completely fooled. Back then, this was actually Milk & Honey, a super hip, semi-secret, invitation-only…
So the other day, I finally saw Men In Black III, and there was one location that stood out: Located in Chinatown, Wu’s is THE Chinese restaurant all directors beg us to find. From the paper lanterns and intricate woodwork… …to the numerous fish tanks and detailed wallpaper. Throw in the hanging ducks in the…
A few weeks ago, I was at my parents’ house when my mom dug out a box of pictures from my first trip to New York City. I got a kick out of looking through them, and decided to post them to show you that even I was a tourist in NYC once! Hope you…
Last Tuesday, Scouting NY celebrated its third birthday – hooray! In the past year alone, that’s over 125 new articles with more than 1,300 pictures. So here is my once-a-year fund-raising drive request to you, my readers: If you’re a fan of Scouting NY, would you please please consider making a donation to my film fund?…
Our 2010 roadtrip began where all the great expeditions of history have set out: White Plains, NY. You’re not going to get very far on a road trip without a car, and as neither I nor my girlfriend own one, we had no choice but to rent. I spent much of last week researching the…