The Year of the Rooster begins Saturday, January 28, and New York City will be the place to be for celebrations. Both visitors and locals alike can enjoy a variety of events throughout the city’s three Chinatowns (Sunset Park in Brooklyn, downtown Manhattan’s Chinatown, and Flushing in Queens).
With the largest Chinese population in the U.S., New York offers no shortage of authentic and celebratory experiences.
How to Celebrate the 2017 Lunar New Year in NYC:
- Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College presents Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company’s Lunar New Year Celebration, a family-friendly celebration of Chinese culture commemorating the Year of the Rooster on January 22 at 3pm.
- Hornblower Cruises and Spirit Cruises will be offering Dinner Cruises on January 26 with views of fireworks, dining, and entertainment.
- The Empire State Building celebrates Chinese Lunar New Year using its famous tower lights on January 26–27.
- The Chinese New Year Firecracker Ceremony and Cultural Festival takes place in Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Manhattan’s Chinatown on January 28 from 11 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
- The second annual Madison Street to Madison Avenue event will take place, with musical performances, a traditional Chinese marionette show, and martial arts. A lion dance troupe will make its way along Madison Avenue from East 42nd Street to East 86th Street on a decorated trolley, stopping at select luxury retailers offering Lunar New Year promotions. Both events are January 29.
- The Flushing Lunar New Year Parade and Festival Celebration takes place at 11 a.m. on February 4. Festivities include a parade, music, fireworks, dancers, and more.
- The 18th Annual New York City Lunar New Year Parade & Festival takes place on February 5 in Manhattan’s Chinatown, with the parade kicking off at 1 p.m.
- The Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce hosts its first Lunar New Year Celebration at the historic Flushing Town Hall, complete with delicacies and an energetic lion dance performance on February 8 at 6 p.m.
- Sunset Park is home to various Asian cuisines, including Fujianese at Mister Hotpot, dim sum at Pacificana, and Vietnamese at Ba Xuyên. While in Sunset Park, enjoy a view that that overlooks the East River to the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan’s skyline.
- In Manhattan’s Chinatown, the Museum of Chinese in America tells the story of Chinese-Americans in the United States and presents Sour, Sweet, Bitter, Spicy: Stories of Chinese Food and Identity in America through March 26.
- In Chinatown, Jing Fong is a traditional Cantonese restaurant offering dim sum; Joe’s Shanghai offers its famed soup dumplings; and Nom Wah Tea Parlor is NYC’s oldest dim sum parlor.
- While in Chinatown, Chinese medicine at Kamwo Herbal Pharmacy, one of the oldest and largest herbal pharmacies in the country, is available, as is Chinese sweets and savories at Aji Ichiban.
- There are several bakeries and restaurants serving authentic Asian cuisine in Flushing—from breakfast at Tai Pan Bakery to lunch at Ajisen Ramen to dinner at Mulan.
- Golden Shopping Mall in Flushing is home to Xi’An Famous Foods, the NYC-based restaurant chain serving specialty, spicy Chinese cuisine. Queens Crossing Mall offers a variety of shops and dining establishments, including 10 Below Ice Cream, the first spot in New York to serve Thai-inspired ice cream rolls.
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