Mott Street Eatery — Restaurant in New York

Mott Street Eatery – A True Chinatown Hidden Gem That Keeps Evolving

Let’s be real—this place looks cracked down, inside and out. No fancy signage, no trendy vibes. But once you step in, it feels like a hidden Asian hawker center tucked away in the middle of Chinatown. And honestly? That’s the charm.

The food here is insanely cheap, surprisingly good, and most stalls now accept credit cards—a huge win in a neighborhood where cash is usually king. What makes it even better is that you’re not just getting great value—you’re actually supporting real family-run businesses that cook with passion and care.

And hey—corporate chains and social media spots aren’t necessarily bad, but this place? It’s different. It’s special. It’s raw, low-key, and full of heart.

There’s one roast pork stall that deserves a huge shoutout. It doesn’t just serve BBQ meats like roast pork, soy sauce chicken, and garlic chicken—it also has dim sum-style dishes like steamed buns and dumplings, the kind you’d usually only find at a full-service dim sum restaurant.

And if you’re thinking, “But Wah Fung though…”—yes, Wah Fung is good. But these days, the lines there are insane thanks to influencer hype. You can easily end up waiting 30+ minutes, which is rough if you’re on a tight NYC schedule.

Not to mention, the flavor profile is different. Wah Fung leans more American-style—sweet, heavy BBQ sauce, glazed roast pork. This stall goes for saltier, more traditional Cantonese flavors, with less sauce and more focus on the meat itself.

No line. No fuss. Card accepted. Just solid food that hits different.

When I first wrote my review, there was a stall called Stellar Chinese Cuisine, and their beef mushroom lo mein was amazing—packed with generous portions of beef for just $10, with crunchy bean sprouts that tied it all together. Sadly, Stellar has since closed, but new stalls have opened up in its place, and the whole mall feels more alive than ever.

Now, the highlight for me is the 东北 (Northern-style) restaurant. They make incredible hand-pulled flat noodles and lamb, beef, and pork burgers at very affordable prices (around $12–$16). The flavors are bold and authentic, especially the dry cumin-spiced lamb noodles—it’s that kind of spice that builds slowly, warming you up bite by bite. The taste is homemade yet professional, deeply flavorful, and unlike anything you’ll find elsewhere.

The food court itself has transformed—it’s now full almost all the time, buzzing with people and energy. It really feels like Chinatown’s version of an indoor night market—casual, authentic, and always cooking up something good.

Don’t miss the savory Chinese crepe stall (煎饼果子) either. It’s crispy, flavorful, and super nostalgic—hard to find even in other U.S. Chinatowns. These are the kind of street food snacks you’d only see back in China, and having them here makes the place feel even more special.

Over time, some stalls close, others open—but that’s part of what makes Mott Street Eatery so real and alive. You never know what’s coming next, and that sense of discovery is half the fun.

No frills. No hype. Just real food, real people, and a taste of home in the heart of Chinatown. Try it once, and...

It's really great to have a casual open seating area in Chinatown that has a variety of food options at reasonable prices. With that said, the stalls are NOT all the same in quality, and some are far better than others!

Yan Wo Dou Bun (the furthest back stall on the right side) is really good. They make really delicious doufu fa (tofu pudding), soy milk, and zongzi (Chinese tamales). I had a chat with the woman working there the day I went, who is the owner, and she said they had a famous store in HK before moving here to set up shop. They're really friendly and if you go semi-regularly, they will recognize you!

K-Kimbap is excellent. The kimbap is made to order, also seemingly by a female owner, who is really motherly and checks in on you to see that the food is to your liking! Ingredients are very fresh. The kimbap are not only delicious, but beautiful to look at!

Sanmiwago - A Taiwanese chain that's expanding its footprint across NYC - reliable Taiwanese-style dumplings and noodles/soups. I love their fried pork and yellow chive dumplings.

The places I did NOT like were the dim sum stall and the Beijing Jian Bing stall. The dim sum stall's watercress/shrimp dumplings were gummy and mushy on the inside, with the watercress totally overcooked and the shrimp mealy and mushy. The "crystal" skin was way too thick and chewy. Three dumplings for $5 seems like a decent deal when you have a shrimp filling, but these were horrendous. The Beijing jian bing stall had promise, but the egg jian bing I got had a crisp on the inside that felt and tasted stale. They skimped on all the sauces for me, and they took the liberty of telling the cook making my jianbing that I didn't want spicy when I never said that! It felt flavorless and sad. If I want a good jian bing, I will go 1.5 blocks over to Yiwanmen, which makes a truly excellent one that reminds me of my time eating them off the streets in...

Highly recommend this restaurant “ Singapore Hainanese Chicken Rice and Braised Pork Rice ” after walking in the area to eat. I normally go to each store over and over again. I decided to enter the food court and look to the right. I saw one shop, eye-catching, in front of the shop, there was no electric sign, no food picture like other stores (when entering the food court, shop no. 4 on the right side), there was a couple (uncle and aunt) standing in the shop waiting for customers. They don't have a tablet or any system to accept online orders like other restaurants. When I looked at the menu I only saw a few items :

Singapore Hainanese Chicken Rice. Braised Pork Rice. Boiled eggs with tea or soysauce.

When I ordered my food, their conversation was good. I stood and watched them help each other to cook. It made me think of my parents or grandparents to cook for the children to eat. The price of the food is not expensive, if the price is increased, it is not considered expensive. I think they want customers to eat well at a very affordable price. I want you guys to try this restaurant. If you come to this area, please come and try the Food that doesn't require luxurious ingredients but gets a good feeling from this couple's cooks that is not often found. At first I wanted to help support this shop so that people could try and support them. But when I finished eating and looked again, I saw about 10 customers coming from nowhere waiting for food from this restaurant. Maybe people around here know this restaurant well. But I just came...