vip in the city

More noodles

After a holiday hiatus, we were back in Chinatown for lunch again on Thursday. I didn’t have a specific destination already in mind, so at my friend’s request, we ended up back at Marco Polo Noodle Shop on Baxter. It’s good, but I’m not sure why he’s so obsessed with this place. It has to be the noodles.

We must be regulars now, because our waiter chose this afternoon to initiate more personal interactions. His very first question to me, head gesturing toward my dining companion: “He’s Korean, right?” Haha. (Yes.)

After lunch, we passed these colorful lucky lanterns, set up for the upcoming Chinese New Year on February 7, 2008. The annual celebrations last 15 days, ending with the Lantern Festival on the first full moon of the new lunar year. The lantern-lighting tradition dates to the Han Dynasty, and though its origins are unclear, the most popular legend surrounding the festivities concerns a town’s deliverance from fiery destruction at the vengeful hands of the Jade Emperor of Heaven.

Tags: Chinatown, Chinese New Year, Marco Polo