As Manhattan’s Chinatown Changes, Food Vendors Keep a Bit of the Old with the New 唐人街今昔殊異，食品商新舊兼容

阿里·亨特

Even when I lived hours away， Manhattans Chinatown was my familys destination for groceries. Decades back， you couldnt find the same variety and quality of Chinese produce， meats and dried goods1 in most of the Mid-Atlantic2. But thats changed.

Cheaper options in Flushing， Queens; Sunset Park， Brooklyn; and elsewhere in the city have drawn working-class Chinese immigrants away from this neighborhood bordered by trendy SoHo3 and TriBeCa4. As Chinatowns population changes， what will happen to the grocers and specialty food stores that feed the community？

I spoke to some food shopkeepers， who ran first- and second-generation family businesses in Chinatown. Their answers both surprised and inspired me and suggested that while some see a neighborhood in decline， others see merely a transition.

Lewis Wu， 50， lives in Hong Kong Supermarket， 157 Hester Street. After immigrating from Burma， his father opened his first store in 1973， a small dry goods grocery on East Broadway in Chinatown. Business was brisk5， especially on Chinese New Years. “It was actually like a can of sardines6.” Mr. Wu reminisced7， “l(fā)ong lines throughout the whole day.”

And Mr. Wu loved it. Choosing products and seeing what sells at what price was like running little experiments for him. So while his sisters went into medicine and dentistry， he chose the family business. With two floors and 17，000 square feet， Hong Kong Supermarket is one of the largest in Chinatown and larger than most grocery stores in Manhattan： The store has several tanks for live fish and shellfish， a butcher section， a back wall entirely for frozen goods， and a lower level for kitchenware， herbs， rice and noodles.

Just a few years ago， Hong Kong Supermarket expanded its selection of non-Asian products， like yogurts and cold cuts8， though Mr. Wu explained that it wasnt just non-Chinese customers who had asked for it. While his customer base used to be more first-generation Chinese， he said now he saw more second-generation Chinese-Americans along with non-Asians.

And Mr. Wus family also opened stores in East Brunswick， N.J.， and Flushing， Queens， to tap into9 growing Asian communities outside Chinatown. “Like dinosaurs，” said Mr. Wu， “if you dont change with the environment， you wont be here.” But he added that despite the relative higher rent in Chinatown， the volume of sales at the Hester Street store still made it the most profitable.

Paul Eng， 51， lives in Fong On， tofu store， 81 Division Street. He really wants to appeal to everybody. His new shop will offer riffs10 on Asian foods to attract younger customers who are into the “snacking， foodie culture，” basically， quick bites， usually novel and Instagram-able11， that could be sweet or savory.

The store will also sell conventional tofu， other soy-based products and sticky rice cake to serve older Chinatown residents. “I still want to serve the community，” Mr. Eng said. Though Mr. Eng has a family history in the tofu business （his father owned Fong Inn Too on Mott Street， the oldest tofu and noodle shop in the city）， this new store is a somewhat surprising turn for him.

He had long disliked working at his familys store. “Any little thing that needed attending to， it had to be done right away， seven days a week，” said Mr. Eng， who was the youngest child. So a few years ago， when his parents and older brothers asked if he wanted to take over the business， he had no interest. Fong Inn Too， known as Hong An， was closed in February 2017.

Now though， at 51 with two young children， Mr. Eng is looking for a steady job instead of freelance12 photography. He had spent 10 years as a commercial photographer in Russia， where he met his wife. But unlike the original shop owned by his father， the new shop will serve foods like soy custards13 topped with red and mung beans， boba14 or grass jelly15， a combination he was introduced to while visiting Taiwan.

“Who knew？” Mr. Engs eyes brightened. “Ive eaten all this stuff in separate parts my whole life， but together？ Oh my God！” The name will still be Hong An， this time transliterated16 as Fong On. “Im going to put everything that I know into it，” Mr. Eng added. “The photography， the marketing， the art direction.” I asked Mr. Eng what his father， who has died， would say about his return to the tofu business after so many years of resistance. His answer： “I told you so.”

Zee Ying Wong lives in Aqua Best Seafood， 276 Grand Street. The customers， and even the vendors， call her “Mommy.” Though shes not in charge anymore， she still manages the register17 at Aqua Best and enjoys chats with longtime customers.

“It would be boring to stay home，” she said. About 30 years ago， after Ms. Wongs husband passed away， she built up the current business， now managed by her two sons， Freeman， 42， and Steven Wong， 39， along with other family members. But she still comes every day “to point out the things they should pay attention to and how to solve problems，” she added.

One entire wall of this spacious store is occupied by glass tanks， filled with barramundi， spotted shrimp， whelk， Dungeness crabs， king crabs and lobsters. In the center are trays of razor clams and other shellfish next to several types of iced fish， and a bucket of frogs near the back （so as not to scare the non-Chinese customers， Steven Wong explained）.

Freeman Wong spent 10 years in the finance industry. But when his job required a move to Ohio， he decided in 2004 to dedicate himself full time to Aqua Best. “I needed a little bit of time to figure out what I wanted to do，” he said. The business and its block have changed a lot since then. Its neighbors used to be a handful of other Chinese-owned seafood shops， now replaced by an ice cream shop and a Vietnamese restaurant among others.

And wholesale makes up 90 percent of its revenue now， with restaurant clients like Blanca and Del Posto， along with nearby Chinese restaurants. Steven and Freeman Wong have partnered with a former executive chef from the restaurant Talde to open a seafood market and restaurant called Essex Pearl.

The menu wont be strictly Chinese， but rather a mix of Jewish， Hispanic， and Asian cuisines， a homage18 to the neighborhoods history. Freeman Wong said， “The second and third generation， were bringing our own ideas of what Chinatown should be.”

當(dāng)初，盡管離住所有數(shù)小時(shí)車(chē)程，曼哈頓的唐人街仍是我家采購(gòu)食品的去處。幾十年前，在中大西洋的多數(shù)地區(qū)，同樣品類(lèi)和品質(zhì)的中國(guó)農(nóng)產(chǎn)品、肉類(lèi)和干貨都見(jiàn)不到。然而，如今情況已變。

曼哈頓唐人街緊鄰蘇豪和翠貝卡兩處時(shí)尚街區(qū)，而在皇后區(qū)的法拉盛、布魯克林的日落公園，以及紐約的其他社區(qū)，物價(jià)更為低廉，把唐人街工薪階層的中國(guó)移民紛紛吸引過(guò)去。隨著唐人街人口的變動(dòng)，服務(wù)社區(qū)餐桌的食品雜貨商和特色食品店將何去何從？

我采訪了一些在唐人街經(jīng)營(yíng)一代和二代家族生意的食品店主。他們的回答既令我驚訝，也給了我啟發(fā)，從中可以看出，對(duì)于唐人街，有人認(rèn)為日趨衰微，而有人則認(rèn)為不過(guò)是轉(zhuǎn)型而已。

劉易斯·胡現(xiàn)年50歲，在赫斯特街157號(hào)經(jīng)營(yíng)“香港超市”。他的父親從緬甸移民美國(guó)之后，于1973年開(kāi)設(shè)了自己的首家商店，那是位于唐人街東百老匯大街售賣(mài)干貨的一家小店。當(dāng)時(shí)生意紅火，特別是在大年初一?！罢娴氖穷櫩陀T(mén)，”胡先生回憶說(shuō)，“一天到晚都排著長(zhǎng)隊(duì)?！?/p>

胡先生樂(lè)在其中。對(duì)他而言，揀選商品和調(diào)整售價(jià)就像開(kāi)展一項(xiàng)項(xiàng)小型實(shí)驗(yàn)。因此，當(dāng)他的姊妹選擇從醫(yī)、當(dāng)牙醫(yī)，他卻選擇接手家族生意?！跋愀鄢小睋碛袃蓪拥昝?，面積達(dá)1.7萬(wàn)平方英尺，是唐人街最大的商店之一，規(guī)模超過(guò)曼哈頓的大多數(shù)超市。店里有多個(gè)盛放活魚(yú)和貝類(lèi)等水產(chǎn)的水箱，設(shè)有一處鮮肉區(qū)，一面后墻專(zhuān)售冷凍食品，下層店面出售炊具、香料、大米和面條。

就在幾年前，“香港超市”擴(kuò)充了亞洲產(chǎn)品以外的商品種類(lèi)，比如酸奶和冷切肉，但胡先生解釋說(shuō)，有此需求的并不只是非華裔顧客。他的顧客群過(guò)去多是第一代華裔，據(jù)他講，如今不僅增加了亞裔以外的顧客，還有了更多的二代華裔顧客。

為抓住唐人街以外日益壯大的亞裔社區(qū)帶來(lái)的商機(jī)，胡先生一家還在新澤西州的東不倫瑞克以及紐約皇后區(qū)的法拉盛開(kāi)了店。胡先生說(shuō)：“如果像恐龍一樣，不隨環(huán)境改變，那就無(wú)法生存?！辈贿^(guò)他又說(shuō)，盡管唐人街的店面租金相對(duì)更高，但由于銷(xiāo)量大，赫斯特街的這家超市仍然盈利最豐。

現(xiàn)年51歲的伍啟芳是迪威臣街81號(hào)“宏安”豆腐店的店主。他很想迎合每一位顧客。新店將供應(yīng)經(jīng)過(guò)改良的亞洲美食，以吸引熱衷這種“快餐和吃貨文化”的年輕顧客，他們喜歡吃的基本是速食，通常很新潮，值得在社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)曬照，口味或甜或咸。

店里也會(huì)售賣(mài)傳統(tǒng)豆腐、其他豆制品以及年糕，供應(yīng)唐人街的年長(zhǎng)居民?！拔疫€是希望給本社區(qū)提供服務(wù)?！蔽橄壬硎?。雖然伍先生的家族長(zhǎng)期做豆腐生意（父親經(jīng)營(yíng)過(guò)的莫特街“宏安”店曾是紐約城最早的豆腐和面條店），但對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)，開(kāi)設(shè)這家新店卻是一個(gè)有些意外的轉(zhuǎn)變。

長(zhǎng)久以來(lái)，他一直不愿在自家店里工作。伍先生是家里的老小。他說(shuō)：“任何小事，凡要處理的，都得說(shuō)做就做，一周七天都這樣?！彼?，幾年前當(dāng)父母和哥哥們問(wèn)他有無(wú)意愿接手生意時(shí)，他表示不感興趣。于是，“宏安”（英文名稱為Fong Inn Too）在2017年2月關(guān)張了。

然而，如今51歲、已有兩個(gè)小孩的伍先生不想再做自由攝影，而是希望有份安穩(wěn)的工作。他曾在俄羅斯做過(guò)10年的商業(yè)攝影師，并在那里遇見(jiàn)了妻子。不過(guò)與父親原先的店鋪不同，新店供應(yīng)的食品包括以紅豆、綠豆、粉圓或仙草凍作澆頭的豆花，這種混搭是他去臺(tái)灣時(shí)見(jiàn)識(shí)到的。

“誰(shuí)能想到呢？”伍先生雙眼一亮，“這些東西我一輩子都是分開(kāi)吃的，可是要混在一起吃？哦，天吶！”新店店名仍是宏安，現(xiàn)在的英文名稱則音譯為Fong On。“我打算把自己熟悉的一切元素都納入其中，”伍先生補(bǔ)充說(shuō)，“包括攝影、市場(chǎng)營(yíng)銷(xiāo)、美術(shù)設(shè)計(jì)?！蔽覇?wèn)他，多年抗拒之后又回歸豆腐生意，對(duì)此，父親若在世會(huì)作何評(píng)價(jià)。他的回答是：“你早該聽(tīng)我的。”

王徐嬰經(jīng)營(yíng)格蘭街276號(hào)的“福旺海產(chǎn)”。顧客乃至商販都稱呼她“媽咪”。她雖不再掌店，但仍管理收銀，而且喜歡和老顧客聊天。

“待在家里會(huì)很無(wú)聊?！彼f(shuō)。大約30年前，在丈夫去世之后，王女士創(chuàng)辦起目前的生意，現(xiàn)由兩個(gè)兒子——42歲的弗里曼·王和39歲的史蒂文·王——及其他家庭成員共同打理。但她每天仍來(lái)店里，“指點(diǎn)他們?cè)撟⒁馐裁矗龅絾?wèn)題要怎樣解決。”她補(bǔ)充道。

這家店店面寬敞，有整整一面墻都被玻璃水箱占據(jù)，水箱里養(yǎng)滿了尖吻鱸、櫻花蝦、峨螺、珍寶蟹、帝王蟹和龍蝦。中央擺著一盤(pán)盤(pán)的竹蟶和其他貝類(lèi)，旁邊是好幾種冰凍魚(yú)，靠里還有一桶蛙（放那里是怕嚇到非華裔顧客，史蒂文·王解釋說(shuō)）。

弗里曼·王從事過(guò)10年的金融工作。但在2004年，因工作緣故需遷往俄亥俄州時(shí)，他決定全職投入“福旺海產(chǎn)”。“那會(huì)兒我需要些時(shí)間弄明白自己想做什么?！彼f(shuō)。此后，生意和所在街區(qū)都經(jīng)歷過(guò)很大變化。鄰居曾是另幾家由華人經(jīng)營(yíng)的海鮮店，現(xiàn)在則代之以一家冰激凌店、一家越南菜館及其他幾家店鋪。

如今，批發(fā)占到營(yíng)業(yè)收入的90%，餐廳客戶包括布蘭卡、德?tīng)柌ㄋ雇?，以及附近的中餐館等。史蒂文和弗里曼兄弟倆已攜手塔爾德餐廳的一位前行政總廚，要開(kāi)一家名為“埃塞克斯珍珠”的海鮮市場(chǎng)餐廳。

菜品不會(huì)僅限中式，而是猶太、西班牙和亞洲菜肴的混搭，可謂對(duì)社區(qū)歷史的致敬。弗里曼·王表示：“唐人街該是什么模樣，我們二代和三代華裔在按自己的想法打造?！薄?/p>

（譯者為“《英語(yǔ)世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎(jiǎng)?wù)?單位：中國(guó)農(nóng)業(yè)大學(xué)）

1 dried goods干貨，干制食品，指不含水分的固態(tài)食品，如米、面、堅(jiān)果、茶葉等，同后文的dry goods。? 2包括美國(guó)紐約、賓夕法尼亞、新澤西、馬里蘭、西弗吉尼亞、特拉華和弗吉尼亞等七個(gè)州，首都華盛頓也位于該地區(qū)，因地處美國(guó)大西洋海岸中部而得名。? 3為South of Houston之略，是紐約的一處商業(yè)區(qū)。? 4為T(mén)riangle Below Canal Street之略，是紐約的一處豪華社區(qū)。

5 brisk（生意）紅火的。? 6 like a can of sardines擠得像沙丁魚(yú)罐頭似的，擠得滿滿的。? 7 reminisce回憶，追憶。? 8 cold cuts冷切肉，即切片冷食的熏肉、腌肉、火腿或香腸等。

9 tap into開(kāi)發(fā)（資源、市場(chǎng)等）。? 10 riff變化形式。? 11 Instagram-able值得在社交平臺(tái)分享的。Instagram是一款移動(dòng)社交應(yīng)用軟件，允許用戶拍攝照片和視頻，并分享到社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)。

12 freelance自由職業(yè)的。? 13 soy custard豆花，豆腐腦。? 14 boba粉圓，用于珍珠奶茶，由木薯粉制成。? 15 grass jelly仙草凍，由仙草粉制成，是福建著名小吃。? 16 transliterate音譯。

17 register收銀機(jī)，亦作cash register。

18 homage致敬，表示敬意的做法。