An enclave in Soho
Immigrant communities have put their stamp on a number of different districts in London. These are usually poor areas outside the city centre. South Lambeth Road is Little Portugal, Edgware Road has a marked Arab character and, way out west, Southall has a large Punjabi population. Thanks to its location in the West End, Chinatown is different. A small area around Gerrard Street and Lisle Street is home to 80 Chinese restaurants. Red-painted Chinese arches with green-glazed roof tiles greet crowds of visitors, two popeyed stone lions glower up Macclesfield Street, crispy brown Peking duck hangs in the windows, and streets are named in Chinese characters. Chinatown is a colourful, bustling tourist attraction – but is it authentic?
In the 18th century, sailors from the Far East lived in dockland areas such as Limehouse, which was known for its Chinese laundries 100 years ago. Bombing in the Second World War scattered this community, but a regrouping took place after the war thanks to the return of British soldiers. Some of them had acquired a taste for Asian food. The first Chinese restaurants opened in seedy Soho, where rents were low. As Cantonese immigrants arrived from Hong Kong, the area slowly acquired its character, which is more than a row of eateries for visitors. Chinese really do live here, working in supermarkets, bakeries, herbalists and medicinal practices as well as restaurants. They have their own lawyers, travel agents and accountants. In Charing Cross Road, the Westminster Chinese Library was established, in Leicester Court the Chinese Community Centre.
Info
Address Between Shaftesbury Avenue and Leicester Square, W1D 5PJ | Public Transport Leicester Square (Northern, Piccadilly Line) | Tip Vietnamese restaurants can be found on Kingsland Road in Shoreditch (bus no. 149 or 242 from Liverpool Street Station).
Paradoxically, apart from this single high concentration around Gerrard Street, London’s estimated 100,000 residents of Chinese origin are thinly spread across the city. The reason may be that many of them still run restaurants, which prosper in the suburbs by keeping a distance from their rivals.
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