SoHo, NoLIta, Little Italy, and Chinatown

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SoHo | NoLIta | Little Italy | Chinatown

Updated by Kelsy Chauvin

SoHo, NoLIta, Little Italy, and Chinatown are all jam-packed with humanity, all the more perfect for people-watching as you shop, nibble, and wander. Parts of SoHo and NoLIta are destinations for super-trendy shopping as well as popular chains and department stores: the boutiques are often overpriced but undeniably glamorous (keep a lookout for sales). Little Italy and Chinatown are more about local shopping and Instagram-worthy food shops and stalls.

Making the Most of Your Time

If you’re coming to SoHo and NoLIta to shop, there’s no need to rush out the door—most shops don’t open until 10 or 11 am, and many stay open until the early evening. If art is your thing, avoid Sunday since most galleries are closed. SoHo, with national chains lining its section of Broadway, is almost always a madhouse on weekend afternoons (unless it’s raining), but weekdays are somewhat less frenetic. NoLIta, with less traffic, fewer chains, and more boutiques, is calmer and less crowded.

Little Italy is a small area nowadays, having lost ground to a growing Chinatown. Note that foodwise, most of the checkered-tablecloth spots in Little Italy itself are touristy, with mediocre food.

If you’re visiting New York in mid-September, you’ll time it right for the Feast of San Gennaro—a huge street fair in honor of the patron saint of Naples—along with thousands of others, who enjoy exploring the many food and souvenir booths and playing games of chance. Given that few Italian Americans live in the area anymore, it’s not exactly like visiting old Napoli, but it is a fun way to take in the sights while sampling cannoli or sausage and peppers.

Chinatown bustles with local shoppers pretty much any time of day, but there are more tourists on the weekends, when it gets so busy you may have to duck into a shop or restaurant just for a break from all the sidewalk jostling.

Top Experiences

Browsing boutiques and people-watching in SoHo and NoLIta

Ogling the out-of-the-ordinary produce and seafood in Chinatown

Gallery-hopping in SoHo

Eating dim sum in Chinatown

Sipping a cocktail in NoLIta

Getting Here and Around

SoHo (So uth of Ho uston) is bounded by Houston Street, Canal Street, 6th Avenue, and Lafayette Street. To the east, NoLIta (No rth of L ittle Ita ly) is contained by Houston, the Bowery, Kenmare, and Lafayette. Plenty of subways service the area: take the 6, C, or E to Spring Street; the N or R to Prince Street; or the B, D, F, or M to Broadway–Lafayette Street. For Chinatown, farther south, take the 6, J, N, Q, R, or Z to Canal Street, or the B or D to Grand Street.

Coffee and Quick Bites

Aroma Espresso Bar.
With large corner windows perfect for observing the well-dressed tide of humanity crossing West Houston, this busy branch of the international coffee chain serves sandwiches, soups, and pastries. | 145 Greene St., at W. Houston St. , SoHo | 212/533–1094 | www.aroma.us | Station: B, D, F, M to Broadway/Lafayette St.; N, R to Prince St.

Saigon Vietnamese Sandwich Deli.
Predating the banh mi craze by perhaps a decade, this storefront keeps hungry gallery-hoppers, shoppers, and locals happy with its complicated and delicious sandwiches, all served on baguettes. | 369 Broome St., between Mott and Elizabeth Sts. , SoHo | 212/219–8341 | www.vietnamese-sandwich.com | No credit cards | Station: J, Z to Bowery; 6 to Spring St.; B, D to Grand St.

SoHo

Once the epicenter of the New York art scene, SoHo today is now more synonymous with shopping. A bit of bohemia still exists on the cobblestone side streets, where there are charming restaurants with sidewalk seating and some of the art galleries that haven’t scattered elsewhere. The main thoroughfares tend to have sidewalks lined with tables of handmade jewelry, hats, purses, and art. If you take the time to look, there’s a local vibe here beneath the glitzy boutiques—like elderly residents speaking Italian on the corners around Sullivan Street and Thompson Street, who reveal the neighborhood’s Italian past.

 

SoHo and NoLIta Architecture

There are plenty of beautiful people in SoHo and NoLIta, but tilt your eyes up, beyond the turn-of-the-20th-century cast-iron “bishop’s crook” lampposts, and discover some of New York’s most impressive architecture. Look down, and see Belgian-brick cobblestones lining some of the streets. Along Broadway and the neighboring streets of SoHo, you see “vault lights” in the sidewalk: starting in the 1850s, these glass lenses were set into sidewalks so daylight could reach basements.

The King of Greene Street, at 72–76 Greene, between Grand and Canal, is a five-story, Renaissance-style 1873 building with a magnificent projecting porch of Corinthian columns and pilasters. These days it’s unmistakably painted in high-gloss ivory. Over at 28–30 Greene Street is the Queen of Greene Street, a graceful 1873 cast-iron beauty that exemplifies the Second Empire style with its dormers, columns, window arches, projecting central bays, and roof.

The Haughwout Building, at 488–492 Broadway, north of Broome, is best known for what’s no longer inside—the world’s first commercial passenger elevator, invented by Elisha Graves Otis. The building’s exterior is worth a look, though: nicknamed the “Parthenon of Cast Iron,” the five-story, Venetian palazzo–style structure was built in 1857 to house department-store merchant E. V. Haughwout’s china, silver, and glassware store. Each window is framed by Corinthian columns and rounded arches.

Built in 1904, the Little Singer Building, at 561 Broadway, is a masterpiece of cast-iron styling, its delicate facade covered with curlicues of wrought iron. The L-shape building’s second facade is around the corner on Prince Street.

Charlton Street, not technically in SoHo but across 6th Avenue in the West Village, is Manhattan’s longest stretch of Federal-style redbrick row houses dating from the 1820s and ‘30s. The high stoops, paneled front doors, leaded-glass windows, and narrow dormer windows are all intact. King and Vandam Streets also have historic houses. Much of this area was the site of a mansion called Richmond Hill, and in the late 18th century the surrounding area was a beautiful wild meadow from where you could see the nearby “hamlet” of Greenwich Village.

Over in Little Italy/NoLIta, the magnificent old Police Headquarters building at 240 Centre Street, between Broome and Grand, might be familiar from Martin Scorsese’s Gangs of New York . The 1909 Edwardian baroque–style structure with its striking copper dome was the headquarters of the New York City Police Department until 1973. Designed to “impress both the officer and the prisoner with the majesty of the law,” it was converted into luxury condos in 1988 and is known today as the Police Building Apartments.

The 1885 Romanesque Revival Puck Building, at 295 Lafayette Street, on the southeast corner of Houston, is a former magazine headquarters and now a busy event space and home to REI’s New York flagship store. Look for the statue of Puck just over the door: his gilding contrasts with the deep-red brick.

 

Donald Judd House.
A five-story cast-iron building from 1870, 101 Spring Street was the New York home and studio of artist Donald Judd. Although the neighborhood used to be home to many single-use cast-iron buildings, this is the only one that remains—and is a designated historic building. Judd bought it in 1968, and today, guided 90-minute tours explore Judd’s living and working spaces and include art installations as they were arranged by Judd prior to his death in 1994 (note: climbing stairs is required). | 101 Spring St. , SoHo | 212/219–2747 | www.juddfoundation.org | $25 | Tues.–Sat., by guided tour only | Station: N, R to Prince St.; 6 to Spring St.

Drawing Center.
At this nonprofit organization the focus is on drawings—contemporary and historical. Works shown in the three galleries often push the envelope on what’s considered drawing; many projects are commissioned by the center. | 35 Wooster St., between Broome and Grand Sts. , SoHo | 212/219–2166 | www.drawingcenter.org | $5 | Wed. and Fri.–Sun. noon–6, Thurs. noon–8 | Station: 1 to Canal St.; A, C, E to Canal St.; 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

Leslie + Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art.
Founded in 1987, this nonprofit museum has roots in the collection of its founders, Charles Leslie and Fritz Lohman, two lifelong champions of LGBTQ artists. The well-curated exhibits are usually photographic (and sometimes sexually charged), though the museum’s impressive archive leads to new exhibitions in various media as often as eight times a year. The museum underwent a major renovation in 2016, adding a gift shop and further expanding its exhibition and programming spaces. | 26 Wooster St., between Grand and Canal Sts. , SoHo | 212/431–2609 | www.leslielohman.org | Free | Tues., Wed., and Fri.–Sun. noon–6, Thurs. noon–8 | Station: 1 to Canal St.; A, C, E to Canal St.; 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

New York City Fire Museum.
In the former headquarters of Engine 30, a handsome Beaux Arts building dating from 1904, retired firefighters volunteer their time in the morning and early afternoon to answer visitors’ questions. The collection of firefighting tools from the 18th century to the present includes hand-pulled and horse-drawn engines, speaking trumpets, pumps, and uniforms. A memorial exhibit with photos, paintings, children’s artwork, and found objects relating to the September 11, 2001, attacks is also on view—a poignant reminder and tribute to the 343 firefighters who died on 9/11. | 278 Spring St., between Hudson and Varick Sts. , SoHo | 212/691–1303 | www.nycfiremuseum.org | $8 | Daily 10–5 | Station: C, E to Spring St.; 1 to Houston St.

New York Earth Room.
Noted “earthworks” artist Walter De Maria’s 1977 avant-garde installation consists of 140 tons of gently sculpted soil (22 inches deep). It fills 3,600 square feet of a second-floor gallery maintained by the Dia Art Foundation since 1980. As the New York Times put it in 1999, “a loamy smell definitely permeates the space.” You can’t touch or walk on the dirt, nor can you take its photo. If you like this installation, check out De Maria’s equally odd and impressive work, The Broken Kilometer, an 18.75-ton installation that consists of five columns of a total of 1,000 meter-long brass rods, which cover the wood floors of an open loft space. It’s a few blocks away at 393 West Broadway, and has the same hours as the Earth Room. | 141 Wooster St., 2nd fl., between W. Houston and Prince Sts. , SoHo | 212/989–5566 | www.diaart.org/sites/main/earthroom | Free | Mid-Sept.–mid-June, Wed.–Sun. noon–3 and 3:30–6 | Station: N, R to Prince St.; B, D, F, M to Broadway–Lafayette St.

Ronald Feldman Fine Arts.
Founded in 1971 and in SoHo since the 1980s, this gallery represents more than 30 international contemporary artists; exhibits include contemporary painting, sculpture, installations, drawings, and prints. The space also hosts performances and has a large selection of Andy Warhol prints, paintings, and drawings. | 31 Mercer St., between Grand and Canal Sts. , SoHo | 212/226–3232 | www.feldmangallery.com | Free | Winter, Tues.–Sat. 10–6; summer, Mon.–Thurs. 10–6, Fri. 10–3 | Station: 1 to Canal St.; A, C, E to Canal St.; 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

NoLIta

Many locals would say that the spirit of old SoHo is somewhat alive in NoLIta, a charming neighborhood with an artistic spirit, independently run boutiques and restaurants, and a local vibe. The streets here are less frantic and crowded than either SoHo or Chinatown, and each block could provide hours of roaming and ducking into small shops, nursing a cappuccino at a sidewalk café, or lingering over a meal surrounded by stylish New Yorkers. This is downtown, so the prices aren’t cheap, but the quality is high and the experience unique.

St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral.
If you’ve seen The Godfather, you’ve had a peek inside New York’s first Roman Catholic cathedral—the interior shots of the infamous baptism scene were filmed here. Dedicated in 1815, this church lost its designation as the seat of New York’s bishop when the current St. Patrick’s opened uptown, in 1879. The unadorned exterior of the cathedral gives no hint of the splendors within, which include an 1868 Henry Erben pipe organ. The interior dates from the 1860s, after a large fire gutted most of the original structure. The enormous marble altar surrounded by hand-carved niches (reredos ) houses an extraordinary collection of sacred statuary and other Gothic exuberance. Sunday Mass in English is at 9:15 and 12:45. | 263 Mulberry St., corner of Mott and Prince Sts. , NoLIta | 212/226–8075 | www.oldcathedral.org | Daily 8–5 (hrs vary) | Station: N, R to Prince St.; 6 to Bleecker St.

Little Italy

Just east of Broadway, the tangle of pedestrian-friendly blocks surrounding Mulberry Street between NoLIta and bustling Canal Street are still a cheerful salute to all things Italian, although over the decades Little Italy has been whittled down by the sprawl of nearby Chinatown. There are red, green, and white street decorations on permanent display, and specialty grocers and cannelloni makers still dish up delights, though it’s all a bit touristy these days—if it’s a great Italian meal you want, you might be wise to look elsewhere. Still, Little Italy is fun to walk around, and several of the classic food stores on Grand Street are worth a stop if you’re after an edible souvenir, like classic cannoli and espresso. For a bigger and more bustling Little Italy, head up to Arthur Avenue in the Bronx to find several good, affordable restaurants and a cornucopia of authentic Italian goods made for New Yorkers and tourists alike.

Every September, Little Italy’s Mulberry Street is home to the giant Feast of San Gennaro, a busy 11-day festival that sizzles with old–New York flavors—sausages and onions included. (Don’t miss John Fasullo’s braciole, an iconic sandwich filled with fillet of pork roasted over a coal pit and topped with peppers and onions).

Most Precious Blood Church.
The National Shrine of San Gennaro, a replica of the grotto at Lourdes, is the high point of Most Precious Blood Church’s richly painted interior. The church becomes a focal point during the annual Feast of San Gennaro. Sunday Mass is in English at 9 and noon. | 113 Baxter St., between Canal and Hester Sts. , Little Italy | 212/226–6427 | Station: 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

Chinatown

Chinatown is a living, breathing, anything-but-quiet ethnic enclave with vibrant streets full of food shops selling exotic produce and seafood, Chinese restaurants and bakeries, Buddhist temples, herbalists, discount massage parlors, and barbershops. A quarter of the city’s Chinese residents live here, in a neighborhood that started as a seven-block area, but now covers some 40-plus blocks above and below Canal Street (encroaching on what was once a thriving Little Italy). Head to Mott Street, south of Canal—Chinatown’s main thoroughfare—where the first Chinese immigrants (mostly men) settled in tenements in the late 1880s. Walk carefully, as the sidewalks can be slick from the ice underneath the eels, blue crabs, snapper, and shrimp that seem to look back at you as you pass by. You can create a movable feast here with delicious soup dumplings, Peking duck, yellow custard cake, and bubble tea—each at a different place in the neighborhood. A city tourist-information kiosk on a traffic island where Canal, Baxter, and Walker Streets meet can help you with tours, and also has a map that’s very useful for unraveling the area’s tangled and angled streets.

Columbus Park.
People-watching is the thing to do in this park. If you swing by in the morning, you’ll see men and women practicing tai chi; the afternoons bring intense games of mah-jongg. In the mid-19th century the park was known as Five Points—the point where Mulberry Street, Anthony (now Worth) Street, Cross (now Park) Street, Orange (now Baxter) Street, and Little Water Street (no longer in existence) intersected—and was notoriously ruled by dangerous Irish gangs. In the 1880s a neighborhood-improvement campaign brought about the park’s creation. More recently, the park was spruced up by a major capital renovation. | Chinatown | www.nycgovparks.org/parks/M015 | Station: 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

Kimlau Square.
Ten streets converge at this labyrinthine intersection crisscrossed at odd angles by pedestrian walkways. Standing on an island in this busy area is the Kimlau Arch, named for Ralph Kimlau, a bomber pilot who died in World War II; the arch is dedicated to all Chinese Americans who “lost their Lives in Defense of Freedom and Democracy.” A statue on the square’s eastern edge pays tribute to a Qing Dynasty official named Lin Zxeu, the Fujianese minister who sparked the Opium War by banning the drug. | Chatham Sq., Bowery and E. Broadway , Chinatown | www.nycgovparks.org/parks/kimlausquare | Station: 4, 5, 6 to Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall; J, Z to Chambers St.

Mahayana Buddhist Temple.
This bright and beautiful Buddhist temple is at a very busy corner, at the foot of the Manhattan Bridge Arch on the Bowery, where gilded lions guard its entrance. Inside you’ll find a 16-foot-tall Buddha seated on a lotus flower (allegedly the largest Buddha in the city), incense-burning urns, hand-painted prints, and a gift shop on the second floor. | 133 Canal St., at the Bowery , Chinatown | 212/925–8787 | en.mahayana.us | Donations accepted | Daily 8:30–6 | Station: B, D to Grand St .

The Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA).
Founded in 1980, this museum is dedicated to preserving and presenting the history of the Chinese people and their descendants in the United States. Its current building, which opened in 2009 near the boundary between Chinatown and Little Italy (technically, many would say it’s in Little Italy), was designed by Maya Lin, architect of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. MOCA’s core exhibit on Chinese American history, “With a Single Step: Stories in the Making of America,” includes artworks, personal and domestic artifacts, historical documentation, and films. Chinese laundry tools, a traditional general store, and antique business signs are some of the unique objects on display. Rotating exhibits, some of which examine the sometimes turbulent relations between Asian Americans and other citizens, are on display in the second gallery. MOCA sponsors workshops, walking tours, lectures, and family events. | 215 Centre St., between Grand and Howard Sts. , Chinatown | 212/619–4785 | www.mocanyc.org | $10 | Tues., Wed., and Fri.–Sun. 11–6, Thurs. 11–9 | Station: 6, J, N, Q, R, Z to Canal St.

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