Joe's Shanghai, Chinatown, NYC

Well, we're back after a little hiatus this weekend, and we'll be covering some great cheap food in the heart of New York City's sprawling Chinatown.

Ahhh...Chinatown, where else in overpriced New York City can you get CHEAP and incredibly good, authentic food for just a few dollars. If you're ever hungry and a bit short on money, take a ride down to Chinatown, and be prepared for great eats.

I realize that alot of people think of Chinese food as what you can get from Chinese takeouts all across the country. General Tso does not live in real authentic Chinese kitchens. (General Tso's Chicken is actually a dish invented in America and is not known anywhere in China.) So what to do if you want to eat or try REAL chinese food, but simply don't know what to order? Well that's what we're here for.

Chinese food is diverse. Don't forget that China is HUGE, with over 2 millenia of history. Thanks to this, many different subgenres of Chinese cuisine have evolved, ranging from noodles, to rice dishes, to dumplings, and more. With distinct cuisines coming from several different provinces, it can be hard to navigate all these dishes.

We're gonna start with a restaurant that has become an institution in New York City's Chinatown. It's a great little place called Joe's Shanghai.

Joe's Shanghai is a staple in Chinese food in New York City, serving up some great dishes that you'll be hard to find anywhere else. It cuisine is as you guessed, primarily from Shanghai, a coastal city on the eastern border of China. Now the bustling financial hub of China, Shanghai still boasts some food that can't be missed. We thank Joe of the eponymous restaurant for bringing it to us over on this side of the world so that we can get nice and fat on it. =)

The first thing we'll be talking about is what Joe's Shanghai trademark dish is. Whenever you think of Joe's Shanghai, you think of this dish, and vice versa. Learn how to order it, and learn how to eat it, on your next visit to New York City.

UP NEXT: Soup Dumplings