Buying things in cash from Chinatown grocers is quite a bit cheaper than buying from the online Asian grocer I use.
Something that costs $9.99 online is $8.50. I can also try different new restaurants as they open. Fave recent new Chinatown spot is Rice Roll Express which has good freshly made cheung fan. Saw a new takeout dimsum spot today that looks better than the one TikTok tells people to go to.
My Chinatown strategy is, if I see a large number of old Chinese aunties in line, I stand in it and get what they get.
It’s never let me down
I also prefer Chinatown to the west side Chinese grocers. It’s just more density of cool things to see.