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Pastries at the Mon Hei Bakery.
In an alley off South King Street stands Liem's pet shop.
At Seattle Martial Art Equipment: swords and more.
Hing Hay Park, a popular neighborhood gathering place.
Uwajimaya: a Northwest tradition.
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By Julie Jindal
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| Detail of the picnic shelter roof in Hing Hay Park. |
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Built on a reclaimed mud flat, the Chinatown-International District
holds memories for many of Seattle's Asian Americans, but it's a fascinating neighborhood for everyone to explore.
Restaurants, shops and parks mix with history for an international, and yet thoroughly American, flavor.
Parking is extremely tight, especially when there's a Mariners or Seahawks game. Try the inexpensive lot under
the freeway overpass between S. Jackson and S. King streets, or the free two-hour spaces on Main Street's steep
hill.
Begin your walk at the Wing
Luke Asian Museum (1, 407 Seventh Avenue S.), where you'll learn the history of the community.
As you leave the museum, turn right and check the playbill at the Northwest Asian American Theatre
(2, 409 Seventh Avenue
S.). Gan-Shan grocery across the street is a neighbor of the Chew Lun Benevolent Association (3, 416 Seventh Avenue S.).
Organized to help immigrants find work and settle in the United States, benevolent associations still pepper the
district. Linyen Restaurant
and Lounge (4, 424 Seventh Avenue S.) occupies the corner. Stay on the west side of
Seventh Avenue S. to inspect the Tai Si Hee Seafood Restaurant's neon sign (the restaurant has been closed for
more than 10 years). The offices of Chinatown
Discovery Tours sit on the bottom floor.
For more history, cross S. King Street and continue along Seventh Avenue S. Pause to examine the Chinese Community
Bulletin Board (5,
511 Seventh Avenue S.), installed in the 1960s to aid non-English speaking Chinese immigrants. "Elect Gary
Locke" posters papered it during the 1996 gubernatorial campaign. The China Gate restaurant
(6,
516 Seventh Avenue S.) opened as a Chinese opera house in 1924. In 1929, the grandiose structure became the Chinese
Garden, featuring African-American jazz musicians, and was one of the city's most popular night spots. At 522 Seventh
Avenue S. (7),
generations of immigrants' children have trooped through the Chong Wa Benevolent Association's pillared entrance
to learn Cantonese and to hang onto their cultural heritage.
Backtracking to Seventh Avenue S. and S. King Street, step into the Kong Sun Co. (8, 676 S. King
Street) for some Chinese knick-knacks and a Bruce Lee poster. Explore the remarkable Sun May shop next
door (9,
672 S. King Street); the 1912 brass cash register is almost as old as the store. The Korea Ginseng Center
(10,
670 S. King Street), named after the most prized ginseng in the world, directs you toward a Chinese approach to
medicine.
Next is the doorway to the Milwaukee Hotel, built by Chinese consul Goon Dip in 1911. His family lived on the top
floor, and immigrant workers rented the rooms below. Due to the 1882 Exclusion Act that blocked Chinese laborers
from bringing wives to America, many of these men lived alone in hotels the rest of their lives.
Across the street stands Mon Hei Bakery (11, 669 S. King Street). Be sure to ask what's inside that scrumptious-looking
pastry: sweet bean paste can be a shock if you're not expecting it. Continue down the street and duck into Maynard
Alley. There, you can enter the world of Liem's
Aquarium and Bird Shop (12, 511-A Maynard Alley), which houses approximately 10,000 exotic fish in
three very cramped rooms. Back on the north side of S. King Street, past several restaurants and Maynard Alley,
drop into Seattle Martial
Art Equipment (13, 658 S. King Street). Besides the uniforms, swords and sparring gear,
check out the herbal remedies such as Dit Ja Jow, a bruise healer.
Next stop is Kau Kau Barbeque (14, 656 S. King Street), which has tempted passers-by for more than 22 years.
If the glistening ducks hanging in the window fail to lure you, you're either one tough sell or a vegetarian. Opposite
the Kau Kau, Tai Tung (15, 659 S. King Street) prevails as the longest-running Chinese restaurant
in the International District.
Hing Hay Park (16, 650 S. King Street) takes up much of the next block. After examining
the World War II memorial there, check out the 14-foot bronze sculpture by George Tsutakawa titled "Heaven,
Man, Earth," across Maynard Avenue S. On the other side of S. King Street stands the Alps Hotel, built in
the Renaissance Revival style in 1915.
Cross Sixth Avenue S. to Uwajimaya (17, 519 Sixth Avenue S.), the largest Asian grocery and gift store in the
NorthweStreet Uwajimaya also houses Kinokuniya, the largest Japanese bookstore in the area, plus a cafe serving
quick Asian meals. Or you can finish your walk at Saigon Gourmet (18, 502 S. King Street), a Vietnamese favorite.
Photos by Tom Braman
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