Take The 7 Subway Line To China

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Today's New York Times features a phenomenal dining tour of Flushing's Chinatown. The article paints the Queens neighborhood as a glutton's paradise -- chock-a-block with dumpling stalls, bubble tea joints, dim sum palaces and fresh noodle houses aplenty.

I've been there and tend to agree.

More than a "taste" of Beijing in New York, it's truly a culinary grab bag of Chinese flavors, textures and aromas from across the whole of the People's Republic, Sichuan to Fujian to Canton.

I realize that this culinary exploration of Flushing is front and center in the Times due to the upcoming Beijing Olympics, but I can't help but feel like it's simply all about me -- me and my needs. Not that I've been planning a trip to Flushing. (Although now the idea sounds quite appealing!) Instead, I've decided to forgo a MetroCard for my passport and fly halfway around the world to check out the real thing -- and this article is definitely making me hungry for the authentic eats I'm sure to uncover.

It's true. A VittlesVamp jaunt to Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing is in the works for October, well after the Olympics mayhem.

I can only hope that the they won't have run out of great Chinese food before I get there. And, if Olympic tourists eat the entire nation out of house and hutong, at least I'll be able to take comfort in the knowledge that I can always get my fill of Crab with Sticky Rice and Wontons in Hot Sauce in Flushing when I get back.