Dec. 23, 2020 1:14 pm ET
For most of her life, Laurie Gwen Shapiro has visited a restaurant in Manhattanâs Chinatown on Christmas Day, joining thousands of fellow local Jews in what has become a dining ritual on the holiday.
And while there are plenty of Chinese establishments throughout the city that also serve as gathering places for New Yorkâs Jewish community on Dec. 25, the ones in Chinatown hold a special place for Ms. Shapiro and others, she says. That is because of the neighborhoodâs rich history and distinctive character, symbolized by its rows of century-old tenement buildings, and the simple fact it has always been the place to go on the winter holiday.