Ting Wan, owner of EMei Restaurant located on Arch Street in Philadelphia’s Chinatown, remembers when her restaurant was fully booked months in advance for the Chinese New Year on January 25, 2020.
But then came the last-minute cancellations after news began to spread about COVID-19.
“The business went down every week since then,” Wan wrote in response to written questions from The Hawk. “We decided to close the dine-in service before the government prohibited all dine-in service.”
Chinatown is located in Center City and stretches from Arch Street to Vine Street and from 11th Street to 8th Street. In the mid-19th century, Cantonese immigrants settled in and then later developed what is now Chinatown. Today, the neighborhood is filled with restaurants and small businesses that represent Cantonese, Hong Kong, Fujianese, Northern Sichuan, Taiwanese, Korean, Thai, Malaysian, Burmese and Vietnamese cultures.
Chinatown business owners have not only weathered the pandemic but also racist political rhetoric and xenophobic and ignorant attitudes about the origin of the virus that have decreased foot traffic in the area.
Devon Stahl, communications and development associate at Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation (PCDC), wrote in response to written questions from The Hawk that PCDC has noticed the impact of this racist sentiment on Chinatown’s over 350 businesses from as early as January 2020.
PCDC, a grassroots, nonprofit, community based organization is actively trying to preserve, protect and support Chinatown’s businesses during this time.
“Many of Chinatown’s businesses are owned by immigrants with limited English proficiency and digital literacy, which makes it difficult for small business owners to access city resources and COVID-19 small business relief,” Stahl said.
One of PCDC’s initiatives is its Main Street Program, which aims to enhance Chinatown’s image as a commercial and tourist attraction, improve the quality of life for all visitors and residents and promote economic development and diversity. The organization ramped up that program in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
“PCDC’s Main Street Program quickly expanded its bilingual services to provide Chinatown’s small businesses with technical assistance, online informational webinars and free promotion/marketing support,” Stahl said.
PCDC also launched a #AiLoveChinatown campaign on its social media platforms to support small business COVID-19 recovery. In addition, the group partnered with Franklin Square for a Chinatown Scavenger Hunt from February to March. The Chinatown Scavenger Hunt brought over 400 people to Chinatown to search for clues, win prizes and learn more about Historic Chinatown, according to Stahl.
Wan said she appreciates the efforts PCDC has invested to protect and improve the community. She added EMei has not experienced anti-Asian American and Pacific Islander hate personally.
“PCDC has done a lot for the residents and businesses in Chinatown during the pandemic,” Wan said. “They set up a Zoom workshop to educate residents on COVID-19, gave out free masks and hand sanitizers. They also helped all the front- line restaurant staff in Chinatown to get a vaccine shot.”
David Zhao is managing partner of Chubby Cattle International, which serves hotpot meals inspired by Mongolian, Tibetan and Chinese philosophies of medicine and healing. The company has locations in Las Vegas, Denver, Dallas and on 10th Street in Philadelphia’s Chinatown.
Zhao said the biggest challenge the restaurants have faced is the pandemic, but COVID-19 relief grants from city and federal governments have been a great support.
“Those have been crucial to the survival of businesses and restaurants across the board, especially with payroll intensive businesses like restaurants,” Zhao said.
For Wan, even though EMei’s dine-in sales are only 25% of what the restaurant made prior to the pandemic, they have been able to hang onto their customer base. But they have lost employees due to safety concerns regarding COVID-19, she said.
“We ended up closing every Tuesday,” Wan said. “We don’t have enough staff to rotate the shift.”
Nationwide, Asian Americans lead in long-term unemployment, likely in part be- cause of their high employment rates in industries heavily impacted by pandemic closures, like the food industry. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 48% of the Asian community’s estimated 615,000 unemployed were without work for six months-plus through the first quarter of this year. This is greater than that of Black (43%), Hispanic (39%) and white (39%) populations.
According to one study, more than 233,000 Asian small businesses closed from January to March 2020, many closing before shutdowns went into effect due to increasing anti-Asian sentiment.
Zhao emphasized the importance of supporting Chinatown’s small businesses during this tough time.
“These are vital components of our community, and without them, Philadelphia or any city wouldn’t be what they are without all the unique shops that are around,” Zhao said.
To help protect and preserve China- town’s small businesses, you can donate to PCDC’s Main Street Program. Donate through PCDC’s website or through Venmo (@CraneCenter) and specify in the comment section, “PCDC Main Street Program.”
