"It’s not hard to find food from various Chinese communities in New York City, but it is hard to find restaurants that specialize in Hakka food. Since Hakka Cuisine opened in Chinatown in 2022, there’s at least one place to get homestyle dishes, heavy on preserved meats and vegetables. The restaurant itself is a bit impersonal, like a cross between a high-end spa and a hotel lobby with expensive light fixtures and marble accents, but the large tables and a long family-style menu make it an ideal place for big groups. Build your order around specialty dishes like Hakka braised pork belly with preserved vegetables and stuffed tofu. And get the sweet and sour pork on ice—hot, lacquered balls of deep-fried pork with maraschino cherries and canned pineapple served on a bed of ice to lock in the crispy texture. There’s no other dish quite like it in Chinatown." - Carina Finn
