February 17, 2026
Thousands of people jammed into Chinatown and the surrounding streets today to celebrate Lunar New Year: the Year of the Fire Horse. The celebrants went from Sara D. Roosevelt Park on Chrystie Street on foot into the heart of Chinatown on Canal Street. Gigantic lion costumes with one or two humans inside bobbed and weaved their way into restaurants and shops to the delight of onlookers who waited for them on the sidewalk outside.
There were countless party tubes popping off all day long, each one launching another handful of colorful confetti skyward. Some daring revelers lit jumbo sparklers, but the days when Lunar New Year celebrations in this part of town would rock with real fireworks are a distant memory.
Nevertheless, the shops and restaurants were jam packed today as people stocked up on Asian groceries and ate loads of the finest Chinese food on this island. There was a line fifteen people deep waiting to check out at New Cam Man grocery store on Canal Street, a line almost out the door at Tasty Dumpling on Mulberry, and every table at Wo Hop on Mott Street was taken. Even Columbus Park was near capacity, with strangers sharing benches. On this unseasonably warm and sunny day the temperatures rose into the mid 40s. It was a most auspicious start of the New Year, especially after the sub freezing weather we endured here last week.
