After More Than 50 Years, a Chinatown Pork Bun Institution Is Moving to a Bigger Space
In about a month, a Chinese bakery known for its char siu bao will land a new location: After over 50 years at its current address, Chinatown icon Mei Lai Wah bakery is moving to a bigger spot at 41 Mott Street, at Bayard Street, in what had been the New Golden Fung Wong Bakery that closed in July, having been there since 1961.
“We are EXPANDING!! FINALLY!!,” the owners declared on Instagram. “No more lining up outside on the smallest street in Chinatown!” They told Eater they’re aiming for a reopening in November or December. The bakery remains open during the transition.
The Chens are not certain if they’re going to keep their original location at 62 Bayard since, they told Eater over DM, “the landlord is trying to push us out to sell the lease” at double or triple the price; if it turns out they can keep it, they plan on holding onto the space.
It’s one of several moves the Mei Lai Wah family has made recently.
Back in 2023, it took over Wonton Noodle Garden, rebranding it Mei Lai Wah Wonton Noodle Bar, at 23 Pell Street, near Bayard; it has maintained a menu of pork wontons and pan-fried noodles, most priced around $10.
Before that, Ivy and Ben Chen, the children of Mei Lai Wah’s founders, opened Munchiez in 2022, a small restaurant in Greenwich Village, channeling Hong Kong convenience stores with items like barbecue pork buns, cheung fun, tea eggs, and grilled skewers til 3 a.m. They closed it in August, calling it a one-year pop-up on Instagram.
Before that, Mei Lai Wah saw various shutters of sorts, in 2008 and again in October 2016 (both temporarily).
