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Chinatown Summer Festival begins June 16
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Chinatown Sizzles This Summer
 
June 16, 2003
In a place known for its bargains, the deals just got better. For the next two weeks, each purchase you make at more than 75 Chinatown restaurants, shops, bakeries, and tea parlors can help you win points redeemable for valuable prizes. The promotion, called Chinatown Rewards, is just one of many events designed to draw crowds to one of Lower Manhattan's most distinctive neighborhoods this summer.
The reward program, which began yesterday and will continue through June 28, helps kick off the Chinatown Summer Festival, a project organized by Asian Women in Business (AWIB) and the Consolidated Chinese Benevolent Association (CCBA) to help attract tri-state residents to Chinatown to shop and dine. The festival will also include opportunities to sample some of Chinatown's best cuisine at great prices, an all-day Asian arts and crafts fair, cultural music and dance performances, and the first-ever Chinatown Dumpling Eating Contest.
"The Chinatown Summer Festival is designed to bring business back to Chinatown by rewarding customers with gifts and a day of outdoor fun," said Bonnie Wong, AWIB president. "We have designed a program which highlights the myriad offerings of this vibrant community and are presenting an array of tantalizing foods, entertainment, and cultural offerings that make a trip to Chinatown a discovery of hidden treasures," she said.
The Chinatown Rewards program is the core of the festival, awarding points with every purchase of $10 or more at participating businesses redeemable for a variety of prizes, including a 10-course Chinese banquet dinner for ten, free museum passes, traditional Chinese vases, jewelry, and other gifts. Prizes can be redeemed between 1 and 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 21, at Columbus Park (at the intersection of Mulberry and Bayard) or on Saturday, June 28, at the CCBA offices (62 Mott Street, 2nd Floor).
In addition to great prizes, diners in Chinatown over the next two weeks will find prix-fixe menus at many restaurants, featuring three-course lunches for $8.88 and multi-course dinners for $18.88.
But fill up too fast and you may ruin your chances of donning the "dumpling champion" crown. The first-ever Chinatown Dumpling Eating contest will take place on Saturday, June 28 (postponed from June 21 due to inclement weather). And the eating doesn't stop there. Those who choose not to compete in the contest can fill up instead at "Taste of Chinatown," will provide sumptuous samples from many of the neighborhoods top restaurants.
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| Chinatown is home to many summer events |
Cultural offerings will also be key to the festival line-up. On Saturday, June 28, (postponed from June 21 due to inclement) an all-day Asian arts and crafts fair will feature local artisans demonstrating their many skills -- including miniature figurine sculpting, calligraphy, paper cutting, and more. There will also be performances of Chinese lion dancing and classic and modern musical ensembles, and an 8 p.m. outdoor screening of Academy Award-winning film "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" in Columbus Park.
For great deals, great eats, and great entertainment -- find your way to Chinatown fast.
For more information on festival events and programs, please click here. For a map of participating businesses, click here. And don't miss Chinatown events later this summer -- visit LowerManhattan.info for a regularly updated event listing.
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