Chinatown, Armour Square

Chinatown/Armour Square continued...

Some things have changed -- though not that much. It's left field at U.S. Cellular Field, current home of the White Sox (which replaced 80-year-old Comiskey Park in 1990), that parallels Wentworth now. Chinatown? Still where it's been for more than a century now, and still one of Chicago's favorite spots for a night of dining and escapism.

A walk down Wentworth from Cermak to 24th Place -- four short blocks -- sends visitors past (at last count) 19 restaurants and bakeries, the latter offering snacks and light meals along with baked goods and tea. On Wentworth, too, are grocery markets (some selling fish live from tanks), gift shops, book shops and stores selling ginseng and traditional medicines.

More restaurants can be found on side streets west of Wentworth. More are right on Cermak. Still more are on Archer Avenue, just north of Cermak. Still more -- of everything -- are in Chinatown Square, an outdoor mall across Archer.

Listing restaurants in an area that boasts dozens risks leaving out someone's favorites. On Wentworth, Won Kow deserves a mention for longevity; it's been in business since 1927. Toward the street's far end, Evergreen Restaurant adds Szechuan favorites to the familiar Cantonese standards. In between, Emperor's Choice features fresh seafood. On Archer, the dim sum at the Phoenix Restaurant has earned praise from lovers of those little dumplings and bits.

Across from Phoenix, in Chinatown Square, chef Tony Hu's three restaurants -- Lao Sze Chuan, Lao Beijing and Lao Shanghai -- have forced diners to break away from the familiar.

It's only right that even Chinatown should be international. St. Therese Chinese Catholic Church, on Alexander Street just west of Wentworth, was born in 1904 as Santa Maria Incoronata, serving what then was a significant Italian community. Reminders of that early heritage remain, in the form -- naturally -- of restaurants: Bertucci's Corner, on 24th Street west of Wentworth, is an institution that dates to 1935; newer but no less Italian, Connie's Pizza (1963) and Ricobene's (1946), with its signature breaded steaks, were launched from, and remain in, this neighborhood.

Nonetheless, it's the Chinatown Gate, which greets visitors to the Wentworth strip near Cermak, that defines the northern regions of Armour Square, just as U.S. Cellular Field dominates its southern area.

The new ballpark, after an uncertain beginning, has won over fans. Some tweaks to its upper deck -- 10 rows were lopped off its top -- went a long way; a World Series Championship in 2005 clinched it.

And yet . . .

Walk onto the parking lot north of 35th Street along Shields Avenue toward the Gate 5 sign. Look down. There, imbedded between lines representing batter's boxes, is a home plate -- on the exact spot of the home plate where Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Appling, Aparicio, Fisk and so many others measured their swings.

The trees down the mythical left-field line in Armour Square Park are the trees that were visible through the old park's archways. A monster drive over where the upper deck stood in left-center would have landed on the roof at Won Kow.

Nah. Not even Frank Thomas or Ron Kittle could've done that. But either, probably, could've told you where to find a perfect egg roll.

For more information about Chinatown/Armour Square, please contact the Chicago Chinatown Chamber of Commerce at 312.326.5320.