page_title: Chinatown (Washington, D.C.)
section_title: Businesses and establishments
hierarchical_section_title: Chinatown (Washington, D.C.) / Businesses and establishments
caption_attribution_description: The recent name change on the arena from the MCI Center to the Verizon Center
context_page_description: Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown is a small, historic area east of Downtown Washington, D.C. along H and I Streets between 5th and 8th Streets, Northwest. Historically, the area was once home to thousands of Chinese immigrants, which has shrunk to fewer than 300 in 2017. The current neighborhood was the second in Washington to be called “Chinatown” since 1931. Originally, the first Chinatown was built in the Federal Triangle on the south side of Pennsylvania Avenue some time after 1851, but was relocated to the H Street area when a new federal building was built there. A Chinese gate was built over H Street at 7th Street. In 1997, prominent landmarks such as the Capital One Arena, a sports and entertainment arena has gentrified the area. The neighborhood is served by the Gallery Place station of the Washington Metro.
context_section_description: Along with the development of the Verizon Center, historic buildings, mainly along the west side of 7th Street, were renovated and tenanted, primarily with nationally known brand shops and dining establishments.  Within a short time, a significant mixed-use office-residential-retail development on the southeast corner of 7th and H streets commenced construction. These developments, which included restaurants, shops, a cinema complex, and a bowling alley, together with the Verizon Center, transformed the area into a bustling scene for nightlife, shopping, and entertainment. An anomaly is that most of the businesses are no longer representative of Chinatown, yet due to a city design guidelines encouraging businesses to use Chinese characters, even national chains such as Starbucks, Hooters, Ruby Tuesday, Ann Taylor, Urban Outfitters, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Legal Sea Foods hang their names in Chinese outside their stores. Chinatown has become home to many high-growth technology companies, such as Blackboard, Blue State Digital, LivingSocial, and The Knowland Group. It is also the location of the Washington branch of the Goethe-Institut.
  Chinatown's most prominent businesses are the approximately 20 Chinese and Asian restaurants, almost all of which are owned by Asian American families. Among the most well-known are Chinatown Express, Eat First, Full Kee, and Tony Cheng's. One of the restaurants, Wok & Roll, occupies what was once Mary Surratt's boarding house — the meeting place for John Wilkes Booth and his conspirators in Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Another is located in a house once owned by the On Leong Chinese Merchants Association, which was among the first Chinese organizations to move into the neighborhood; today the structure is on the National Register of Historic Places.
  The neighborhood is home to a Chinese video store, several general stores, and numerous Chinese American cultural and religious charities. Chinatown has one Chinese church, Chinese Community Church, located at 500 I Street. Chinese Community Church was founded in 1935, initially at L Street, but relocated in 2006 to its current I Street location. The 6th and I streets historic synagogue has been restored and is the scene of cultural events.
  The Washington DC Chinatown Community Cultural Center offers numerous activities, classes and services.
caption: Sign outside the Capital One Arena (then the Verizon Center) in Chinatown
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