To get to the start of the tour:
Use the Metro Trip Planner
Important Note:
Please make sure to always check times
and schedules for transportation, destinations
and events.
This tour makes the
following stops:
Union Station
Chinatown
Station
Southwest
Museum Station
Del Mar
Station
 |
Chinatown
Station (Metro
Gold Line) |
From the Chinatown Gold Line Metro
station, proceed to street level and
walk west on College Street to Broadway.
Walk north on Broadway to Bernard Street,
and turn left.
By the 1860’s a Chinese settlement
emerged in the area of the old Plaza,
expanding eastward across Alameda by
the turn of the century. A combination
of political, economic, and social pressures
caused the relocation of Chinatown to
make way for the construction of the
new Union Station rail terminal. One
of the remaining structures of Old Chinatown,
the 1890 Garnier Building in El Pueblo
de Los Angeles Historical Monument,
houses the Chinese American Museum .
Find the headquarters of the 
Chinese
Historical Society of Southern California
(415 Bernard Street). Next door, the
Chinatown Heritage and Visitors Center
(411 Bernard) provides exhibits, which
include historic photos and archeological
artifacts, as well as a library and
bookshop, focused on the history of
Chinese Americans in Southern California.
Call 323/222-1918 for information and
Visitor Center hours.
Across the street, 
Bamboo
Plaza (988 N. Hill Street) is home
to the famous Empress
Pavilion Restaurant (213/617-9898)
featuring Cantonese cuisine and dim
sum. Bamboo Plaza also has a variety
of shops.
Proceed east on Bernard Street,
returning back to North Broadway and
turn right.
Have a craving for something sweet?
Phoenix
Bakery (969 N. Broadway; 213/628-4642)
is the oldest and largest bakery in
Chinatown with a citywide reputation
for its strawberry whipped cream cakes.
Continue south on North Broadway.
Be enchanted by the quaint walkways
and tiny shops at 
Central
Plaza (947 N. Broadway). Hear the
sounds of clicking mahjong tiles from
upstairs windows and open doors, where
many of Chinatown's family associations
hold their social meetings. A popular
place for filming, Central Plaza is
known for its distinctive "Gate of Maternal
Virtues," a statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen,
founder of the Republic of China, and
a wishing well dating to 1939. Within
Central Plaza, 
Hop
Louie Restaurant (950 Mei Ling Way;
213/628-4244), formerly the Golden Pagoda
Restaurant, boasts a five-tier pagoda
originally constructed in 1941.
Return back to Broadway, and walk
south.
Continuing south, on the left side
of the street are 
Saigon
Plaza, Chinatown Plaza and Dynasty Center
(800 block of North Broadway). Chinatown’s
newest ethnic Chinese immigrants from
Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos own most
of the shops and stalls. These bazaars
offer real bargains on clothing, toys,
and knickknacks of all kinds. As you
walk on the east side of the street
your attention will be caught by a number
of jewelry stores sparkling with 24K
gold and exquisite jade creations.
On the corner of Alpine and Broadway
is 
Cathay
Bank (777 N. Broadway), the first
Chinese American-owned bank in Southern
California. Established in 1962, Cathay
Bank has grown to be one of the strongest
banks in the Region with offices throughout
California and other states. This distinctive
building was designed by noted Chinese
American architect Eugene Kinn Choy.
Also on this block is Far
East Plaza, considered the first
modern ethnic shopping mall in America.
Originally a retail plaza exclusively
for food, Far East Plaza still houses
several restaurants serving varying
styles of Regional cuisine that can
be found nowhere else in Chinatown.
It is home to 
Wing
Hop Fung Ginseng and China Products
Center (727 N. Broadway; 213/626-7200),
the largest store of its kind in Los
Angeles, its fragrant with herbs and
tea, and overflowing with chinaware,
garments, arts and crafts. A pharmacy
and acupuncturist are also located inside.
As you walk south on North Broadway,
notice the 
Chinatown
Gateway (600 N. Broadway). This
monument stands 25 feet high, featuring
twin dragons appearing to descend from
the clouds while resting on four steel
pillars. Erected in 2001, the design
symbolizes luck, prosperity and longevity,
a popular theme in Chinese Art.
At the corner of North Broadway
and Ord Street, turn right and walk
west on Ord Street and continue two
blocks to Yale Street and turn right
again.
A little detour will take you into
another world: the incense-filled 
Ten
Ho Temple (750 Yale Street). This
ornately decorated temple serves as
a focal point of the immigrant community
and is one of the most beautiful of
its kind. As with any religious institution,
please be respectful of worshippers
and staff on the premises.
Walk north on Yale to College Street,
and make a right on College Street.
As you walk down Yale Street, you’ll
pass Castelar Elementary School, the
only elementary school in Chinatown,
and the second oldest continuing elementary
school in the entire city. The school
used to be home of the Chinatown Branch
Library, one of the busiest branches
in the city, until February 2003 when
a brand new building was built to house
the library on the corner of Hill and
Ord streets.
At the corner of Yale and College
streets, you will pass the 
Pacific
Alliance Medical Center (531 W.
College St.). Formerly the French Hospital,
it was one of the first hospitals in
Los Angeles to serve the city's French
population and boasts a statue of Joan
of Arc on the front lawn. Today, the
hospital is run by enterprising doctors
and serves the local Chinatown community.
Along College Street, walk one
block east to Hill Street. Turn right
on Hill Street and walk south.
Along Hill Street, the 
Chinese
United Methodist Church (825 Hill
St.) exemplifies a unique blending of
Chinese and American architecture dating
to the 1940s designed by Gilbert Leong.
The Chinese United Methodist Church
was established in 1877 as a mission
for the growing Chinese community, and
is the oldest Chinese Christian Church
in Los Angeles. The Church offers Sunday
services as well as providing social
services to the community.
Turn around and walk north on Hill
Street to the 900 block.
Further north on Hill Street is 
West
Plaza (940 N. Hill St.). Built in
the late 1940s, West Plaza houses businesses
on the ground floor and residences upstairs.
In addition to an eclectic collection
of specialty Chinese shops with souvenirs,
furniture, and clothing, the plaza is
also home to a burgeoning new art community
of avant-garde galleries, with several
located on Chung King Road.
Return back the Chinatown Station and
continue on the Gold Line to Southwest
Museum Station.
