Ting’s Gift Shop

There now are much nicer gift stores in Chinatown. I would rate this one as a very old-​school tourist trap. Cheap, mass-​produced, low quality goods from the days when most goods came from Hong Kong. Nothing of high quality. And the prices are generally very high. They stay in business because the store is listed in so many tourist guides from the 1960s onward. But since the 1990s, many new stores have opened that import better quality goods from mainland China & Taiwan. So skip it, or be wary of paying too much if you enter. The staff is unfriendly & speaks little English. For better quality goods, lower prices, & friendly service, consider spending your time in Harmony Gift Center, Wah Yeung (Huayang), Jade Crystal & Craft, Sun Wind, Rose’s Gallery (all family owned), or even the Pearl River Mart department store.

Ting’s is a nice place. There is certainly no question about that. It has all the standard gift articles, toys and artifacts from China. And, like the classic Chinese stores packs all of them in a 100 Sq.ft. space.
My experience was mixed. I walked in at 6.20 PM on a Sunday and the salesperson (possibly the owner herself — did not ask, did not tell), was welcoming in the beginning. Very quickly, her attitude changed and I could sense impatience. She would not let me open a pack of bookmarks (telling me it might be difficult to put back in the polythene wrapper but assuring me that it was the same as the ones that were already opened — that they were not, is something I discovered when I got back home). They do not take credit cards and they close at 7.00 PM.
Overall, just an average experience, but I do not want that to come in the way of recommending what could probably be a genuine Chinese gift store.

Ting’s is one of the nicer gift shops in Manhattan’s Chinatown. It is also one of the most established located at the corner of Doyers and Pell Streets in the heart of the original Chinatown.
It is listed in several tour guides as the place to buy those finger traps that you put your fingers in and then can’t pull them out but they carry a full line of Chinatown gifts at pretty much standard prices.
What I like about the store is that it is clean and well organized. Also the quality of the gifts is better than at many of the other shops. And finally on weekends, when Elanor is the salesperson, you can buy from someone who speaks fluent English and does not play the «I don’t understand» game after you purchase your gifts.
So if you are shopping for Chinatown souvenirs, check out Ting’s!

Odd. This place is actually very well known. It has gone on television, and it’s one of those places that films like you use when they’re in chinatown. Yet, not many people speak of it. It’s not that widely known that this is a very cool store with awesome antiques. When you walk in, it gives you that odd little chinese man karma. Weird, I know, but very cool. Check it out; it’s a must see.