Just a minute walk from Antwerp Central Station and the Antwerp Zoo, you can find Belgium’s only officially recognized Chinatown. Discover the Asian world by walking into Chinatown through the Paifang archway, where two Chinese lions guard the street. Its beginning dates back to the 1970s as a result of Chinese migration after World War II when Chinese restaurants planted their first seeds of the new Chinatown. Over the decades the Chinese community accumulated financial and cultural capital, that formed part of their Chinese cultural identity and heritage.
Giving rise to new social institutions such as a Buddhist temple, traditional Chinese medicine establishments and several martial arts schools. The district houses an abundance of restaurants offering a variety of Asian cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Pakistani, Thai and Nepali. And of course the biggest Asian Supermarket in the country, the famous Sun Wah. Today Chinatown is well known for its pan-Asian atmosphere.