A Guide to AAPI Cultural and Historic Sites in Greater Philadelphia

This Vine Street corridor, a partnership between The Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation and the Fujian Association of Philadelphia, commemorates Chinese culture and history.

Two seven-ton Foo dog statues or “guardian lions” and an eight-foot-tall Lin Zexu Memorial Statue of a Chinese scholar and First Opium War hero anchor the plaza entrance. On the ground is a large-scale koi pond mural by local Chinese artist Chenlin Cai, presenting visitors with a map of neighborhood landmarks.

Nearby, look for Chinese zodiac signs imprinted as bronze medallions on the sidewalk, including a 10-foot medallion positioned in Feng Shui coordinates.

This 40-foot-tall traditional Qing-Dynasty-style-painted archway symbolizes the connection between Philadelphia and its Chinese sister city, Tianjin.

Dedicated in 1984 and designed by Chinese engineers and artisans using shimmering gold, blue and red tiles, the 10th and Arch Street gate remains the entry point for one of the city’s most historic neighborhoods and a popular photo op for visitors and locals alike.

An unexpected gem deep in Fairmount Park, the Shofuso Japanese Cultural Center — a post-World War II gift from the Emperor of Japan — is a recreation of a traditional early-17th century Japanese temple. Visitors can tour the main house, guesthouse, teahouse and bathhouse while enjoying its symbolic art and architecture and learning about temple life.

Outside, the stunning grounds are filled with exquisite gardens, a Zen-finding koi pond (feed the fish!) and spectacular century-old cherry trees which play host to spring’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival.

For those interested in tracing their genealogy or learning more about ethnic communities’ history in the region, head to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, either in person or online.

This library holds an extensive South Asia Collection with archival and printed materials (manuscripts and transcripts, private papers and letters, rare and old books, newspapers and journals) from the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean. Subjects include Philadelphia-based American merchants and traders who traded with East and South Asia, as well as South Asian community organizations in the Delaware Valley.

More than 70 vendors from Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos gather at this weekend outdoor market to sell stuffed homemade chicken wings, sticky rice, noodles, spicy papaya salad, fresh sugarcane juice, and Vietnamese coffee. There are also stalls stacked with toys, clothes, jewelry, rugs and other goods for sale.

The Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia leads this cultural operation, creating a safe space for immigrants and refugees through civic engagement and charitable events like back-to-school supply giveaways, sustainable product info sessions, park clean-ups and more.

This multidisciplinary arts center in Chinatown hosts seasonal gallery exhibitions, performances, artist residencies, youth workshops, author talks, and live performances and concerts.

Asian Arts Initiative (AAI) started as an effort in Afro-Asian solidarity. Today, the team at AAI addresses cultural expression and social change by investing in multi-generational creative talent. Check the cultural center’s official site for gallery hours.

George Nakashima was a Japanese-American leader in mid-century design, craft and carpentry whose family settled in Bucks County in the 1940s. Nakashima is revered for building the Altar for Peace for The Cathedral of St John the Divine in New York City in 1986.

The artist’s site in New Hope is a National Historic Landmark that’s made up of 15 structures, including his woodworking studio showroom (open by appointment only). Visitors can see Nakashima’s integration of Sri Aurobindo, Zen Buddhism and Christian monasticism throughout his work on private and self-guided tours.

Sruti, The India Music and Dance Society, has been hosting annual spring and fall vocal concerts and dance performances for over 30 years around the West Chester area.

Local artists and students commemorate Indian oral traditions through events like Thyagaraja Aradhana and Composers’ day (Sruti Day), alongside published texts Sruti Ranjani and Sruti Notes. Concerts, held throughout the community, are open to all ages.

Known for hosting the annual Cherry Blossom Festival, The Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia also invites the public to year-round panel discussions and immersion programs like language classes; hands-on workshops; and cooking classes where guests learn how to make Wagashi, traditional Japanese sweets and edamame korokke.

Events — which are offered both in-person and virtually and are open to all skill levels — foster cross-cultural understanding and appreciation.

The Olney Culture Lab hosts events with partner organizations and locations throughout Upper North Philadelphia, including Tacony Creek Park and along North 5th Street.

Popular events include the 2nd Friday Open Mic series with family-friendly musical performances; a youth arts festival that invites multi-ethnicities to participate and perform; choir and jazz musician groups; food tours; and multimedia storytelling projects.

At this museum in University City, a 90-by-90-foot rotunda houses the Asia galleries, showcasing Buddha’s history since 516. Take a close-up look at large-scale Buddhist deities — in various poses from relaxed and enlightened to angry — from China, Japan, Tibet and other countries.

Elsewhere are Qing Dynasty blue-green cloisonné male (with a globe under his paw) and female (with a baby lion under her paw) “lions” decorated with lotus flowers and animated gold and bronze camel statuettes that represent trade and travel. Small artifacts and ceremonial objects are also on display, including vessels, jars, mirrors, figurines and mini-statues, pendants, and more.

A dedicated Asian Art hall on the third floor (rooms 320-344) of the world-renowned Philadelphia Museum of Art holds historical and contemporary works from Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Japan, Korea and East Asia spanning over 3,000 years. Immersive rooms to experience are a Japanese teahouse, a Chinese palace hall and a rare 700-year-old Beijing temple-inspired ceiling.

Significant artists’ collections include more than 1,000 color woodcut prints by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi and Kanō Masanobu Chinese landscape paintings, while other galleries are filled with ceramics, plaques, statuettes, textiles, plate ware, headpieces and more.

Philadelphia’s Chinatown entrance at 9th and Arch Streets is flanked by multiple dragons, reminiscent of Chinese New Year parades where dragons are held up by bamboo poles.

Installed in 2009 on a wall facing The Pearl Condominium & Properties, the dragons were designed, sculpted and cast by Ward Tomlinson Elicker, a figurative sculptor, designer and artist.

Mural Arts’ AAPI Mural Series with Porch Light has a robust collection throughout the city:

• 承前啓後 – The Past Supporting the Future: Located on the side of the Crane Community Center, this piece by artists Eurhi Jones, Chenlin Cai and Yvonne Lung depicts the story of migration through cranes flying in the sky. It’s especially stunning to see at night.
• The Stories of Olney: Artist Winnie Sidharta Ambron highlights solidarity between Asian and Black communities in this North 5th Street piece that shows community joy with the backdrop of colorful Afro-Caribbean quilts; Korean Bojagi; and Laotian, Khmer, Thai and Vietnamese woven textiles.
• We dreamt an orchard this way: Artist Gina Kim depicts a visual map of Chinatown’s points of interests on the two-story exterior walls of Vietnam Restaurant at 11th and Vine streets.
• Unity in Diversity: This building mural reflects the story of the Indonesian immigrant experience between the city of Philadelphia and the Indonesian family-run restaurant it’s set on, Hardena, by Winnie Sidharta Ambron.
• Shira Walinsky: This interdisciplinary artist and teacher created 30 Mural Arts pieces depicting immigrant experiences throughout Philadelphia, including Vietnamese refugees at Bo De Temple (see below) and Mapping Migration of the Italian Market to include Mexican and Vietnamese people.
• Eliseo Art Silva: This Filipino muralist created 14 community-focused Mural Arts pieces, 10 of which are still on view and center youth experiences in educational settings, like Be the Change on an elementary school in Northeast Philly.

A three-hour Chinatown Food Tour offers a historical perspective of the neighborhood’s evolution.

Stops include Bread Top Bakery, Mr. Wish bubble tea, Asian Underground Mart, the Fo Shou Temple and “House of Dragons” Fire House, plus additional snacks in between and an end-of-tour group meal at Dim Sum Garden.

For a weekend tour, join Uncovering Chinatown on a 2.5-hour tour for Szechuan and Cantonese fare from neighborhood staples like Sang Kee Peking Duck House, Asia Bakery, You and Me, Xi’ An Sizzling Woks and Xun Yu Si Kao.

Prepare to take home a goodie bag of leftovers. Vegetarian substitutions are available.

Non-members and members gather here in person and via Zoom for community events like meditations, Dharma study groups and Kalyana Mitta programs where people can speak with and seek consultation from senior monks.

Inside is worth seeing for six sacred Tibetan sand mandala paintings depicting the “wheel of life” by Ven. Lama Losang. All offerings are in service to the Dalai Lama’s teachings of kindness and community.

Near Washington Avenue stands a 127-year-old building featuring an outdoor courtyard, a pagoda-style façade, and Shira Walinsky’s mural, The Journey: Vietnam to US, which vividly portrays the experience of the Vietnamese following the Vietnam War.

This Buddhist temple — flanked by ornate gold-and-red dragons — is a popular place of worship on Sunday mornings in honor of the Bhaisajyaguru Sutra (Medicine Buddha), who can be seen by peeping inside, where he is surrounded by candle-lit shrines.

Established in 1974, this Mt. Airy Hare Krishna temple is one of many temple locations around the world founded by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

They welcome visitors for monthly festivals; Vedic philosophy and training; Sunday Love Feast worship and food gatherings; and Bhakti Studio yoga, movement and meditation classes.

Founded in 2003, this Buddhist temple across from Mifflin Square Park is a showstopper with its large red and orange gate entrance protected by two large bronze lions, gold dragons and life-sized statues representing the four sights of Buddhism.

One of the oldest Catholic churches in Philly, St. Augustine Roman Catholic Church — a Palladian-style church designed by Napoleon LeBrun — is where Filipinos congregate in honor of Santo Niño (baby Jesus).

The church was formerly the site of the First Foundation of the Augustinian Order in the U.S., as well as the one-time home to the “Sister Bell” of the Liberty Bell.

Experience its history by visiting during open hours.

Many of the region’s Asian-owned restaurants are helmed by award-winning chefs of multi-ethnicities like Nhu Lai’s Vietnam Restaurant, Royal Izakaya’s Jesse Ito of Japan and Korea, Kampar’s Ange Bianca of Malaysia and Kalaya Nok Suntaranon of Thailand.

Don’t know where to start? Philly’s Chinatown is unquestionably one of the best dining neighborhoods in the city, but there’s more to explore in our roundup of Asian-owned restaurants.

Multi-generational family businesses have long steered the region’s storefronts that serve communities with everyday needs.

From neighborhood bakeries, grocers and markets to fashionable boutiques, salons and specialty stores, we share 40+ popular Asian-owned places to shop.