We tried to spend £20 in chinatown between two people and this is what happened

THERE WAS STILL SOME VALUE TO BE FOUND IN THE POPULAR NEIGHBOURHOOD 07:31, 01 Feb 2025 For the next couple of days, Chinatown will be a hub of activity as thousands celebrate the Lunar New

Year. Also known as the Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year, the occasion marks the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar and each year it is marked by a

different animal. For many who celebrate, this year will be the year of the Wood Snake. 2025's zodiac animal is a special occasion, with the Wood Snake being a rare occurrence in the

calendar. With the second largest Chinatown in the UK expecting a flurry of activity, me and my colleague decided to put ourselves to the challenge of seeing how far we can stretch a meagre

£20 between us in the historic neighbourhood. My partner in crime was our resident cameraman, Michael Oni. The plan was simple, buy products that we will both be happy with. With three

groceries in the area, we were spoilt for choice as to where was the best place to begin. However, we opted for the Hong Won Hong on Church Street. Article continues below The store is a

renovated basement with tightly packed aisles of food, snacks, frozen fish and more. From there we bought one bowl of Buldak Ramen noodles, potato chips which were essentially purple

Pringles from a company called 'No Brand', two cans of Milkis, which is a popular Korean soft drink that comes in wacky flavours like banana, strawberry and yoghurt and finally, a

red envelope which is used to gift money to family and friends for celebrations of the New Year. We agreed that whatever is leftover from our exploits will be given to one lucky person of

our choosing. The Hong Won Hong trip cost £7.90 The next stop was the T.La Arts and Craft Gallery on Nicholas Street. The souvenir shop was the first sign of trouble for us as my Michael was

like a kid in a candy store thanks to the miniature figures of anime characters that he loved. However, having spent close to £10 in the previous store, we were wary of a tightening budget

and a lot of convincing had to be made to go for a £1.20 box of incense instead of the other things that ranged from £5 - £10. Beating the streets of Chinatown was thirsty work so the next

job port of call was one of the two bubble tea stores on Princess Street. After much deliberation we opted for the Ohayo Tea, were we chose one Oreo flavoured boba to share between us which

cost an eye watering £5. With just £6 left, a gourmet meal for two was off the board, but at this point me and Michael had bonded so much that sharing was second nature. Once again, thinking

with our stomachs, we opted for some salt and pepper chips from Little Yang Sing, one of the oldest Chinese restaurants in the city which boasts prestigious customers such as Sir Alex

Ferguson, David Cameron and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Article continues below The chips cost £4.45 leaving us with £1.45 to be stuffed into the red envelope and gifted to one lucky person.