Maybe you’ve just graduated and you’re thinking about relocating. Maybe you’re a young Asian professional looking for a city to start your career. Maybe you just want to find an Asian bride or husband. Either way, you probably want to live in a city where you can mix and mingle with other people of your ethnicity. Check out our top 10 list to find the best cities for Asian Americans.
Seattle, Washington
Seattle has a sizable Asian population, but this area is better for the older Asian-Americans who might want to socialize but don’t necessarily want to get drunk every weekend. The party scene isn’t that great, but its a great city to start a family while being close to other people of the same culture. In contrast with the LA koreatowns and other party scenes in SoCal, Washington has less temptations but still a very high concentration of Asians. If you’re married and want to have kids, then Seattle might just be the place to do it because your kids won’t have the crazy influences of a temptation city like Los Angeles.
Dallas, TX
Dallas has a very tight-knit Asian community. This means that it can seem to be cliquey for outsiders. You definitely want to be connected to really meet Asians in the Dallas community. Nightclubs are great downtown, and clubs that are considered the “Asian” clubs are always changing. The age here is usually young, from 18 to 25 mostly, and that’s because the suburbs are filled with newly graduated high school students that go downtown to party with their fake IDs. There is also a lot of recent growth in technology in Dallas and therefore, many job opportunities.
Las Vegas, Nevada
While Las Vegas has a good number of Asian Americans, it also is more of a place for vacation rather than everyday living. That’s because the nightlife in Las Vegas is SO crazy that it can overwhelm most people. Obviously this doesn’t need to be said, but Las Vegas is much more fun when you’ve reached the age of 21. There’s also a Chinatown here, which is more like a large strip mall. Las Vegas’s Asian population is also rapidly growing, with the population growing about 79% from 2000-2007, and probably even more now. Interesting to note is that the largest Asian population in Las Vegas is Filipinos.
Houston, TX
Expect a lot of very cute Asians and a lot of great Asian parties in Houston. There are a couple clubs in downtown Houston just for Asians (like Roxy), but it’s fairly hard to meet people due to the cliquey and tight-knit nature of the Asians that live here. Most of them are students that just graduated High School. If you do move here, be sure you already have a group of friends that you can socialize with because its difficult to just join a new social circle here. Houston also has a highly active import car scene, and we all know that every Asian loves import cars. Houston’s population of Asians is highly Vietnamese, so if you are Viet, then you’ll be in a Nguyen-Nguyen situation.
San Diego, California
San Diego has a large number of Asians, and as such, you’ll definitely be able to find a good social crowd. Compared to the other cities in California that we’ll mention, San Diego is the weakest in terms of night life. San Diego is known to have a much more laid back attitude than the other major cities in California, and you’ll find less traffic, less people bustling around, and a less busy city. And although San Diego is home to one of the top Asian-populated colleges, UC San Diego, the social life at that college is known to be very weak. Don’t come here if your primary purpose is to party and go clubbing to meet other people. On the other hand, there are great networking and job opportunities here, and there are great attraction spots like the beach. If you prefer to meet people through work or outdoors activities, San Diego may be the city for you.
Austin, TX
Austin has a great Asian community, partly due to UT Austin and other colleges nearby that are full of Asian Americans. The Asian fraternities and sororities oftentimes hold parties on 6th street and there’s also a lot of Asian organizations. The community has a TON of college students, and if you’re not in college you may feel out of place here. It’s much more difficult to mingle here if you’re above the age of 25. Also important to note is that Austin is a great area of growth in the film and music industry, so if you do want to dabble in the entertainment industry, this place is a great place to start out because it’s not as cutthroat as LA or New York. If you like going to concerts, festivals, and smoking weed, then Austin might just be the right social crowd for you.
San Francisco, California
If you’re Chinese, the San Francisco area is a perfect population area for you. San Francisco has a huge number of Asians, especially Chinese, and it’s a perfect city for the young Asian professional. Besides professional prospects, San Francisco also has a lively nightlife full of young Asian nubiles ready and willing. It is far better in terms of nightlife than San Diego, and if you’re a big clubgoer, then you might want to consider San Francisco over San Diego if you absolutely want to live in California. Of course, we have yet to reach the last California city on this list yet, so keep on reading.
New York Metropolitan Area
New York is a social hub for anyone, and Asian Americans is no exception. Close to 10% of New York is Asian-American. The Chinatown in Manhattan has one of the largest populations of Chinese people in the United States. Besides the social scene, there is a very good academic and entertainment scene in New York as well, with several Asian-dominated colleges like NYU and Columbia University. Comedy clubs are also a big draw. If you like to meet people while enjoying great entertainment and social activities, then New York might be for you. On the other hand, New Yorkers are known to be very busy and in their own worlds, and some may find it hard to date or meet people because everyone is just so busy.
Honolulu, Hawaii
Expect somewhere around 50% Asians in the Honolulu area, meaning if you’re Asian-American, you’re the dominant ethnicity. This means that you should have absolutely NO trouble at all finding other Asians to surround yourself with. Hawaii also has a high concentration of Japanese, a lot more than any other city in the US. Of course Hawaii is also an absolutely BEAUTIFUL place to be, and there are many beautiful people here as well. There’s a decent nightlife, but the main attractions are probably the beaches and the water-related activities like reef diving, snorkeling, and scuba-diving.
Los Angeles, California
Where San Francisco has a lot of Chinese, Los Angeles has a lot of Koreans! Koreatown life in LA is huge, and parties are numerous. However, LA is large and diverse enough that pretty much every Asian ethnicity is well represented. There are just so many beautiful people in LA that you just can’t go wrong living here. You might also find that LA has just about everything that any other city on this list has. The amazing Asian food in LA should definitely attract you also, and especially the Korean food here is topnotch and authentic. The downside is that like New York, LA is also a very busy city and it feels like everyone is trying to compete with each other. But there are so many networking opportunities here, especially if you are interested in the entertainment industry, and there’s unlimited activities, so if you want to have a lively social life, then LA might be for you.
Written by Editorial Staff