Roast pork is the common bond: lo mein and plantain, from a Chinese-Latin lunch plate. Sitting at the counter up front, rather than in the dining room in back, I listened as English- and Spanish-speaking tradespeople placed and collected takeout orders. A lone Cantonese-speaking customer stopped by only for a hot drink; leaning in at my left, he chatted with the counterman over the hiss of frothing milk.
La Dinastia
145 West 72nd St. (Broadway-Amsterdam Ave.), Manhattan
212-362-3801
www.Facebook.com/pages/La-Dinastia/117825001576414
