Soy Bean Chen Flower Shop

Nobody really shops here for flowers, people come for the soy bean curd w/​peanuts.
Unfortunately I have had many bad batches that are sour and expired. The manager was very argumentative about this, so be careful when you buy the soy bean curd here because it is highly likely that they are selling expired batches!!!

Best douhua in town They have the best spicey salty sauce that goes on the tofu. Really, really great. Cannot best the prices either.

Not going to lie, this is kind of a random combination of a flower shop that had Do Fu Nao. I almost thought I got the place wrong when I saw the flower shop because I was looking for the «soy bean curd». I was born in Beijing, and I had this craving for the traditional Beijing breakfast. The Do Fu Nao here brought tears to my eyes because it was as if I had been teleported to China and I was having it there. It is so authentic. The lady that served it was so nice.
After my mom and I ate there we also browsed the flower shop. But the key, the key is the «soy bean curd». Love love love this place so much for the way it makes me feel all nostalgic about my childhood in China. I so appreciate them for bringing such a wonderful traditional Chinese breakfast to the US.

Shoutout to my cousin Joyce! Best flower shop ever, guarantee you would love your flowers and satisfied your girlfriends need lol soy bean is a must when you shop here.

It has been so, SO long since I’ve last had Soy Bean Curd. The moment I had a spoonful, I could feel tears welling up in my eyes because of the wave of nostalgia that rushed throughout my body. My grandma used to make it all the time when my family and I stayed in Hong Kong for vacation during the Summer! The texture of the curd is softer than tofu and closer to pudding, but slightly softer. It tastes best when warm and with a bit of the complementary ginger sauce. It’s such a comforting treat and I love how it just melts in my mouth (heaven)! I’ve walked by this place dozens of times, but I never knew that this place sold Soy Bean Curd. Like many others, my first impression of this place was that it was simply a flower shop. I’ll be stopping by more often now that I’ve re-​discovered this hidden gem. (:

2 dollars for a quart of hot, fresh dofu fa, what’s not to like? The ginger syrup was just perfect and the texture is incredible. I wish I could live here and eat one of these for breakfast everyday!

One of the true gems of Flushing. Old school!
The soy milk is the best you’ll find in the USA. The soft tofu with peanuts is a delicious breakfast or snack.
The flower shop is full of interesting plants, all at great prices!

This place is tucked in within a flower shop. I looked at it and it did not look legit at all. However, they have been in that location for several years. I always saw people getting online to buy tofu by the quarts. Even my mother in law buys it from them I just never knew it was this place. Anyways, the tofu is usually sold warm and it is made daily. This tofu is unlike anything i have tried before. Its called pronounced (Do-​Fu-​fah) It silky, and it can be had hot or cold with a sweet ginger syrup. Its delicious all on its own cold or hot. You get a quart container of tofu for under $ 2.50 Talk about cheap! This is one of those things that is a a love it or hate. I had it at other places but this is probably the best.

After eating here, I Soy-​led my pants.
Okay, it wasn’t the worst thing I ever tasted, but it really didn’t do it for me. I mainly bought it for my friend who loves things like grits and sweet stuff and warm soul-​completing comfort food dishes, so I really thought she’d like it, but she didn’t go for it either.
I’ll give them a 3 since it was cheap, they were friendly, and it was interesting and unique, if nothing else. It was too syrupy sweet and not particularly thrilling though, I’m afraid. I’m sure if I grew up with it I’d have loved it. But I’ve tried so many 4 and 5 star dishes in Flushing (which I haven’t reviewed yet) that I have to give this one a 3 by contrast.
Speaking of contrast. Want to contrast my **** against your *****?

Somebody must have a crazy idea one night and thought «I would like to open a flower and plant shop. It will be filled with bamboos. Oh man, I am feeling a bit hungry now. I have this a craving for soy bean/​dou fu… Wait. Let’s put it in the same store. Boom. Soy Bean Chan Flower & Gift»
And that is most likely how the shop was born. This place is nowhere near conventional. The food section is a window stand at a flower/​plant shop. Literally, a corner of the store that sells soy bean. The rest of the store is full of plants. For people who take the food safety rating way too seriously, this might not be the right place. You might wonder, is this possible that you can have a food stand in a plant shop? I see they sell food at the park, so get over yourself. The local order here all the time (no dine in/​sitting option). I’m pretty sure the shop has an «A» rating because all the lady is selling are soy beans and soy milk/​tea. I eat here all the time. It’s the cheapest in Flushing and I eaten a ton of dou fu. It gets my dou fu approval. Large dou fu is $ 2.50. That’s like a meal on a budget.

You can easily miss this place because it’s really just a small little window– a closet to Narnia, or a the door in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, except manned by an older chinese lady who doesn’t speak English.
Friends, all the questions subside when you try it. So Good. Realizing it was only $ 1.50 for this container, we decided to give it a try. Doufufa/​dou hua is a soft hot tofu dessert with a sweet ginger like syrup you pour over. It seems like Flushing is full of these little unassuming places that will blow your Chinese paradigm.
Cash only.

Walked past it twice and there was always a line. Apparently everyone loves this stuff. I dont blame them. It is so delicious!!! Reminded me when I was little growing up eating this stuff. Some other places serve this but tasted really funny. Anyway this is the real thing! Definitely coming back when we get back to Flushing.

The place occupies a small corner in a flower shop. My favorite is the sweet soy bean dessert (Chinese we say Do-​Hwa, or Do-​Fu-​Hwa). The ginger-​sugar syrup is perfect with this dessert. Eat it hot, warm or cold tastes all great.
They also have a spicy/​salty version which I don’t like as much, more of an acquired taste.

I can’t say this is objectively the best place to get doufu hua… because it is the only place I get doufu hua.
(In real life I call it «tofu flower» per direct translation from Chinese, because that’s more fun to say, but we’ll go with the more solemn-​sounding «DFH»)
This little window selling fresh homemade DFH and soybean milk (hint: one is a product of the other) is located on one of the oldest, busiest stretches of downtown Flushing. The actual DFH vendor’s space takes up only a few square feet in a plant shop. The window is very easy to miss… but the very green storefront of the plant shop is not. The DFH is always fresh and pure, perfectly hot or cold as you request, and lacks the artificial gelatin texture that some DFH has.
For my Japanese food enthusiasts who are bent on spending $ 10+ for a few ounces of restaurant «homemade» tofu, note that is the same silky-​smooth stuff with the same gently beany flavor! In general, DFH may be softer and more custardy than some restaurant hiyayakko that I’ve tried, but certainly not all.
…Also note that it costs $ 1.50 for a whole pint (and I think $ 2 for a quart)! Your tofu comes with a cup of golden syrup spiked with ginger to pour over — but I’ve also used this tofu in savory hiyayakko. It works great.
I feel like every 1^st/​2^nd generation Asian American will have associations of DFH as comfort food: refreshing in the summer or warming in the winter, scooped with a gentle, practiced hand and deposited by layers into a container before your eyes…
I love you, tofu flower.

Dou hua was one of the items on our food crawl in Flushing. Based on Unilocal,decided to seek out this tofu stand, cleverly disguised as as a flower shop. The camouflage worked well as I almost walked past this little stand buried amongst the foliage.
I ordered the hot dou hua with peanuts and it was melt in your mouth delicious. Even my daughter, who hates peanuts, loved it! My relatives from overseas favorably compared it with dou hua in Taiwan.
The price was also very inexpensive, which made it easy to order two large containers to go — wish I ordered more.

Hot and fresh soybean curd (dua hua)! Come get it! Best kept secret in Flushing (well not really a secret). Super cheap soybean curd with a side of herbal honey ginger mix– Ask for extra! One is not enough. Also the soybean milk is delicious! I usually prefer it sweeter, but if you have those who can’t do the high sugar content, this recipe is the perfect amount of sweet. You must stop by and don’t pass this stall because you see the first a Flower Shop!

Little stand that sells fresh, hot homemade dou hua with sweet ginger syrup and fresh dou jiang. Super cheap. Can’t get any better than this.

This is normally a flower shop that also doubles as a stand that sells items to satisfy those soy cravings/​needs. I rarely go over to this side of flushing since it is kind of dead once you pass flushing noodle and also because I am too lazy to cross the street. But I have been getting the most delightful soy milk with a touch of their herbal honey syrup to sweeten it. Only a buck! They keep the syrup in a special iron tea kettle used in old school chinese places to serve tea. So they just pour a bit at the bottom and accompanied by the slightly nutty flavor of the soy milk makes it nice and yum.
Its a nice looking old couple that run this stand but the man is a little more liberal with the syrup. I think its the perfect Fall drink as it is served hot and will keep your hands warm and a small size is served in a tall coffee cup, perfect for portability and to grab and take on the train with you. But if you want more to take home you can always ask them for a large size which they put in chinese soup containers so you can save for later. I believe they also serve cold soy milk if you don’t like it warm. Definitely a good place to cool down after having some spicy wontons from down the block at White Bear.
They also carry doufu faa, which is like a tofu soy pudding. Very silky and they ladle it out of a giant metal container that is used to set the pudding in. They ladle it in portions so that the silky pudding stays intact. Very light tasting and is a great warm dessert to have. Once again sweetened by their herbal syrup.
Either way anything here is super inexpensive. And if you are shopping for flowers you can take care of two birds with one stone.

My aunt and uncle are the experts when it comes to anything in Flushing.
I asked them where can I find really good tofu pudding? I love tofu pudding with a bit of ginger syrup. It makes for a good morning meal chocked full of protein.
TOFU IT DOES A BODY GOOD!
This store front (stall) is also a flower shop. Yea, I have no idea how this happens. I swear the Chinese have the weirdest business ideas, and somehow, they work? I am proud of my schizophrenic people.
But seriously, the best tofu pudding place in NYC. They also sell soy milk, man tou, spring rolls, and other goodies. All for very cheap!
TOFU PUDDING, I LOVE YOU!

A small local florist shop plus more as they have Dou4 Hua1. With a friend, we were immersed in the green world where there were varies Chinese bamboo of type and size in harmony with Chinese Fung Shui with pebbles at the pot’s base. The bamboo appears very healthy as among other plants in sale able condition. I wonder how healthy the bamboo should I feed it to a cute panda bear for dinner? Hmm. One particular plant which resonates as a nice housewarming vibe to my friend was the Money Tree, which we purchased at a reasonable price. I saw an engaged woman selecting flowers for her wedding which Soy Bean Chan Flower & Gift provides wedding floral arrangement. Customer service was somewhat attentive.
Albeit, I have yet to taste their highly acclaimed (backed by previous Unilocalers) silky Dou4 hua1 and other edible soy bean delights. Next visit soon awaits for Dou4 Hua1…