CULTURE SHOP : Craving Chinese Takeout

Now that women show off their underwear even on city streets, it figures they might wear pajama pants too.

Jean Harlow wore them as evening pants in the ‘30s. For spring, Ralph Lauren shows them in striped cotton, to go with a midriff-baring top. And London’s Vivienne Westwood has pale-pink pajamas with white piping for casual occasions. But one alternative has nothing to do with designer labels.

At Imperial Dragon Gifts, in the Chinatown shopping square at Broadway and College Street downtown, Chinese pajama sets for sleep- or street-walking cost $70. There are black, navy, white and burgundy brocades. Raw silk pajamas in a variety of colors are $41. For a top-to-toe effect, pair them with the $6 Kung Fu black corduroy boot.

Also in Chinatown are mandarin-collar dresses like the ones Yves Saint Laurent showed for spring. The “Suzy Wong” dress (“Cheongsam,” as the Chinese call it), beautifully finished, sells for $44 at Golden Dragon Gifts, across from Imperial Dragon Gifts. The sleeveless style comes in many colors, in short and long lengths.