classy when you’re rich, but trashy when you’re poor

[mary_assal]

In all of the readings for this week there seemed to be this conclusion that ethic or as Anita Manner puts it, “enemy food” is rarely seen or appreciated by white majority nations until its introduced to them in an experimental or as many of these restaurants end up framing it as, “bridging culinary experience”
Those who grew up with ethnic food know thats there’s no cooking like home cooking, and for many migrants, we end up finding this similar comfort in small, often family run, restaurants that serve some versions of the dishes we would gather around the table to eat during major holidays.

The Buettner reading was enlightening for me in quite a stupid way. He introduces his paper by discussing a true British national dish, “Chicken Tikka Masala” which was actually one of the first Indian dished I had growing up. I remember looking at menus and seeing a “Chicken tikka” dish and a “Chicken Tikka Masala” curry, but didn’t really know the difference. He expresses that the sauce was added to “satisfy the desire of British customers” which is something I had a hunch about but wasn’t really sure of. As an adult, I find myself to be a fan of the non-masala-sauce-ed version of the dish personally. Returning to the discussion topic, something that Buettner discusses that really stood out to me is the idea that food is nonthreatening, rather, it is the acceptable face of multiculturalism. As much as looking for comfort food in a new place you moved to is a melancholic concept, I find opening a restaurant to fill that void is largely more melancholic. The migrant owners of these restaurants are often looking for ways to support themselves and their families with what they already know. They often end up creating communities where people from all ethnic backgrounds can find themselves. This is also reflected in Mannur’s “Tasting Conflict” paper where the concept of food trucks in intricately analyzed.

Small, local, family owned restaurants, food trucks, booths…etc are never seen as a “must-try-culinary-experience” unless they begin catering to the white majority tastebuds with specific or unique/conceptual dishes. And when they do, they are often criticized for other things, like lack of options, decor, or the fact that their employees are not fluent in the language that these white customers predominantly speak. Being a foodie, I love going to these “must-try” restaurants, but I have yet to be impressed or prefer a place that charges double what the local place for the same dish just because there are “oriental” chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and “insert city inspired cocktails” In contrast to a place where every time you go back, the owner remembers you and ask how you’re doing. It’s even crazier to find out sometimes that the restaurants that are a twist on authentic cuisine, are run by people that do not belong to the culture and do not have an ethnic chef.

The concept of ”classy when you’re rich but trashy when you’re poor” is present throughout our society, but I find it especially interesting when it comes to food as food is seen as an acceptable form of multiculturalism, one of the “good things” that immigrants bring with them, and yet often does not make the individual that cooks or serves it, acceptable. People love (what they believe to be) ethnic food, but still carry their judgements while in the restaurants.