I poked around some on the internet coz I wanted to know more, and I found this discussion, which turned into being about something slightly different:
I kind of feel bad for the poor white guy who seem to have only been exposed to overly-Americanized versions of 'ethnic' foods and doesn't seem to realize it? My whole experience of Chinese food changed the first time I went to dinner with a Chinese (Taiwanese/Japanese) friend on the West Coast, who made sure we went to the International District and not just ordered for us but went up and talked to the server/cook and asked for exactly what we wanted etc etc etc. It was totally different from my previous Midwestern 'tacky Chinese restaurant' experience.
I feel like the guy in the thread is TRYING to understand, but is really not helping himself with how he's saying it. A few good meals can help him; not sure what to do with the people who responded poorly to the 'fastest-growing minority' bit (what I think people freaked out about re the Latin American food issue?) or that it's a non-French 'gourmet' cuisine?
I'll admit when a (white) friend told me he and his partner did a 'soul food gourmet' night, I was a little taken aback, and the foods they cooked seemed pretty far from my understanding of American Southern/African American cooking, but food is pretty flexible, and maybe it's me who is limited in my understanding?
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Sat, Nov. 24th, 2007 07:29 pm (UTC)http://www.mangoandlime.net/2007/09/12/eating-in-exile-gourmet-goes-latin/
I kind of feel bad for the poor white guy who seem to have only been exposed to overly-Americanized versions of 'ethnic' foods and doesn't seem to realize it? My whole experience of Chinese food changed the first time I went to dinner with a Chinese (Taiwanese/Japanese) friend on the West Coast, who made sure we went to the International District and not just ordered for us but went up and talked to the server/cook and asked for exactly what we wanted etc etc etc. It was totally different from my previous Midwestern 'tacky Chinese restaurant' experience.
I feel like the guy in the thread is TRYING to understand, but is really not helping himself with how he's saying it. A few good meals can help him; not sure what to do with the people who responded poorly to the 'fastest-growing minority' bit (what I think people freaked out about re the Latin American food issue?) or that it's a non-French 'gourmet' cuisine?
I'll admit when a (white) friend told me he and his partner did a 'soul food gourmet' night, I was a little taken aback, and the foods they cooked seemed pretty far from my understanding of American Southern/African American cooking, but food is pretty flexible, and maybe it's me who is limited in my understanding?