CHINATOWN

Chinatowns have been in the U.S. for more than 170 years. The first one was established in 1849 in San Francisco (SF) when, according to the Time magazine, the first Chinese immigrants to the U.S. went into the business of providing services for the miners as traders, grocers, merchants and restaurant owners. In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed and anti-Chinese sentiment grew, despite the hordes of miners at so-called “chow chow houses.”9 In the 20th century, Chinese chop suey joints were received with greater favor by young urbanites who found these places to be hip and affordable. Although Chinese food has been westernized over the years to cater to the tastes of consumers, in recent decades, the U.S. is seeing a rise in authentic Chinese cuisine.

For example, you can now find traditional Cantonese at one of Chinatown’s oldest restaurants, R&G Lounge, on Kearny Street in San Francisco and mooncakes at the Eastern Bakery on Grant Avenue. So, although rooted in racism and established as a refuge from discrimination of a dominant culture, Chinatown is the origin for many of the wellknown flavors and recipes of Chinese-American food today with dishes such as chop suey, egg foo yung and moo goo gai pan. As immigrants fanned out around the country, Chinatowns mushroomed all over the United States, including in Manhattan, NY, which contains the largest Chinese population outside of Asia.