Chinatown: A Legacy of Culinary Diversity

Although outsiders often see Chinatown as unchanging, it is a diverse and dynamic community. Manhattan’s Chinatown emerged in the early 1870s, when Chinese merchants established themselves at the eastern edge of the Five Points area. A varied restaurant culture quickly emerged: some Chinese-owned restaurants in Chinatown served Western food, while others offered the cuisine of Guangdong (Canton), the home province of the vast majority of Chinese immigrants.

Beginning in the 1960s, shifting immigration laws transformed the neighborhood and its food. New arrivals from Hong Kong and Guangdong now mixed with ethnic Chinese from Southeast Asia, and, beginning in the 1980s, Fujian province and other parts of mainland China. All of these newcomers have further diversified the food culture of New York’s oldest Chinese American neighborhood.

Join us at the Chatham Square branch of the New York Public Library for a panel discussion on Chinatown's dynamic culinary past and continuing evolution with food writer Francis Lam, James Beard Award-nominated cookbook author Kian Lam Kho, Executive Director of the Chinatown Partnership Wellington Z. Chen, restaurateur Wilson Tang, and owner of Po Wing Food Market Sophia Ng Tsao.

Tickets are free but RSVP is required! Doors open at 6:30 pm, program begins at 7:00 pm.

Panelists:

• Kian Lam Kho, co-curator of the Museum of Chinese in America's upcoming exhibition, Sour, Sweet, Bitter, Spicy: Stories of Chinese Food and Identity; author of Phoenix Claws and Jade Trees: Essential Techniques of Chinese Cooking


• Francis Lam, editor-at-large, Clarkson Potter; columnist, The New York Times Magazine


• Wellington Z. Chen, executive director of the Chinatown Partnership


• Wilson Tang, owner of Nom Wah Tea Parlor and Fung Tu


• Sophia Ng Tsao, owner of Po Wing Hong Food Market and Po Wing Trading Corporation

This program is part of the Museum of Food and Drink’s MOFAD City series and is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Check out MOFAD City's full lineup at programs.mofad.org.