Ben Waber reviewed Chop Suey, USA by Yong Chen
A Fascinating, Wide-Ranging Tour Through a Quintessentially American Institution
4 stars
This book takes a historical and qualitative view of how Chinese food gained popularity in the US in marked contrast to other cuisines despite having a much smaller immigrant population than other groups. For me, by far the most interesting chapters were on the restaurant industry and how the tours of China town as a kind of theme park in the mid 20th century helped introduce them to a wider clientele and spread the appeal of Chinese restaurants across the country. I would've liked much more quantitative analysis here - Chen almost never brings in macro economic numbers and even metrics about the proliferation of different dishes are done through a perusal of a few modern local restaurants. Still, the distributed nature of the industry and its phenomenal success makes this topic even more important, and beyond being intellectually interesting the recipes scattered throughout are sure to appeal to your …
This book takes a historical and qualitative view of how Chinese food gained popularity in the US in marked contrast to other cuisines despite having a much smaller immigrant population than other groups. For me, by far the most interesting chapters were on the restaurant industry and how the tours of China town as a kind of theme park in the mid 20th century helped introduce them to a wider clientele and spread the appeal of Chinese restaurants across the country. I would've liked much more quantitative analysis here - Chen almost never brings in macro economic numbers and even metrics about the proliferation of different dishes are done through a perusal of a few modern local restaurants. Still, the distributed nature of the industry and its phenomenal success makes this topic even more important, and beyond being intellectually interesting the recipes scattered throughout are sure to appeal to your culinary side. Given the publisher I recommend finding at a library. Highly recommend