1st Food Ethnography
The largest increase of foreign students on Michigan State University’s campus in the past five to ten years has come from the Asian population, specifically students from China. In the 2012-2013 academic year the number of Chinese students totaled 3,712; this number is much larger than the 891 students that were on campus for the 2007-2008 academic year (International). With this influx of Chinese students and families to MSU and the surrounding areas, the market for “authentic” (authentic being a topic discussed later in the ethnography) Chinese restaurants, grocery stores, and other Chinese stores has greatly expanded. As I began to explore this new cultural explosion I came upon one of the many restaurants the Michigan State Chinese population visits. Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine is far different from most Americanized Chinese restaurants, such as PF Chang’s, Panda Express or the typical Chinese restaurant that is in towns across America. Typical Americanized Chinese restaurants serve food such as sesame, sweet and sour, and Kung Pao chicken with a side of white or chicken fried rice.
How is Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine different from some of the typical American Chinese restaurants? The simple and not so simple answer is the culture of the restaurant, from the wait staff, to the food, to the frequent customers (Asian students). The culture of the restaurant is what gives it the “authentic” feeling. “Authentic” meaning Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine presents a similar culture of eating as you would experience at a restaurant in China. As I walked into the restaurant, the first thing that came to my attention was the restaurant was completely full of Asian people mostly students and the occasional older couple scattered throughout. Also as customers, including myself, were being seated, I noticed that English was being spoken by none of the employees. The employees and Asian customers often engaged in conversation when they were being seated as if they knew each other. The patrons and employees in the restaurant were some of the first clues that Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine is culturally “authentic”, if this restaurant were a run of the mill Americanized Chinese restaurant there would not be such a high of a concentration of Asian population. As the meal continued the Chinese culture of the restaurant was evident at almost every point.
The language barrier caused quite a problem, as a non-Asian customer, problems arose as I tried to ask for suggestions, the waitress had limited knowledge of English so she had to find another employee who came over and immediately pointed to the American Chinese food on the menu. A simple flip through the menu would have many Americans wondering what in the world is that, or why would anyone ever eat that? From duck, intestines, chicken feet, hot pots, to liver, they had it all on the menu. I looked around the Asian customers were eating these different exotic (exotic to me) dishes. I tried to communicate to the waiter that I did not want to have the typical American Chinese food; I was there to try Chinese food the typical Chinese customer would eat when they visited. He pointed me in the direction of a noodle dish with many different types of meat and seafood, which I decided to order, and found the dish to be alright. I had left my comfort zone and experienced an “authentic” Chinese meal.
As I was making the conscious effort to experience the full culture of the restaurant, I intently observed the other customers and their actions throughout the night. The typical customer at the Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine did not seem to be of particularly high social class; most were dressed in regular casual clothing and were eating with a few friends. The prices also dictated that the restaurant was not especially fancy; most items were under $12 with the occasional entrée like duck around $20. These prices allowed many different classes of people to eat at the restaurant.
As my observations continued I focused on how the customers were eating and interacting with each other. Out of these observations I discovered something that may have been the biggest difference between American and Chinese culture. Almost every table was sharing their meal; the main dishes were in the center of the table in a large bowl and each person had a separate smaller plate that they would put the main dishes on. As I reflected on this, I concluded that the way the Chinese culture eats seems to be much more intimate in regards to eating with groups. This intimacy is something that American culture typically only sees at family dinners, but the Chinese culture has this in many parts of their eating culture. From my observations I concluded, the Chinese make eating with friends a far more intimate moment than the typical Americans eating with friends.
The overall experience I had at the Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine was “authentic”. I felt throughout the meal that I was in Shanghai going to a local restaurant, ordering the local food, and watching the local people interact. The culture within the restaurant was unlike any Chinese place I had ever gone and this culture was what attracted the Chinese students, an “authentic” feeling of home.
Works Cited
International Students By Country of Origin: Asia. Rep. Michigan State University, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://oiss.isp.msu.edu/documents/statsreport/12pdfs/Asia.pdf>.
The largest increase of foreign students on Michigan State University’s campus in the past five to ten years has come from the Asian population, specifically students from China. In the 2012-2013 academic year the number of Chinese students totaled 3,712; this number is much larger than the 891 students that were on campus for the 2007-2008 academic year (International). With this influx of Chinese students and families to MSU and the surrounding areas, the market for “authentic” (authentic being a topic discussed later in the ethnography) Chinese restaurants, grocery stores, and other Chinese stores has greatly expanded. As I began to explore this new cultural explosion I came upon one of the many restaurants the Michigan State Chinese population visits. Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine is far different from most Americanized Chinese restaurants, such as PF Chang’s, Panda Express or the typical Chinese restaurant that is in towns across America. Typical Americanized Chinese restaurants serve food such as sesame, sweet and sour, and Kung Pao chicken with a side of white or chicken fried rice.
How is Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine different from some of the typical American Chinese restaurants? The simple and not so simple answer is the culture of the restaurant, from the wait staff, to the food, to the frequent customers (Asian students). The culture of the restaurant is what gives it the “authentic” feeling. “Authentic” meaning Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine presents a similar culture of eating as you would experience at a restaurant in China. As I walked into the restaurant, the first thing that came to my attention was the restaurant was completely full of Asian people mostly students and the occasional older couple scattered throughout. Also as customers, including myself, were being seated, I noticed that English was being spoken by none of the employees. The employees and Asian customers often engaged in conversation when they were being seated as if they knew each other. The patrons and employees in the restaurant were some of the first clues that Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine is culturally “authentic”, if this restaurant were a run of the mill Americanized Chinese restaurant there would not be such a high of a concentration of Asian population. As the meal continued the Chinese culture of the restaurant was evident at almost every point.
The language barrier caused quite a problem, as a non-Asian customer, problems arose as I tried to ask for suggestions, the waitress had limited knowledge of English so she had to find another employee who came over and immediately pointed to the American Chinese food on the menu. A simple flip through the menu would have many Americans wondering what in the world is that, or why would anyone ever eat that? From duck, intestines, chicken feet, hot pots, to liver, they had it all on the menu. I looked around the Asian customers were eating these different exotic (exotic to me) dishes. I tried to communicate to the waiter that I did not want to have the typical American Chinese food; I was there to try Chinese food the typical Chinese customer would eat when they visited. He pointed me in the direction of a noodle dish with many different types of meat and seafood, which I decided to order, and found the dish to be alright. I had left my comfort zone and experienced an “authentic” Chinese meal.
As I was making the conscious effort to experience the full culture of the restaurant, I intently observed the other customers and their actions throughout the night. The typical customer at the Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine did not seem to be of particularly high social class; most were dressed in regular casual clothing and were eating with a few friends. The prices also dictated that the restaurant was not especially fancy; most items were under $12 with the occasional entrée like duck around $20. These prices allowed many different classes of people to eat at the restaurant.
As my observations continued I focused on how the customers were eating and interacting with each other. Out of these observations I discovered something that may have been the biggest difference between American and Chinese culture. Almost every table was sharing their meal; the main dishes were in the center of the table in a large bowl and each person had a separate smaller plate that they would put the main dishes on. As I reflected on this, I concluded that the way the Chinese culture eats seems to be much more intimate in regards to eating with groups. This intimacy is something that American culture typically only sees at family dinners, but the Chinese culture has this in many parts of their eating culture. From my observations I concluded, the Chinese make eating with friends a far more intimate moment than the typical Americans eating with friends.
The overall experience I had at the Everyday Restaurant Chinese Cuisine was “authentic”. I felt throughout the meal that I was in Shanghai going to a local restaurant, ordering the local food, and watching the local people interact. The culture within the restaurant was unlike any Chinese place I had ever gone and this culture was what attracted the Chinese students, an “authentic” feeling of home.
Works Cited
International Students By Country of Origin: Asia. Rep. Michigan State University, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. <http://oiss.isp.msu.edu/documents/statsreport/12pdfs/Asia.pdf>.
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