One of the most interesting tangents during this month’s panel discussion on “Who Owns Asian Cuisine?” was Lat14 owner Ann Ahmed talking about her start in the business, at Lemon Grass Thai Cuisine in Brooklyn Park. The restaurant was, as she told it, deliberately accessible—food framed as Thai (rather than Lao) to welcome in as broad a … [ Read more]
Who Owns Asian Food?
April 10, 2019 by
“When you realize a life was given so you could have life, it changes the way you live. It also changes the way you cook.” – Yia Vang, at the April 8, 2019 Lynhall panel discussion “Insiders or Outsiders: Who Owns Asian Food?” The challenges of cooking Asian food in America defined a conversation … [ Read more]
To Discover the Future of Food, Ask the Chefs
January 2, 2019 by
Three leading Minnesota chefs break bread, drink wine, and talk about the way food will be eaten—and cooked—in the decades to come W When we start talking about the future of food, we immediately consider questions of waste and sustainability, or whatever the cake-pop-like-object of the moment might be. It’s easy to get immersed in protein … [ Read more]
The Rice Table: A chef, a YouTuber, and the identity of Lao food in Minnesota
December 27, 2016 by Leave a Comment
During a lunchtime feast at the Hmongtown Marketplace, I ask Christina Tia, a YouTuber with over 10,000 subscribers to her Lao cooking channel, House of X Tia, about her favorite Lao restaurant in the Twin Cities. “There isn’t one,” she says. “But, what about…” “Nope,” she says, searching among our spread for the plate of … [ Read more]
