Kimchi in aisle two!
by Jen Chau
Good news for you “ethnic” foodies out there! Looks like our tastebuds are changing enough that ethnic grocery stores are being noticed more and more…big supermarkets are even carrying more ethnic foods in order to satisfy our cravings for Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Korean and Cuban cuisine.
Mealmakers across the country are discovering small ethnic grocers that once primarily served immigrant communities. Even in overwhelmingly white regions like Albany, culinary adventurers like DeFrancesco troll the aisles of stores like Lee’s, stocking up on whatever unusual sauces, candies and snacks strike their fancies. Tracking the growth of these grocers is difficult; most of them are scattered wherever immigrant populations appear and want foods familiar to their heritages, says Michael Sansolo, spokesman for the Food Marketing Institute in Washington.
But the growth hasn’t gone unnoticed. Major supermarket chains are dedicating more space to ethnic foods, Sansolo says. It’s an attempt to draw shoppers who may otherwise head for these specialty markets.
Demographically, it makes sense. Hispanics and Asians now represent about 18 percent of the U.S. population, and account for more than half of the nation’s population growth since the start of the decade, according to the Census Bureau.
Basically, at this point, we still see that anything aside from apple pie and hot dogs is relegated to “ethnic food” aisles. It would be nice to see a bit more integration at the grocery store ;), but perhaps it will take a while since clearly, the way that we discuss ethnic cuisine sets it apart. Certain ingredients are easily labeled “unusual,” with only “culinary adventurers” as takers (Are they really that unusual? Perhaps people who find themselves closed to trying food “not their own” are the unusual elements here?? :)).
Ok, perhaps this is a small (even petty) thing to be analyzing, but I do think that this speaks to how Americans tend to be so confined in our thinking. So, if you are X ethnicity you are only meant to eat X food? And if you stray from that, then WHOA! You sure are adventurous!? I think I probably just take for granted that I live in a very diverse neighborhood where you can’t help but get familiar with a variety of cuisines….but I do recognize this is not the norm for others. Anyone want to head over to Stop and Shop, get some spicy daal, cilantro, dumplings, and have a wild and adventurous night? 
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
rk wrote:
did anyone see the cnn article this morning about the latest zagat survey?
“Nearly a third of diners said Italian food was their favorite, with American food coming in second at 16 percent and French third at 12 percent. But when Japanese, Chinese and Thai were combined they ran a close second with 25 percent.”
Do Japanese and Thai food have more in common than Italian and French…??
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 9:28 am ¶
Lyonside wrote:
Zagat may not be a good source for what the average American eats (the list seems pretty upper-middle-snooty to me, personally, but that’s just my perception).
Funny, I can count 1 “French” restaurant in my section of Philadelphia (and even then, it’s French “fusion” and probably would be laughed off Parisian streets). But I can count about 20+ “Asian” restaurants in the parts of the c ity I’m familiar with, about 5-10 of which are sit-down, not the chancier take-out-only places.
More and more, however, I see restaurants that combine Japanese, Chinese, and Thai (usually sushi and teriyaki, the Chinese-American foods we’re all used to, and Thai is the “new” food, which is sometimes good, sometimes bad). Vietnamese restaurants around here are influenced by the French (due to history), and Thai often shares the menu with Indian, and may use a lot of the same ingredients.
I guess my point is, since I doubt most restaurants here are really “authentic,” and even in the home countries, things are branching out and becoming more of a global cousine, what counts as “French” or “Korean” anymore?
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 11:36 am ¶
Daniel wrote:
Good question, rk! Well, Thai food and Italian food do have a lot of dishes with noodles and both use a lot of fresh vegetables. They are quite different, but they do share some common ingredients. They’re both delicious! Thai food is my favorite, but you’d probably never guess where my favorite Thai restaurant is. Yes, there are some great Thai restaurants in New York City where I live, but that’s not it. The most amazing Thai food I have ever had was at a small restaurant in Paris that was below street level. I wish I could remember the name of it because I am sure that it is still there. I used to go to Paris a lot when I lived in Germany and my first stop was often this wonderful little restaurant. The food was so good it was almost better then, well, other things and the service was incredible. Now that you made me think of it, I’m hungry and the absence of the name in my head is going to bug me all day. Thanks! Jen, spicy daal, cilantro, and dumplings sounds great. Darn! It’s only 10:30AM! I love dumplings!
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 11:41 am ¶
LMR wrote:
The Stop and Shop in my hometown (small, New England, College) has been doing this for years (ok..5-10, but it still ahead).
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 12:15 pm ¶
jess wrote:
I live in DC and there is a huge selection of hispanic and asian at the local grocery stores. It amuses me to no end though that a lot of the same items (rice, beans spcies) in the “ethnic aisle” are also in the non-ethnic food aisle, just with different packaging.
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 12:17 pm ¶
gatamala wrote:
mmmmm kimcheeeee {drools w/ head laid back like Homer Simpson}
We’re getting to the point where all of the usual ___ shops are under 1 roof like Grand International Mart!
Posted 02 Nov 2006 at 12:24 pm ¶
margaret wrote:
I, too, am surprised that sampling different cuisines is considered “adventurous”. I love to cook so I talk about cooking to just about anyone who enjoys it too. A lot of people out there enjoy trying different ethnic cuisines and trying to cook them at home.
One complaint I hear from people who don’t live in diverse neighborhoods is that they have an awful time trying to find ingredients they need. Thankfully there’s the internet as a resource.
Posted 09 Nov 2006 at 11:20 pm ¶