"Authentic Asian" cultural appropriation row of Gordon Ramsay's Lucky Cat and Arielle Haspel's Lucky Lee

Question: If he called it “Asian Inspired”, instead of “Authentic” would all of this wailing and gnashing of teeth go away?

I’ll hang up and listen.

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You may have already stepped away, so not see this post. But, if you’re still here, if you re-read my post, you’ll see I made no such suggestion.

What I suggested was that, with two Michelin starred places behind him, securing funding for a third would probably not be a problem.

By the by, we enjoyed our 2015 dinner at Trishna - https://www.chowhound.com/post/london-w1-trishna-1013816

That means fusion, meaning they need to go and search their identity.

This.

That article is one of the more infuriating takes I’ve read on Chang’s attempts to discuss (or grapple with) authenticity.

“[Authenticity] matters because [David Chang] wants to appropriate his own baggage and make a profit.”
News bulletin to the author - he’s making plenty of profit already.

He’s now using his voice and his platform to raise some questions, which is more than most want to do.

There were many things that stuck out for their non-treatment - Redzepi’s Mexican sabbatical aka Noma Mexico was one of the most obvious, but then we all need friends, including DC. (There’s also Noma fermentation lab, built on asian fermentation principles, with a scientific angle.) Maybe having DC as a close friend will make RR pause before another similar appropriation. Or maybe not.

But I haven’t seen that level of thought provocation in a while. He’s not answering questions, he’s just starting to ask them, and I hope he keeps going given the broad audience he has.

As an aside, expensive dumplings already exist in nyc and similar cities (Hakkasan, Royal China, Red Farm, DaDong to name a few - he talked to the Red Farm guys on one of the episodes). Expensive everything exists. I though it was more about what is and isn’t acceptable as expensive.

His Michelin stars originated with an established Indian brand behind him - Trishna, well known and now with many outlets. So it wasn’t his record (or lack at the time) that secured the funding that built his reputation.

The original Trishna in Mumbai is not “high end” so it’s also interesting that in London it is - perhaps to attract the “right” clientele. It might not have its stars without that.

For the second time…I have not made such a suggestion.

For heaven’s sake, would folk please actually read what I’ve said instead of commenting on what they’d like think I’ve said.

But you’re right on one score - we must be the “right clientele” as it was the star that attracted us to travel to London

We can’t have a real discussion if people get snarky, so let’s please not.

I read what you said. Your response to @Thimes is based on his now having a track record.

What I said in response, was who was going to give him the funding so he could GET a track record in the first place?

I also don’t think everyone has equal “(relatively) easy access to financial backers” irrespective of their track record.

That’s equivalent to “you went to the right schools, so now there’s no more discrimination going forward” - also false, just to be clear.

“Right clientele” in all these discussions means non-ethnic-origin clientele willing to spend the money, because there aren’t enough of the same heritage to keep a (high end) restaurant going (by virtue of them being a minority).

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Your responses to my post have been absolute tosh. I see no point in further discussion.

Ok then. Whatever that means. And now I get why @Thimes stepped out.

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I always say conversations about cultural appropriation are far worse than cultural appropriation itself. :smiley:

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The conversations can become uncomfortable, for obvious reasons. But the alternative - not having them - only extends the status quo.

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Yeah I really feel like we made positive progress towards changing the status quo here! :wink:

But what is the definition of positive progress?

I’m definitely not smart enough to answer that question

Every uncomfortable conversation highlights something that causes discomfort. That’s the progress.

When there can’t be a conversation, that is telling too.

The alternative is pretending everything is ok, or shrugging it off, when it’s not.

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Hello Everyone, I just wanted to step in here and ask that we remember this is a food related site. While the original post and article along with subsequent articles does bring many of the topics like; Authentic Asian - Cultural Appropriations et. al - it is important that these terms and discussions remain in a food related context. These can be sensitive and emotional topics and they due deserve attention and discussion, but for the purposes of this site we need to keep it in the context of food. Just a friendly reminder.

Happy Eats My Friends

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I was going to post this on my local board since this deli is in my home state, but I thought the content might belong better here.

Can someone explain to me how Chicken Parm or Chicken Teriyaki are “Classic American” dishes? LOL

I think you can probably make the case that chicken parm is a native Italian-American dish. Chicken teriyaki is a stretch though.

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What really bothers me is that, in that video you linked to, they put hot chicken on top of cold salad in that catering dish!

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