tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post1411299865335223186..comments2024-03-27T23:28:20.274-04:00Comments on Face to Face: Exotic cuisine, status-striving, and achieved vs. ascribed statusagnostichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12967177967469961883noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-74787990628771083312023-04-09T00:43:27.613-04:002023-04-09T00:43:27.613-04:00Well this hypothesis seems to have been superceded...Well this hypothesis seems to have been superceded by the exotic cuisine = cuisine of conquered cultures in America's empire hypothesis on this very blog:<br /><br />https://akinokure.blogspot.com/2021/10/culinary-wokeness-as-imperialist.html Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-74557661722852226032015-06-16T16:34:09.269-04:002015-06-16T16:34:09.269-04:00this post certainly proves relevantl, what with Br...this post certainly proves relevantl, what with Bruce Jenner claiming to be a woman and Rachel Dolezal claiming she "identifies as black".Curtisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-16875003200903715902015-05-08T20:05:59.878-04:002015-05-08T20:05:59.878-04:00I'm not sure I get this . . . .
I see white ...I'm not sure I get this . . . . <br /><br />I see white people in Indian restaurants all the time. They don't seem to perceive that dining choice as being particularly rebellious. Instead they eat Indian food because they like the taste. <br /><br />Heck, I like the taste; I think Indian food is delicious. <br /><br />But I'm still pretty reactionary on other issues.Zippynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-10075068969119805532015-04-28T17:02:39.383-04:002015-04-28T17:02:39.383-04:00Interracial dating and marriage is another blow to...Interracial dating and marriage is another blow to social cohesion. asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-76811539646520389262015-04-27T09:38:52.640-04:002015-04-27T09:38:52.640-04:00It's human nature to want to try a variety of ...It's human nature to want to try a variety of foods. Yet the post is more aimed at people who spend exorbitant money and cultivate a highly public reputation as a "foodie".<br />Curtisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-50599257940766847302015-04-26T23:18:21.112-04:002015-04-26T23:18:21.112-04:00I have no data to support this, so perhaps I am ju...I have no data to support this, so perhaps I am just projecting deficiencies in my own youth, but anecdotally in my childhood predominately white middle to upper middle class suburban neighborhood the 2-income parenting setup left a lot to be desired at the dinner table. And many of the stay at home moms seemed not terribly interested in rocking the boat on that front either. At least my observations from eating at 100 or so different households over those years.<br /><br />And not to lay into my mom too much because she was a phenomenal mom in other categories, but I tend to think my food hobby stems from her less than average abilities in that department. So it is possible that the sub 40 crowd is really just rebellion against the bland diets of their childhood. And in a sense are writing their own palates now because many of them were left blank thanks to hamburger helper.<br /><br />Now when I say my hobby is food, I don't mean I restaurant chase, so I can snap pictures, and put them on facebook like a "foodie". I mean, I learn how to cook it. And while my primary focus has been and probably will always be BBQ (which I am exceptional at) I have learned a number of Indian, Thai, English, Chinese, German, and Mexican dishes that I would not be embarrassed to serve company, and some are even restaurant quality.<br />WillBestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-23086613925224065322015-04-26T19:28:10.375-04:002015-04-26T19:28:10.375-04:00Foodies aren't just into one type of exotic fo...Foodies aren't just into one type of exotic food, but sample all of them. This signals their status as globalists not beholden to their home culture, nor to any foreign culture, either.Curtisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-91025615095945255112015-04-26T17:58:09.931-04:002015-04-26T17:58:09.931-04:00What about the interest in drinks? Wine tasting, ...What about the interest in drinks? Wine tasting, microbrew, getting your bartending certificate? asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-19282317958240211172015-04-26T17:57:11.814-04:002015-04-26T17:57:11.814-04:00I don't know anyone who is interested in India...I don't know anyone who is interested in Indian food. asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-42608348810355280022015-04-26T17:20:02.855-04:002015-04-26T17:20:02.855-04:00There was a Russian FOB female engineer at the off...There was a Russian FOB female engineer at the office who never made facial expressions and was as rude as could be. She didn't spend time with the Eastern Europeans at the office. She would spend her time with a Chinese FOB man and her sister who worked in the nearby office. No Russian food from her either. <br /><br />asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-68247838902824145062015-04-26T17:17:49.800-04:002015-04-26T17:17:49.800-04:00Were they Jews?
Or perhaps it's Slavs being t...<i> Were they Jews?<br /><br />Or perhaps it's Slavs being the inscrutable Orientals of Europe.</i><br /><br />Only two of them were Ukrainian Jews. The rest were mainly non-Jewish Ukrainian. They were tight-knit. They would go to the local coffee shop every day for an espresso. They would also take a daily walk together in the office complex. From photos in their cubicles, they would get together to drink at each other's houses. They were atheists. Most weren't even Christmas and Easter Christians. <br /><br />They could make facial expressions, smile, and laugh. They could also speak in decent English to the non-Ukrainians though they would always speak in Ukrainian with each other. <br /><br />I guess they were just a mafia occupying a high position in the engineering hierarchy and weren't really interested in anybody else. asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-20286617240346810332015-04-26T15:34:01.978-04:002015-04-26T15:34:01.978-04:00"The Eastern Europeans who were very smart an..."The Eastern Europeans who were very smart and tight-knit and good at their work didn't bring anything! No Russian food!"<br /><br />Were they Jews?<br /><br />Or perhaps it's Slavs being the inscrutable Orientals of Europe.agnostichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12967177967469961883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-51826034843859654922015-04-26T14:24:37.815-04:002015-04-26T14:24:37.815-04:00Looking at the USA as a foreigner, foreign food do...Looking at the USA as a foreigner, foreign food does seem particularly popular at elite levels.<br /><br />At the same time, my impression is so are elaborately and meticulously prepared hipster perfectionist / twisted up versions of American classics - burger, mac and cheese, barbecue, pizza, etc. "Artisan chocolate". Craft beer and bourbon isn't adopting anything ethnically new (unless you're Chinese or Mexican or something else) but is from what I can tell now ubiquitous.<br /><br />I suppose this comes from a similar kind of dynamic though - where the person is cosplaying their idea of having a diner meal from the 1950s or as a Southern barbecue chef or they're doing over an "updated" version of a classic to signal the same dynamic.<br /><br />So why specifically foreign food rather than lots of this kind of thing, I suspect may be to do with immigration, or globalisation (and taste and flavour, as well). Also, if a lot of the "classics" are junk food, then that gives a motive to elites who want to eat something that tastes light or fresh.<br /><br />And why some cuisines rather than others, probably to do with the richness and quality of those cuisines, and whether they were the first mover in their area, etc. Also, strivers are pretty quick to attack others like them as pretentious wannabees - I suspect the biggest users of that "you probably haven't heard of it" joke are others strivers - so perhaps going too far from the norm without going deep is also punished.Mnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-42540889225370915832015-04-26T13:02:39.173-04:002015-04-26T13:02:39.173-04:00Eastern Europe is still totally avoided and unexpl...<i>Eastern Europe is still totally avoided and unexplored</i><br /><br />I brought up my office potluck because they don't seem to be keen on sharing their food with colleagues. <br /><br />They also eat a lot of Thai food and Italian food (like everyone else). <br /><br />They're also smart enough that they can work as programmers and do not have to open up a restaurant like other immigrants.asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-40500202481719259362015-04-26T11:47:35.023-04:002015-04-26T11:47:35.023-04:00I worked at an office with a large H1-B visa worke...I worked at an office with a large H1-B visa worker (Ukrainian/Russian, Chinese/Asian, Indian) presence. <br /><br />We would have a Thanksgiving meal which was mostly provided for us but which also had a potluck component. <br /><br />The Eastern Europeans who were very smart and tight-knit and good at their work didn't bring anything! No Russian food! No American food from them either. They comprised a majority of the senior engineers. <br /><br />Lots of nice white lady desserts. The Italian from Italy brought real high class Italian dessert. <br /><br />The Indians brought vegetarian food and Indian desserts. <br /><br />I don't think the Chinese brought anything, not that I could recall. asnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-84555441168212325012015-04-26T09:57:27.570-04:002015-04-26T09:57:27.570-04:00Typo in the second paragraph - I meant to write th...Typo in the second paragraph - I meant to write that non-sushi Japanese food is comparatively UN-popular.Sublatenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19346366.post-7116740723057386382015-04-26T09:54:48.679-04:002015-04-26T09:54:48.679-04:00I think a large part of the shift is that food qua...I think a large part of the shift is that food quality in the US has plummeted in the last forty years.<br /><br />Non-Japanese Asian foods in general (and note - non-sushi Japanese is comparatively popular) were developed to accommodate abominably bad meat. In a hot culture, spices are used to cover up the spoilage. Mexican, Ethiopean, the cuisines from hot climates tend to have this in common.<br /><br />Most of the meat in the US these days is a joke compared to what it was fifty years ago. Normal old-fashioned european and American food is very popular and very delicious at high-end restaurants, where the meat quality is high (and accordingly more expensive to source). The high-end scene in most large cities is dominated by French and northern European food, and the New York restaurant scene sees countless attempts at high-end ethnic food failing (cue retard NYT food writers calling diners "racist").<br /><br />Pork you buy for 99 cents a pound is going to be better suited to a cuisine that treats it like something that needs to be improved rather than a cuisine that treats it like it can stand on its own - it's got very little taste. But the better meat is still great in American/European preparations - and that's generally what it goes towards.<br /><br />I think striving does play a part in food consumption, but it would have more to do with how people are constantly trying out new dishes within cuisines, trying to get an edge on fellow diners in how good at eating they are. The competition's gone a little deeper - ew, Pad Thai? You know that Pad See Ew is where it's really at, right?Sublatenoreply@blogger.com