Have You Eaten Yet Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World

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An eye-opening and soul-nourishing journey through Chinese food around the world.

From Cape Town, South Africa, to small-town Saskatchewan, family-run Chinese restaurants are global icons of immigration, community and delicious food. The cultural outposts of far-flung settlers, bringers of dim sum, Peking duck and creative culinary hybrids, Chinese restaurants are a microcosm of greater social forces. They are an insight into time, history, and place.

Author and film-maker Cheuk Kwan, a self-described "card-carrying member of the Chinese diaspora" weaves a global narrative by linking the myriad personal stories of chefs, entrepreneurs, laborers and dreamers who populate Chinese kitchens worldwide. Behind these kitchen doors lies an intriguing paradox which characterizes many of these communities: how Chinese immigrants have resisted — or have often been prevented from — complete assimilation into the social fabric of their new homes. In both instances, the engine of their economic survival — the Chinese restaurant and its food — has become seamlessly woven into towns and cities all around the world.

An intrepid travelogue of grand vistas, adventure and serendipity, Have You Eaten Yet? charts a living atlas of global migration, ultimately revealing how an excellent meal always tells an even better story.

"Flavorful descriptions of foods mix with adventuresome travel mishaps. The stories of women in particular are resounding, encompassing both vulnerability and stalwart resolve. Have You Eaten Yet? is a fascinating, inquisitive global search for Chinese tastes that evoke home in any corner of the world." Forward Reviews

"A fantastic and important book. The social history and personal individual stories that Kwan shares brings to life what it means to be a Chinese immigrant navigating life in a foreign land. He highlights the strong sense of identity that so many Chinese immigrants possess, consciously or unconsciously, connecting them to their Chinese heritage, through food, so that no matter how disconnected or displaced, whether in Trinidad, Cuba, or Madagascar, one can draw from it, be nourished by it and share it. Kwan brings us closer to understanding our human experience, whether Chinese or non-Chinese, immigrant or non-immigrant, so that we may take away the human stories that ultimately bind, connect and inspire us all." Ching He Huang, Emmy-nominated television broadcaster, host of Ching's Amazing Asia and bestselling cookbook author

"Once in a lifetime, a book comes along that pulls all the strands of social history, migration, world politics and food into a comprehensive, entertaining book that is both enlightening and thoughtful. Have You Eaten Yet? arrives at a perfect time and is more relevant than ever. A must for anyone interested in how politics, culture, family and food merge together to create a most unique global phenomenon." Ken Hom, OBE, author, chef and BBC-TV presenter

An eye-opening and soul-nourishing journey through Chinese food around the world.

*A PEOPLE MAGAZINE BEST NEW BOOK*

From Cape Town, South Africa, to small-town Saskatchewan, family-run Chinese restaurants are global icons of immigration, community and delicious food. The cultural outposts of far-flung settlers, bringers of dim sum, Peking duck and creative culinary hybrids, Chinese restaurants are a microcosm of greater social forces. They are an insight into time, history, and place.

Author and film-maker Cheuk Kwan, a self-described "card-carrying member of the Chinese diaspora," weaves a global narrative by linking the myriad personal stories of chefs, entrepreneurs, labourers and dreamers who populate Chinese kitchens worldwide. Behind these kitchen doors lies an intriguing paradox which characterizes many of these communities: how Chinese immigrants have resisted--or have often been prevented from--complete assimilation into the social fabric of their
new homes. In both instances, the engine of their economic survival--the Chinese restaurant and its food--has become seamlessly woven into towns and cities all around the world.

An intrepid travelogue of grand vistas, adventure and serendipity, Have You Eaten Yet? charts a living atlas of global migration, ultimately revealing how an excellent meal always tells an even better story.

An eye-opening and soul-nourishing journey through Chinese food around the world.

*A PEOPLE MAGAZINE BEST NEW BOOK*

*A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITOR'S CHOICE*

*A NEW YORK POST BEST NEW BOOK*

From Cape Town, South Africa, to small-town Saskatchewan, family-run Chinese restaurants are global icons of immigration, community and delicious food. The cultural outposts of far-flung settlers, bringers of dim sum, Peking duck and creative culinary hybrids, Chinese restaurants are a microcosm of greater social forces. They are an insight into time, history, and place.

Author and film-maker Cheuk Kwan, a self-described "card-carrying member of the Chinese diaspora," weaves a global narrative by linking the myriad personal stories of chefs, entrepreneurs, labourers and dreamers who populate Chinese kitchens worldwide. Behind these kitchen doors lies an intriguing paradox which characterizes many of these communities: how Chinese immigrants have resisted--or have often been prevented from--complete assimilation into the social fabric of their
new homes. In both instances, the engine of their economic survival--the Chinese restaurant and its food--has become seamlessly woven into towns and cities all around the world.

An intrepid travelogue of grand vistas, adventure and serendipity, Have You Eaten Yet? charts a living atlas of global migration, ultimately revealing how an excellent meal always tells an even better story.

Cheuk Kwan was born in Hong Kong and grew up in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. He has also lived in the US, Saudi Arabia and Canada, and speaks English, Japanese, French and several Chinese dialects. Kwan is the co-founder of The Asianadian, a magazine dedicated to promoting Asian Canadian arts, culture and politics, and a film production company, Tissa Films. His cinematic works — Song of the Exile, Latin Passions and Beyond Frontiers — braid his personal experiences with his love of travel and appreciation for Chinese culture worldwide. He now resides in Toronto, ON.