It’s always interesting what many people think as a particular “ethnic” food. Whether is something like Chinese Food or Mexican Food or something else, many people have a particular kind of dish that comes to mind. In reality, the type of a particular ethnic food really depends on the region that the food is from. For example, Mexican Food is a lot more than tacos, tamales, enchiladas, etc. Having been to Baja California, which is part of Mexico, I remember some of freshest seafood that I ever had, served with incredible local fruits, such as oranges, lemon, and mangos. And, Mexico has some of the most amazing cooks, so it’s constantly changing. And, just like us, the abundance of fresh ingredients results ends up with some incredible dishes all across the area.
On our San Francisco Food Tour of North Beach\Little Italy and Chinatown, we see how the type of food definitely reflects where one’s family is from, even when someone is second or third generation or more, as many of the recipes get passed down from one generation to the next. We see that all of the time on San Francisco Food Tours. For example, the influence of a family from Shanghai can result in some amazing dumplings or being from Sichuan can end with something like Mapo Tofu, a great mixture of tofu, vegetables in a spicy sauce. And yet, when the tofu is locally made, it becomes that more delicious. The result is that each region has a different type of food. Or in North Beach\Little Italy, Northern Italy is much different than Southern Italy, which has much more pasta-based dishes. The result is that exploring Chinatown or North Beach\Little Italy is a wonderful treat of different flavors, just like visiting other regions in the world. Each place is a different treat, reflecting each family’s different heritage.
