ABSTRACT

One can hardly pick up a woman’s magazine, daily newspaper, or even the Wall Street Journal without being confronted by yet another article on the “ethnic” invasion of American food habits. From the redwood beach houses of the West Coast to the glittering high rises of Manhattan’s East Side, taramasalata, hummus, aioli, and Chinese shrimp toast have pushed onion and sour-cream dips from the hors d’oeuvres tray. Dishes that are rejected by all but the poorest peasants in a host of Third World countries grace the finest tables in Indianapolis. Vast franchising operations sell millions of dollars worth of so-called Mexican food to millions of Americans who a bare ten years ago equated tacos and frijoles refritos with stomach cramps and diarrhea.