Food and Immigration

When I first came across the logo for the popular Chino Latino restaurant, which sells “street food from the hot zones” in the heart of Minneapolis’s trendy Uptown neighborhood, I was puzzled by the restaurant’s provocative if somewhat visually disturbing logo: a two-faced man whose top half is “Chino” and whose bottom half is “Latino.” I wondered what reaction Chino Latino hoped to evoke from its viewers: Was I supposed to be offended by what seemed to be a fusion of racial stereotypes? Or was I missing a more progressive message about immigration, globalization, and the multicultural “melting pot” cuisines and clientele they produce? The restaurant’s marketing campaigns, it turned out, had provoked much controversy over the recent years, including an online boycott against the restaurant. ¹ Their billboard and advertising materials had included slogans like “Happy Hour: Cheaper than a Bangkok Brothel,” and “Tio Pepe’s Tacos: Runs South of the Border,” and an advertisement for a new menu showcasing a market scene in India, with a list of bulleted items such as “untouchables welcome” and “I.T. Dept: Now Hiring!” In protest, Christy Spillman George of the Minnesota Bollywood Association remarked, “Our hope is that Chino Latino isn’t punished, but made aware that the ethnic communities of Minneapolis are viable sources of income, not fodder for their ‘hipster racism’.” ² Receiving less press, and evoking no boycott, was a lawsuit brought against the restaurant in 2006 by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on behalf of Chino Latino’s Hispanic employees for discrimination in the form of unequal working conditions, harassment, and retaliation. The EEOC charged the restaurant with violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on national origin, race, religion, and gender. In a 2007 settlement between the two parties, Chino Latino paid out $325,000 to former and current employees. ³