“Did you know it takes six months to grow a grain of rice?” is what my dad always says to me whenever food’s left on my plate. 

 

Meals are a sacred thing in my family. Food is cherished in our home because my parents, who were Cambodian refugees, know all too well what it was like to go without it. Lively chatter, clean plates, and full bellies were an evening ritual that I looked forward to every day as a kid, and it was at the dinner table where deeper conversations taught me about where our family came from. As I got older, food served as a bridge to discovering my heritage. Khmer cuisine was my way of understanding my parents’ earlier lives and their subsequent nostalgia, it was a guide in overcoming language barriers with my grandparents, and ultimately, it nurtured a connection to a distant homeland that is so integral to my identity. 

 

Knowing that each dish carries such core memories,  I became enamored with the idea of how food, its preparation, its ritualization, and its power, is central to people's migration journeys. My experience eating at a variety of immigrant-owned restaurants fuelled a greater curiosity for answers to questions about how the restaurant industry empowers migrants to share their culture, overcome the challenges of resettlement, and proudly weave themselves into the diverse fabric of this country. 

 

The immigrEATS Food Blog is the result of my quest to collect such stories, and a love letter to the immigrant communities who bravely show us their hearts and home through food. I hope it leaves you with the same joy I felt throughout this process, and a new appreciation for who you support when you dine locally. 

                                                                                        ~ Lilly