Mapping Morsels (Current Project Phase 2013)

“Every day, my husband Paul and I would walk to a different restaurant in Chinatown for dinner. Tonight it’s won ton noodle soup at Gold Medal Restaurant. Yesterday, it was tomato beef at King Wah. Tomorrow, it will be chow fun at Yung Kee. Restaurants here are where we eat familiar foods and see our friends.”  - Darlene Lee (life-long Chinatown resident)

Exhibit Opening, featuring Phnom Penh House Restaurant

May 23, 2013 at 6pm

Food has always been integral to Chinatown’s identity. For over a century, small family-run food businesses have been the lifeblood of one of the most vibrant communities in the East Bay. Mapping Morsels tells the story of Oakland Chinatown food culture by collecting memories from the community about their encounters with neighborhood restaurants and markets. Interactive food memory maps will be used to elicit memories, and in depth interviews of the family owners of long-standing food businesses will be conducted to spotlight their stories, perspectives, and unique cultural contributions. This yearlong project will culminate with a public event to launch the Mapping Morsels multimedia exhibit profiling the oral histories and collected memories from the interactive maps at OACC.

Through conversations about food, the Mapping Morsels Project will broaden the understanding of the evolving cultures in Chinatown and affirm the community’s shared contributions to the neighborhood’s identity and liveliness. By collecting food culture memories from both patrons and business owners, the project will highlight how family-run small food businesses are an essential ingredient to Chinatown vibrancy, cultural diversity in the city/state, and their vital role as a unique land-use to future development currently being discussed.

For more information, contact Project Director, Roy Chan at rchan(at)oacc.cc and (510) 637-0463.