Betsy Teresa Brody

Standing at the intersection of scholarship on Dallas history, Asian American studies, and food studies, this project examines how restaurants and food markets shape the social, economic, and political development of Asian communities in Dallas. By documenting the stories of immigrant entrepreneurs through oral history, archival research, and content analysis of restaurant reviews, this study explores the interaction between food, culture, and class in the Asian immigrant communities of Dallas. In particular, this project examines how the growth of the Asian community coincided with the rise of foodie culture in Dallas to create unique opportunities for economic and social engagement between and among different Asian immigrant groups as well as with the larger Dallas community. The digital storytelling exhibit associated with this project combines oral histories, digitized artifacts, and analysis into a powerful and accessible tool for future researchers of immigrant integration in the Texas and the New South.