What’s your favorite Chinese restaurant?

By Cedric S. Yeh

Share a photo of your favorite Chinese restaurant and we may include it in a traveling exhibition. Curator Cedric Yeh shares the story of his favorite place to eat Chinese.

 

Photograph by Flickr user Susan Sermoneta via the creative commons license
Photograph by Flickr user "Susan NYC" via the creative commons license

As part of an upcoming traveling exhibition, the Sweet and Sour Initiative is seeking photos of your favorite Chinese restaurants. Do you have Chinese restaurant that you love? A place you just have to stop by when you’re craving some cashew chicken, steamed dumplings, or shrimp fried rice?

 

A photo belonging to the family of curator Cedric Yeh
A photo belonging to the family of Curator Cedric Yeh

Share a picture of your favorite restaurant and it may be selected for use in the traveling exhibition. Add your photo to the Flickr group.

Whether it's a big city, strip mall, rural area, food truck, or Chinatown, we're seeking high resolution, unique photos of the exteriors of Chinese restaurants in a variety of shapes, sizes, and locations. From Alaska to the Deep South, Hawaii to Iowa, show us the restaurant you support the most. Was it the first place your parents took you to? Did you find a restaurant in a place you never expected? Do you like going there because of the great food or because it had a new look that drew you in? Maybe it's just close by and has great deals?

 

A photo belonging to the family of Curator Cedric Yeh
A photo belonging to the family of Curator Cedric Yeh

If you have a personal story attached to why you like the restaurant in your photo, please share it, too. We just might include your story in the exhibition.

My favorite Chinese restaurant is O'Tasty. That’s right, my Chinese restaurant is called O'Tasty.

 

Photograph by Flickr user Adam Fagen (afagen) via the creative commons license
Photograph by Flickr user "afagen" via the creative commons license

How could I not go there? I had to know how a Chinese restaurant came up with that name. Unfortunately, I have to live with disappointment. The owner inherited the name and did not ask why the previous owner named it that way. I've been going there for the last ten years.

The traveling exhibition will start in May 2014 and visit 12 cities over three years.

 

Photo via Flickr user "daveandlolo" via the creative commons license
Photograph via Flickr user "daveandlolo" via the creative commons license

Your unique photos will offer interesting perspectives on Chinese restaurants in America, not only showing us where you like to eat but where Chinese restaurants are located around the country, what types of food they serve, and whether they're formal or more casual. All of this will help us tell the stories behind Chinese food and restaurants in the exhibition.

The Sweet and Sour Initiative is a long term project at the National Museum of American History to further explore the culture and history of Chinese in America through food and restaurants. In doing so, we hope to tell a broader story of immigration and community for all Americans.

 

Photo by Flickr user "Thomas Hawk," via the creative commons license
Photo by Flickr user "Thomas Hawk," via the creative commons license

Cedric Yeh is Deputy Chair and Associate Curator in the Division of Armed Forces History. You can learn more about the specific guidelines of the project by signing into Flickr and reading our group rules