In  Orchard: An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement, the most interesting fact I’ve learned was how immigrant families actually really enjoyed their visit on Ellis Island. I’ve been preached about the corruption of the United States, since I hit middle school. I never knew about the abundance of food on the islands so much so, that the immigrants actually wept at the thought of returning back home and leaving Ellis Island. Why is it that in history books this issue isn’t covered? I’ve heard many things ranging from how immigrants didn’t find the city of gold that they were dreaming of to how they were maliciously sent back to their home land, but never something as positive as this.

Another thing, that caught my attention was how neighbors in tenements were so friendly with each other. They looked after each other and in the words of the author, “people around you grasped your situation with perfect clarity and gave what they could.” What happened to this attitude? How did the New York “rough” attitude come about from something as close as this? I guess, perhaps the switch to more private forms of living could be an answer. But was the change that dramatic? Could urban settlement serve up to mean people? Why New York? Many other nations and states went through urbanization, but they didn’t go through such a change.

In Food and Diaspora the author writes, “When food objects, processes- even ideas – spread from one society to another, the receiving society is likely to modify, often to misunderstand, and usually to redefine what it has received.” I find this a very interesting concept, especially if we consider Jorge Torres’ story and the sugar cane travel. Sugar cane was not native to places like Puerto Rico, but when it was brought there it became such a key part of the culture. How do you think the use and importance of sugar cane changed when integrated into their culture? How does the quote relate to Torres’ story?

In Food and Diaspora, the author discusses how the types of food early groups of people ate were largely determined by their environment and what foods they could create from the natural resources around them.  The author draws the conclusion that the food of different cultural groups today is still influenced by what resources were traditionally available to their society.  Considering that our world and our cultures have evolved and changed so greatly over the last few centuries, is it still fair to say that people’s every day diets are still influenced by what resources were available to their ancestors, or has food become modern.

Again in Food and Diaspora, the author alludes briefly to how new products from the New World became very popular back in Europe, and some cultures are now more readily identified with these products than their actual place of origin.  With that said, is the trade of food products between borders still spurring significant change in the cultures involved, or have we settled in as a global society that is unaffected by new products.

In “Food and Diaspora,” the author mentions that corporate globalization of food will be detrimental to the “food sovereignty of various communities.” In this day and age, is there really any such thing as a community that can claim sovereignty on all of their own food? Almost every country and state’s food supply is a combination of locally produced food and imported food. Should this really be a concern of food being corporatized?

In “Food and Diaspora”, the author mentions how foods, processes, and ideas spread from one society to another, the adopting society makes them their own. Examples in the text include American variations of sushi such as California rolls and rock-and-rolls, adding sugar to tea and coffee, and croissants.

What kinds of food do you know of that have been “Americanized”?
How and why do you think these foods changed after they were brought to the United States?
-Virginia

The author writes that one hundred twenty years after bakeries were established in New Amsterdam, New York essentially became a baking and milling hub. How did this come about? Just before this the author writes how there was an abundance of seafood, and then suddenly jumps in and says that the greatest staple there was bread. What was their culture like that put such a high value on bread and how did it happen?

Question on Gastropolis chapter 2: The Food and Drink of New York from 1624 to 1898

This chapter discusses the Dutch settling New Amsterdam which later became New York when the English took over and outlines the different immigrants that came to the New World during this time period. The Irish, Germans, and French all came here during these few centuries and each immigrant group had an impact on the food of New York during this time. My question is, what is the relationship between where the immigrants came from and the type of dining establishments they opened? Why did certain immigrants from a country all open similar dining establishments, such as German immigrants opening “beer gardens” on the Lower East Side?

Question on Eat The City chapter 4: Sugar

How and in what ways did the sugar trade transform New York into a center of trade and commerce? Also, What was the appeal of this sugar or “white gold” that led it to become one of the most valuable commodities in the world in the eighteenth century?