Presentation NOW available on the Denver Public Library YouTube channel, recorded for your convenience!
The Immigrant Culinary Journey
Restaurants and pop-up dinners led by immigrants and asylees cook up cutting-edge cuisine with a side of cross-cultural connection, and the culinary scene couldn't be more exciting. We are so fortunate have Comal Heritage Food Incubator right here in Denver. Comal's mission is to foster and develop food-based entrepreneurs. Now Comal is on the move. On Friday, April 14, it shuttered its original location, with plans to reopen in July in a new, 2,600-square-foot space at RiNo ArtPark (1900 35th Street) with both indoor and outdoor seating overlooking the park. And directly across the street from Denver Public Library's Bob Ragland Branch!
So it really is just perfect that the Bob Ragland Branch will be sponsoring a watch party for our June 20 World Refugee Day virtual event featuring featuring Mayukh Sen, author of Taste Makers: Seven Immigrant Women Who Revolutionized Food in America. Sen, a James Beard and IACP Award-winning writer based in Brooklyn, will be discussing his book and America’s modern culinary history as told through the lives of seven pathbreaking chefs and food writers. He will be joined by Seynabou, a chef and urban farmer for 20 years, from Comal Heritage Food Incubator, where she teaches future entrepreneurs from high barrier facing communities in both Colorado and California how to successfully launch and run their own food businesses. Information on the watch party can be found here.
Do you have a special recipe you make to celebrate your Asian heritage? Share it with us and a brief family history or reason why the recipe is special to you for our Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Community Cookbook. Submit recipes using a print form available at any branch location, by email to history@denverlibrary.org, or via the online form.
We don't want to leave you hanging until June 20, so our staff have created a list of cookbooks inspired by cultures all over the world, created by immigrant and refugee chefs—from Taste Tibet to Easy Hawaiian Cookbook, you're sure to find something to delicious to whip up in your own kitchen!
