Culinary Carpet Ride

Epiphanies (and not ampalaya-induced, lol) during The Kusinang Pilipino Culinary Experience last night at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center: that the launch of The New Filipino Kitchen (edited by Jacqueline Chio-Lauri, Agate Publ., 2018) has opened up new conversations beyond Filipino food and cuisine-about the myriad ways our culture holds its own unique place in the so-called mainstream; that our cuisine is NOT a trend: that We know our history; we are influenced by a rich and long weaving of regional traditions from the ancestral homeland which carries throughout the diaspora. (I am recalling words of my sister contributing author, Dalena Haskins Benavente): that we embody Kapwa, in whatever projects our community offers, whether in spoken word (Brian Adrias'), Food Justice Advocacy (Ruben E. Canado), or in hawak kamay (hand-in-hand) with Chef Charleen Caabay: that WE THRIVE in spaces like this. Many thanks to Gloria and Erika at OACC, to Beverly and Tim of ABS-CBN, to Eastwind Books, and vendors who surrounded the full-capacity audience with textile colors and heartwarming aromas, and to our editor Jacqueline Chio-Lauri whose dream has taken us on a magic carpet ride.