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Essay 2
Although many people think the foods offered in America automatically comes from
America. However, American food is not one cuisine it is a combinations of different cultures
that have influenced the development of a multi-cultural foods. We now see a growth of cultural
cuisines around America that are offered more widely now than in the past. Today we see a rapid
growth of a variety of food establishments in America from different parts of the world. Cultures
are now being explored through food and leave their mark expanding Americas own culture in
the process. As the growth continues today, we expand our understanding and diversity amongst
people by food.
Many people wonder about what is the origin of the American food, and they get the
wrong idea that hotdog, chicken nuggets, hamburgers, and other junk food are the only ones, but
it is false. American food is very diverse to begin with. The U.S. is a country that has a lot of
different cultures, which is the reason behind the diversity of American food and its success.
Many people from other countries migrated to the U.S. during the past years, which led to this.
People described the U.S. as The melting pot of the world. Americans are very grateful of it, I
mean imagine not having an Indian, Mexican, or Chinese food at all, eating food would be
boring, and tasteless. Bridget Hunter is a writer from the U.S. embassy, in his article American
Cuisine Reflect Nations Diversity he said that Cuisine in different parts of the United States
developed independently. Each region was influenced by the nationality of colonists that settled
in the area and by the ingredients locally available. (Hunter, 6). In other words, food diversity
began as colonist settled in the US, and after that, other cultures joined. Sometimes more than
one culture can be combined together to form a certain dish. He said that Almost any

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combination of ethnic food styles can be combined in California cooking. (Hunter, 15). This
supports the idea that American food is so open with other cultures.
Eating at a cultural restaurant is something that people brag about nowadays. Americans
like to experience something new, and try Indian, Thai, or Arabic restaurants for example. While
eating, they take pictures of the food to share it with their friends. My friends and I like to eat at
Chinese, and Japanese restaurants like P.F. Changs for instance. We struggle a lot by eating with
the chopsticks, but at the end we have fun. It is always good to have multicultural restaurants in a
place, Los Angles is a good example of one of those places that has multicultural restaurants. It
attracts tourists, and it may also make them feel good when they see that their food culture is
liked, and exists in other places. As I said, without the diversity of food, eating would be boring,
and unexciting. Everyone would rather experience eating something new, instead of eating the
same food over and over again.
Now today, many Americans call our food American. Some people dont exactly know
where some American foods are originally from. This is why one part says that American food
is being introduced by different cultural styles such as Europeans and Natives. In Live Science
article, Kim Ann Zimmerzan writes about what different types of food is being brought into our
country and where specifically where its from, Different styles of cooking and types of food
that are based on from a region. Dishes including fried chicken, collard greens, black eyed peas
and corn bread can be considered as Southern-style cooking, also known as American Comfort
food. Spanish and Mexican cooking styles are popular in Texas and the Southwest. These items
include chili and burritos, with a huge factor of shredded cheese and beans. (Zimmerman) In
this article we can explain that food you think is American such as burgers, hot dogs, and meat
loaf, arent necessarily American, majority of the foods described are European. We see now that

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different cultures from different countries have been influencing America to make new
restaurants based on different types of foods. An easier way to make these restaurants is identify
your region too and see what majority of the population likes and what fits in that city.

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Sources
Hunter, B. (2012, February 15). American Cuisine Reflects Nations Diversity.
Retrieved March 27, 2015, from
Zimmerman, Kim Ann. American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United
States American Food. (2013): Print.

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