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netsharclast Tuesday at 8:24 PM5 repliesview on HN

I guess if you're a migrant, an ethnic restaurant (is that term politically correct?) is one of the most obvious businesses you can start.

The Thai government used to sponsor (not sure if they still do) Thai diaspora who want to open a restaurant in a foreign country, it was their way to market the country and attract tourists.


Replies

munk-alast Tuesday at 11:35 PM

Thai cuisine is remarkably interesting due to Global Thai and both the funding for restaurants as well as the standardization of curry recipes that was led by the government to help spread cultural awareness of the cuisine.

vector_spaceslast Tuesday at 10:49 PM

OK, I'll bite. In this particular case I personally would have said "a restaurant of your national cuisine" or even omit the adjective altogether since it's somewhat obvious from the preceding conversation what you mean.

My main qualm with this usage -- aside from being dated -- is that all cuisines are ethnic, but singling out the hypothetical migrant's as such implies that it is particularly ethnic. So in this sense it is a bit othering.

To be clear, I don't write this to call you out for your usage or accuse you -- I'm just answering your good-faith question.

RE your point, I don't agree that it's so obvious -- cooking and running a restaurant are pretty hard regardless of where you are from!

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21asdffdsa12yesterday at 7:59 AM

The moment you ask yourself that- you are already poisoned. Because walking around on eggshells, makes you hate those who force you to be over considerate in time. Which results in buildup and release of tension.. just be yourself- and be kind intrinsicly..

RajT88last Tuesday at 8:35 PM

Migrant is actually the wrong word entirely, I think.

Migrants move around to follow the work. (Think more like "Nomad") Immigrants resettle in new places.

I'm reading more about it, and probably these restaurants survive based on a combination of:

- Family run, keeping labor low (labor always number 1 cost)

- Central Asian and Muslim customers (much more than just Uzbeks)

- Setting up in low-rent locations like strip malls

So a few big nights a week can sustain the family business. I guess there's a way it adds up to a profitable business.

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dyauspitryesterday at 4:08 AM

Well, you have to be an esoteric migrant. This technique doesn’t really work for a Chinese or Indians.