I have an MA in Food Studies from New York University. In my masters thesis, "Authenticity in Online Ethnic Restaurant Reviews: Revealing Conflicted Nationalism in Multicultural Consumption," I analyzed 20,000 Yelp reviews of ethnic cuisines in New York City to explore how reviewers discuss authenticity in different contexts (abstract below). My other academic focuses include displays of nationalism in foreign contexts, food tourism, and gendered labor.
Media and Publications
The Best American Food Writing 2020, edt. J. Kenji Lopez Alt
The Bastard Cookbook, by Antto Melasniemi and Rirkrit Travanija
Mother Jones, What Restaurant Reviews Really Mean When They Say “Authentic”
Eater New York, Yelp Reviewers’ Authenticity Fetish is White Supremacy in Action
Presentations
Denver, CO, November 2019
Presentation: “The Authenticity Double Bind: Striking a Balance Between Expectation and Reality”
Annual Meeting of the Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society and the Association for the Study of Food and Society
Madison, WI, June 2017
Panel Presentation: Authenticity in Online Ethnic Restaurant Reviews: Revealing Conflicted Nationalism in Multicultural Consumption
Future of Food Studies Graduate Conference
St. Louis, MO, October 2017
Panel Presentation: “Authenticity in Online Ethnic Restaurant Reviews: Assimilation, Commodification, and Global Power”
Education
New York University, Master of Arts, Food Studies, May 2017
Academic focus: authenticity language, nationalism in foreign contexts, food tourism, and gendered labor
Grinnell College, Bachelor of Arts, Sociology, May 2013
Academic focus: social and technological catalysts for the new food movement
Authenticity in Online Ethnic Restaurant Reviews: Revealing Conflicted Nationalism in Multicultural Consumption
Abstract
Claims of authenticity have recently emerged as a prominent descriptor for ethnic food in the United States. This paper examines possible patterns in what restaurant consumers consider authentic. I conducted a content analysis of 20,000 Yelp reviews to search for mentions of authenticity and related terms in the 10 most popular ethnic and immigrant cuisines in America: Mexican, Thai, Japanese, Chinese, French, Italian, Mediterranean, Soul, Korean and Indian (Ray 2016). The data highlighted two major themes: that claims of authenticity rely heavily on reviewers’ prior experiences and expectations, and characterizations of authenticity break down over the socio-social boundaries of the global north v. the global south. Data from reviews exploring this global north v. global south distinction can be further classified into three distinct patterns: treatment of restaurant aesthetics, labeling establishments as “hidden gems,” and utilizing tokenism to establish authenticity. I build on Krishnendu Ray’s research around immigration, ethnicity, and assimilation, as well as Lisa Heldke’s work on Cultural Food Colonialism to discuss both why reviewers label ethnic restaurants as authentic, and how these labels impact larger themes of American hegemony. I posit that diners discuss authenticity to mitigate discomfort around foreign experiences and gain external validation for ethnic eating choices. By passing judgments about authenticity on these global cuisines, diners reinforce the conflicted multiculturalism at the core of our American nationalism.