An aisle full of snacks that are perfect with tea

Growing up half Indian is an interesting experience- while I was never fully immersed in Indian culture, I was exposed to bits and pieces of it through my father’s tastes.  Our house was always a typical American household, but the Indian influence was visible in certain places: specifically, our pantry.  Because part of our family routine is a nightly cup of chai, I’ve always been familiar with the concept of an Indian grocery store that is connected to a restaurant, but it wasn’t until I read the article that I really thought about the idea of an “ethnic space.”  It’s interesting to think about what this place means to Indian immigrants; even after 25 years of living in the United States, it’s still a great comfort for my father to have a place to eat his favorite foods and connect with other people who have had the same experiences.

When I think about the experience of outsiders within these ethnic spaces that Sen describes, I can’t help but think of my favorite grocery store/restaurant, Al Markaz, in Carrollton.    While the cuisine itself is specifically Pakistani, it caters to South Asians of every variety.  One quality of the South Asian grocery store that Sen did not mention is that most of these places would be considered “dives”- many Americans are used to the glossy, uniform grocery stores such as Walmart and Kroger that mostly look the same and are more polished and would not feel very comfortable having food in spaces such as Taj Mahal Imports and Al Markaz.  However, as time goes on I see more and more non-Indian people coming in to give it a try, and I am happy to see others explore this culture directly.

I felt a bit perplexed by Sen’s description of the front of these spaces catering to white clientele- to me, neither Taj Mahal Imports nor Al Markaz seem to make being a customer who is unfamiliar to the culture very easy, especially since none of the items on the menu are explained (I could decipher Aloo and Chhole, but had to send my father a picture of the menu to make sure I didn’t miss anything else).  It reminded me of going to authentic Chinese restaurants with Chinese friends- most of the menus are in Chinese and don’t explain the contents of the meal like most American menus do, and in order to get the best thing you had to have “inside knowledge” of the culture and the cuisine.

The description of Chopra’s wife reminded me of the women at the Chaat counter and the ones who work at Al Markaz.  In Indian culture, every older woman is an “Auntie,” and having become a regular at a place such as this I really feel this connection.  Not only is this an important space for Indians, but also Indian women, as cooking and food is such a big part of our culture.  It may not be obvious for a one time visitor, but the Indian grocery store is a place to spend time with a second family and bond through our heritage and food.