Schema Magazine

Photo courtesy of gastrophoria.com

For some, "fusion" cuisine calls to mind Le Cordon Bleu-trained European chefs seasoning and saucing Western dishes with foreign flavours: a cocktail laced with sake, a chicken salad sprinkled with sesame seeds and honey, and so on. But the rising trend nowadays is what one writer calls "Asian soul food": a bold combination of Southern, Asian and Latin food that mixes haute cuisine with junky street food.

Photo courtesy of theatlantic.com

The rise of Asian soul food matches the migration of inventive young chefs from high-class restaurants to city streets. Nowadays, in most major cities, you can find all manner of funky creations in street food carts. Conventional comfort foods like grilled cheese and doughnuts are turning deluxe, and deliciously unpretentious ethnic mashups are becoming commonplace. And Vancouver is no exception.