Welcome back to The Migration Menu!! In this week’s episode, James and Luke reflect on the past two seasons of dining out and discussing migration journeys and culinary transformations, and preview what’s on the menu for Season Three…Dig in!

See more here:

Web: www.themigrationmenu.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheMigrationMenu

**Starters** (00:18 – 01:40)

Welcome to the new series, which takes us beyond our usual stomping ground of London to take in road trips to Newcastle and Edinburgh, and explores the phenomenon of the South Asian diaspora celebrity chef…

**Mains** (01:40-26:42)

James and Luke offer a behind-the-scenes glimpse of The Migration Menu’s origin story and at what they’ve learnt along the way. They also look back at the restaurants, restaurateurs, and others who have joined them on the journey, with shout-outs to…

Series One

01:49: Indra Hang Linden at Namaste Gurkha

08:12: Al Hyderabadi

08:44: Madhus

10:56: Sri Krishna Vada Pau

11:09: London Food Company

12:10: YAKO

12:31: Saravanaa Bhavan

*16:56: Shout out for our fellow anthropology podcast, The Anthropology Podcast!*

Series Two

18:03: London Buddhist Vihara

18:37: Guru Nanak Sikh Academy (GNSA) annual Langar

20:14: Graam Bangla

20:29: Maldivian Supper Club

21:10: The Kokum

22:53: Takharistan (Shepherd’s Bush) and Shiraz (Uxbridge Road)

23:42: GIFTOs

23:45: Behesht

24:25: Sohini Banerjee & Debbie Weekes-Bernard at Pitzhanger Gallery

24:46: The Vegetarian Brown Girls

25:21: Sathnam Sanghera at GNSA

25:35: The Gaze – the hidden lives of food entrepreneurs

**Dessert** (26:42-29:46)

James and Luke wrap up this week’s show with a round-up of what’s in store this series, where their interviews with celebrity South Asian diaspora chefs reveal some of the creative ways in which restaurateurs survive in a tough environment. Shout-outs to…

27:22: Tony Singh at Kalpna, live from Edinburgh

27.46: Asma Khan of Darjeeling Express, London

27.56: Asma Khan at the SOAS Food Studies’ Centre Annual Distinguished Lecture

28:04: Ravinder Bhogal of Jikoni, London

28:38: Aida Khan of Shola Karachi Kitchen

28:53: Special live recording from ClassicsFest, Newcastle, with food at The Lubber Kitchen and The Seven Bridges Café

29:30: Cyrus Todiwala of Café Spice Namaste

Works Cited:

Baumann, G. (1996) Contesting culture: Discourses of identity in multi-ethnic London. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special episode, James and Luke interview acclaimed author and Times journalist Sathnam Sanghera in front of a live audience at the Guru Nanak Sikh Academy in Hayes

**Starters** (01.14-02.49)

A quick introduction to Sathnam Sanghera and his work ahead of our live-recording.

**Mains** (02:50-30.58)

James and Luke discover what Sathnam ate growing up in Wolverhampton in the early 1980s, the intriguing ways in which British influences affected Punjabi food in the diaspora, and why his mother purposely didn’t teach him how to cook. We also discuss food and identity, and how it is used to express both love and anger; how Empire has left its indelible mark on how we eat the world over today; and why Sathnam doesn’t like the term “cultural appropriation.” Our conversation also explores Sathnam’s quest to find the perfect curry, why he once named Pizza Express as his favourite restaurant, and he favours Gymkhana and Jikoni over Dishoom.

**Dessert** (30.59-36.00)

Back in the studio, James and Luke reflect on their conversation with Sathnam and the discussion that followed it with the audience. They also gave a shoutout to Dr John Perkins of the Guru Nanak Sikh Academy – without whose help they couldn’t have held the event there – and the school’s catering team for laying on dal and rice, samosa and chai

Works Cited:

Collingham, Lizzie. 2017. The Taste of Empire: How Britain’s Quest for Food Shaped the Modern World. New York: Basic Books.

Jegathesan, Mythri. 2019. Tea and Solidarity: Tamil Women and Work in Post-War Sri Lanka. Seattle: University of Washington Press.

Mintz, Sidney W. 1986. Sweetness and Power: The Place of Sugar in Modern History. Manchester: University of Manchester Press.

Sanghera, Sathnam. 2008. The Boy with the Topknot: A Memoir of Love, Secrets and Lies in Wolverhampton. Penguin Books.

Sanghera, Sathnam. 2016. Marriage Material. Europa Editions, 2016.

Sanghera, Sathnam. 2021. Empireland: How Imperialism Has Shaped Modern Britain. Viking.

Sanghera, Sathnam. 2023. Stolen History: the Truth About the British Empire and How It Shaped Us. Penguin Books.

Sanghera, Sathnam. 2024. Empireworld: How British Imperialism Has Shaped the Globe. Penguin Books.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week James and Luke were in Moorgate as panelists for 'The Gaze', organised by Middlesex University in collaboration with Small Business Research + Enterprise Centre and the HOMELandS Research Centre at the University of Westminster. They were there to discuss the often-hidden lives of immigrant food entrepreneurs in London. Through oral histories, memories and everyday business, the event explores how entrepreneurship becomes more than a means of survival. It is a way to build belonging, community, and city’s cultural and economic fabrics.

The event was chaired by Dr. Rui Su, Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Middlesex Universiy.

Panelists:

Abdul Komor, Street Trading Service Manager, London Borough of Waltham Forest.

Baron Deschauer, Market Manager, Tooting Market.

So Mang Ham, Founder of the SoJu

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.