A Place at the Nayarit - How a Mexican Restaurant Nourished a Community (Hardcover)

MacArthur Genius Natalia Molina unveils the hidden history of the Nayarit, a restaurant in Los Angeles that nourished its community of Mexican immigrants with a sense of belonging. In 1951, Dona Natalia Barraza opened the Nayarit, a Mexican restaurant in Echo Park, Los Angeles. With A Place at the Nayarit, historian Natalia Molina traces the life's work of her grandmother, remembered by all who knew her as Dona Natalia--a generous, reserved, and extraordinarily capable woman. Dona Natalia immigrated alone from Mexico to L.A., adopted two children, and ran a successful business. She also sponsored, housed, and employed dozens of other immigrants, encouraging them to lay claim to a city long characterized by anti-Latinx racism. Together, the employees and customers of the Nayarit maintained ties to their old homes while providing one another safety and support. The Nayarit was much more than a popular eating spot: it was an urban anchor for a robust community, a gathering space where ethnic Mexican workers and customers connected with their patria chica (their "small country"). That meant connecting with distinctive tastes, with one another, and with the city they now called home. Through deep research and vivid storytelling, Molina follows restaurant workers from the kitchen and the front of the house across borders and through the decades. These people's stories illuminate the many facets of the immigrant experience: immigrants' complex networks of family and community and the small but essential pleasures of daily life, as well as cross-currents of gender and sexuality and pressures of racism and segregation. The Nayarit was a local landmark, popular with both Hollywood stars and restaurant workers from across the city and beloved for its fresh, traditionally prepared Mexican food. But as Molina argues, it was also, and most importantly, a place where ethnic Mexicans and other Latinx L.A. residents could step into the fullness of their lives, nourishing themselves and one another. A Place at the Nayarit is a stirring exploration of how racialized minorities create a sense of belonging. It will resonate with anyone who has felt like an outsider and had a special place where they felt like an insider.

General

Imprint:	University of California Press
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	April 2022
First published:	2022
Authors:	Natalia Molina
Dimensions:	203 x 152 x 30mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover - Cloth over boards
Pages:	312
ISBN-13:	978-0-520-38548-1
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > American history > General Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Ethnic studies > General Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Population & demography > Immigration & emigration Books > Humanities > History > World history > From 1900 > General Books > History > American history > General Books > History > World history > From 1900 > General
LSN:	0-520-38548-9
Barcode:	9780520385481

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