FRESH OFF THE BOAT

This is a brash, moving, and potent take on the first-generation immigrant's journey—and a bold redefinition of American identity for the 21st century. It’s a perfect read for fans of foodies, memoir lovers, and anyone interested in understanding the ever-evolving state of the immigrant experience. The New York Post dubbed Eddie "the next Anthony Bourdain," Time profiled him as the "guy you should be looking at"; and the Wall Street Journal called his restaurant Baohaus the "epitome of Asian street food."

Eddie Huang was born in the American South to FOB ("fresh off the boat") Taiwanese parents. While his father improbably launched a chain of steakhouses, Eddie burned his way through American culture, defying every "model minority" stereotype along the way. He obsessed over football, fought the All-American boys who called him a chink, partied like a maniac, sold drugs with his crew, got thrown in jail, and idolized hiphop legend Tupac. His anchor was food, from making southern-style ribs with the Haitian chefs in dad's restaurants, to cooking noodles in his mother's kitchen (where she kept extra-long chopsticks handy for quick discipilnary whacks), to haunting the midnight markets of Taipei when he was shipped off to the homeland. After further misadventures as an unlikely lawyer, street fashion designer, and stand-up comic, Eddie finally threw everything he loved--his past, his present, his family, and food--into his own restaurant, Baohaus, the superhot East Village hangout that has made him into one of this generation's biggest food stars. Driven by Eddie's vivid and intimate storytelling, the book combines a portrait of a dysfunctional immigrant family with Eddie's hilarious outsider observations of American culture and lovely meditations on cooking.
Funny, raw, and moving, this is the story of the making of a chef, and more than that, the forging of a new notion of Asian-American—and American-- identity for the 21st century. The story of first-generation Asian Americans has been a hot topic, from the bestselling and controversial BATTLE HYMN OF THE TIGER MOTHER by Amy Chua. FRESH OFF THE BOAT dives headfirst into this lively discussion, providing a fresh new take on the Chinese-American experience.
Eddie Huang hosts a show for ViceTV, Munchies; hosted a Cooking Channel show, Cheap Eats; and has co-hosted episodes of Anthony Bourdain's 24-Hour Layover. His Twitter feed (@MrEddieHuang) and blog (http://thepopchef.blogspot.com/) are must-reads for foodies. This is his first book.