The first time I ate at a Dominican restaurant was in New York City nearly a decade ago. After years of regularly eating Mexican-influenced foods in my hometown of Los Angeles, I had developed a taste for spicy cuisines. While I could distinguish my Dominican meal comprising mashed plantains, salami, fried cheese, and eggs from Southern California’s Mexican fare, I had foolishly assumed that all Latin foods were intrinsically hot. My short-sighted perspective came into view when, in response to my request, the server at the Dominican eatery informed me they did not carry hot sauce. At that moment, I realized I was inadvertently reproducing a reductionist imaginary of Latin peoples and their foods. Although seemingly benign, I soon recognized how easily group distinctions are erased and how stereotypes can have consequences for racialized people. My experience also revealed how respecting group differences—precisely as products of different histories, expressions of...

You do not currently have access to this content.