Introduction
Globalization literature underscores the flows of people, information,
technologies, capital and ideas across national borders (Appadurai 1996). The contact
between cultures following these transnational flows has resulted in the widespread
exchange and transformation of cultural forms (Appadurai 1996, Featherstone 1995).
Responding to the call from some transnationalism and globalization writers, such as
Cook and Crang, for the need to ground globalization theory in specific empirical
materials, this paper seeks to analyze globalization through the mundane, everyday
consumption of food and drink, and by following a form of cultural commodity –
Thai food, or Thai cuisine – on its transnational routes. I start by giving a historical
overview of how Thai food has become internationalized and has reached a global
audience in cosmopolitan cities around the globe. Based on empirical observation of
Thai restaurants in Vancouver, I explore the processes Thai cuisine has undergone
when it enters transnational space and servesa global clientele. My field research
reveals that Thai restaurants in a North American city highlight the authenticity of the
Thai taste while at the same time adapting to local food customs.
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Although creative adaptation by ethnic restaurants in metropolitan cities might
have led us to imagine endless fusion and hybridity of cultural forms, I would like to
point out that there is no ‘pure culture’ to mix. Selected forms of Thai food along
various class lines and among regional diversity are constructed as “Thai cuisine” and
promoted internationally. This process reflects internal hierarchy behind the
formation of “Thai-ness” among Thais as well as the influence of the international
market in which Thai culture is selling. The rising popularity of Thai food at the
global level boosts national pride among Thais who often take “national image”
seriously. Reified “Thai-ness” has beenendorsed by the state in promoting the
country’s tourism industry and recently in the internationalization of Thai food where,
again, Thai culture has been marketed worldwide.