I know it doesn’t seem significant. There’s plenty of other food. Plus, we can still get takeout. But I grew up coming to these restaurants with my family. Going there was a real treat as a kid – taking in the savory aroma that fills the air, hearing the excited chatter and clinking of chopsticks all around you, and of course, feasting on all the varieties of delicious food. Every time I came back from college for the weekend, my parents would take me to eat dim sum – it was a huge part of our everyday life.

Most importantly, dim sum helped me better understand and appreciate my parents and our Chinese culture. I think I can speak for many American kids who have immigrant parents: There aren’t a lot of things in common between our upbringing and theirs. But food is our shared connection. Food isn’t just something you eat. When you look closely, the experience of dim sum is filled with the values of East Asian culture:

• pouring tea for the oldest person at the table first, and your own cup last
• serving food to others before yourself
• keeping an eye on everyone’s cup so you can refill it for them
• fighting to pay for the check (and never backing down, even if you have to chase down the waiter and force your Visa card into their hands) 
• and so on

All of the above embody community-oriented respect, care, and love for others. It’s how my parents showed how deeply they loved our family, even through the mundane act of eating at a restaurant. When my mom saves the biggest and best dumpling for me, or when my dad reaches across the table to fill my teacup first, I know it’s because they love me. And it’s a way for me to show my love in return – pouring their tea first, giving the best dim sum piece to them, (and yes, now that I’m a post-grad adult, literally fighting to pay that check). It’s not just nostalgia – dim sum is an essential part of my heritage, shaping how I’ve grown up, who I am, and who I want to become.

With COVID, it seemed like the pandemic would take these valuable moments away from younger generations. To be honest, it made me sad because I didn’t want them to grow up without having that experience, and thus a practical understanding of their cultural background. It’s a learning moment I want to pass on to kids, and share with other people too.

So I decided to write, create, and self-publish a book in hopes of sharing dim sum with younger generations, even as the restaurants are closed. It’s been a tough yearlong process creating Baby Bao at Dim Sum, but for me, it’s worth it! My hope is that parents can use this book not just as a cultural educational tool, but as an opportunity for bonding between them and their children. Through this story, I hope we can all appreciate dim sum as an avenue to love our families more, and continue to pass on the values embedded in it.