Documenting, studying, and celebrating the diverse food cultures of the changing American South.
Oral History Project Index
Atlanta's Buford HWY
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INTERVIEWS
Mirza Chowdhury: Panahar Bangladeshi Cuisine
Eddie Hernandez: Taqueria del Sol
Frank Ma: Retired Restaurateur
Hieu Pham: Crawfish Shack Seafood
Harold Shinn: Buford Highway Farmers Market
Interviews and photographs by Kate Medley.
Atlanta's Buford Highway
The Buford Highway Oral History Project explores a myriad of ethnic cuisines dotting old Atlanta Highway 13, stretching some thirty miles from interior Atlanta out to suburban Buford, Georgia. Whereas many major cities are divided into various and distinct ethnic neighborhoods (Chinatown, Little Italy, etc), the Buford Highway international corridor is jam-packed with strip malls featuring native cuisines of Atlanta’s varied immigrant population, one next door to another. One expansive parking lot may be shared by diverse eateries offering Chinese potstickers, take-away Salvadorian pupusas, Mexican-style beef tongue tacos, and a smattering of Korean barbecue. The businesses are always changing. When an old favorite closes, it’s guaranteed that a new spot is hot on its heels, often bearing a different country of origin. Buford Highway is a place where old suburban Atlanta is constantly being renovated by new and changing immigrant communities to create a more global South.
Featured here are the stories of first- and second-generation immigrants who brought the foods of their homelands with them and were introduced to and often inspired by other culinary traditions they encountered while living in Georgia. Meet Eddie Hernandez, who received a gift of collard greens and ended up putting them on the menu at his taqueria. Read about Frank Ma, the grandfather of Chinese restaurants in Atlanta, who loves to eat at the Waffle House. And listen to Harold Shinn talk about the role produce plays in the coming together of ethnicities along Atlanta’s Buford Highway.
