The NextShark Team Shares What’s on Their Thanksgiving Table

Some of our writers share the foods consume during this holiday.

My family isn’t the turkey type of family. My aunt actually thinks that turkey itself is really dry. One Thanksgiving, we decided to make a seafood plate with juicy lobster instead. Other years in the past, we’ve had bánh cuốn, a steamed rice cake-like dish. This really soft, meaty dish is so easy to eat because they are so thin. One of my personal favorite desserts, as much as I love apple and pumpkin pie, is bánh tiêu, a Vietnamese hollow donut. It’s delish when you tear this warm dough in half and insert a scoop of vanilla ice cream inside. Of course, I do still enjoy my aunt’s brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes. Having both Vietnamese and traditional American Thanksgiving food makes this holiday one of my favorites.

So, here’s the thing. My parents are Dominican; my father is half-Chinese, and that’s the part that shows, so that’s the part people acknowledge. But culturally, we mostly adhere to Latinx family norms. And Latinx families, to my knowledge, don’t usually eat turkey. This year we’ll be having some fish and chicken and an assortment of things; other years we’ve had lasagna, which is a family staple. I don’t know what it is about Latina mothers, but it seems to me that every single one of them has an ace-in-the-hole lasagna recipe that their children brags is The Best Lasagna. I’ve had quarrels with my friends, including my girlfriend, over whose mother has the best lasagna. And it’s all very silly, especially considering that everyone’s taste is a little different, and also considering the fact that my mother makes the best lasagna.

We never did the whole traditional Thanksgiving thing growing up. Probably the opposite of having a huge family feast, my mom and I would go to our favorite Hong Kong style cafe in Chinatown. All of her family lives in Hong Kong, so unlike many other families, our meals were much quieter. We would get the Thanksgiving plate special off the menu– your choice of turkey, ham, prime rib along with mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. As a traditional HK cafe, the meal also came with bread, soup, and a dessert. Did I mention this would be around $18? Unfortunately, due to surging rent prices in San Francisco, that cafe has since closed down. This year, we’re planning on eating Chinese BBQ such as roast pork and duck!