Chinese restaurants have the deepest culture of any cuisine. The Chinese were drinking tea as early as 3000 BC. Archaeologist has proven that rice was farmed along the Yang-tse River in 5000 BC. Rice will not grow in Northern China which is too cold and dry. There millet is grown and boiled before eating. Confucius lived from 551 to 479 B.C. and is recognized for creating standards for which grains, produce and cuts of meats were edible. What a task!
Chinese immigrants arrived in America during the 19th century to build railroads, dig mines and do hard industrial work and they brought their traditional cuisine along with them. The first Chinese restaurants were actually in California, during the Gold Rush. These local restaurants fed Chinese and non-Chinese alike and tales of the new cuisine soon spread east. Around the 1880s it reached Boston, and Chinese dishes were included on the menu alongside French fried potatoes! Initially Americans were cautious about this strange new food, but gradually it caught on in popularity.
Chinese cuisine really took off in the early 20th century when it suddenly became popular among the younger folk to eat more exotic ethnic fare. Chop Suey houses sprung up all over the USA and new words were added to the American language. Until 1965 it was mainly the Cantonese-speaking immigrants who dominated the industry, from the Toisan area, but as immigration restrictions were relaxed, more Chinese from other regions arrived in America. Top chefs, who cooked spicy Sichuan and Hunan dishes, introduced these flavors in New York restaurants and suddenly Chinese restaurants got rave reviews for their quality cuisine. The mass produced batter-fried version of Chinese dishes bore little resemblance to the authentic dishes, but it was popular and successful. Chinese vegetables were substituted for the more familiar and obtainable carrots, broccoli and tomatoes, and chicken feet were left firmly in the home country!
Most Chinese restaurants are family-owned, although there are a couple of successful American franchises. Nowadays it is the Fujianese immigrants who are buying and running the restaurants. Chinese cuisine remains as popular as ever especially the all-you-can-eat Chinese buffets. The trade has also developed a thriving demand for Chinese take-out food. Cheap, hot meals can be ordered and delivered in purpose-made containers to almost any home in suburban America.
Downtown Naperville restaurants count Phat Noodle as an option for Chinese food. Old Peking is a local favorite Mandarin Chinese Cuisine takes Chinese cooking up a notch.
Use our one click search for Naperville Chinese Restaurants or enter the name of an Chinese Restaurant in the search box below: