The massive influx of new immigrants from China has influenced and expanded the established eating habits of local Chinese-Americans in Southern California. While newcomers bring in new dishes to the country, local Chinese restaurants have transformed their cuisines to appeal to diverse appetites.

Damon Chu, president of the California-based Asian Food Trade Association, told the Global Times that demographic changes have been translated into culinary achievements. Cantonese cuisine, such as fried noodles and guotie (pan-fried dumplings), used to be the only representative of Chinese cuisine in Chinatown 30 years ago, and now the menus of Chinese restaurants have been diversified by a long list of Shanghai, Sichuan, and Northeastern China cuisines.

Local chefs say the integration of Asian and American food not only spurs improvement of cooking techniques, but also enriches people's dining experience. Will Tseng, a Chinese-American who immigrated to the US when he was 3 years old, told the Global Times that most of his Chinese food memories were about Cantonese restaurants and their roast chicken and BBQ pork during his childhood, but he recently got a very deep impression of Sichuan cuisine when he tasted the spicy sliced fish in hot chili oil for the first time.

The Los Angeles Chinatown and the city of Monterey Park, two major destinations of early Chinese immigrants in Southern California, have witnessed the ups and downs of Chinese restaurants. Some Chinese restaurants in Chinatown, which used to be fully occupied during their heydays, have had to shut down and change hands, while in other areas of the LA metropolitan area, chain restaurants from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan have become more popular.

The catering industry is a good choice for new immigrants as it focuses more on skills and labor instead of English proficiency.

Mabel Xia, the owner of a Beijing-style restaurant at Monterey Park, said that when she came to the country years ago, she was middle-aged and barely knew any English. She started the restaurant just because cooking was the only skill she could rely upon to earn a living, she noted.

Thanks to her family-inherited cooking techniques, Xia's restaurant attracted many fellow Beijingers. She then went further by catering to the various needs of her customers.

Chu echoed Xia, saying that changes in the catering industry are reflected in the diverse food supply channels as more Japanese and Korean food ingredients are sent into Chinese restaurants and innovations are made with multicultural food materials.

While hometown flavors cater to new immigrants' nostalgia, it is innovation and localization that can ultimately drive the business forward, added Xia.