New Haven has a rich history of food that has been deeply influenced by immigrants over the years, slowly changing New Haven’s food culture as a whole. Hispanic, French, Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Italian, and more—New Haven has more diverse food than you can imagine. From Pepe’s Pizza to House of Naan, let’s get into the history of it.

When people started immigrating to New Haven, those of the same ethnicity were generally clumped together because they shared culture, habits, and practices so they felt more comfortable around each other. This eventually led to communities forming into neighborhoods, and some of these neighborhoods became famous for their food. You might have heard of a few, such as “Little Italy,” which is more commonly known as Wooster Square.

The recent wave of immigrants from the Middle East brings many new forms of culture. My personal favorite foreign restaurant is called Mamoun’s. It is a Middle Eastern falafel sit-down or take-out place. The restaurant projects a pleasant vibe and the staff that work there are very kind. It doesn’t look this way on the outside, but the authenticity, taste of their food, and homemade drinks definitely make up for it.

In downtown New Haven, you can find an original: Louis’ Lunch. In 1900, Louis Lassen, an immigrant himself from Denmark, put together two pieces of bread with a meat patty in between and the first ever hamburger was created. Louis’ doesn’t allow you to put ketchup on your burger because the “original” supposedly didn’t have any on it. They still use white toast and cut the burger in half diagonally. After all these years, the Lassen Burger, still served on paper plates, remains the same as it was when Louis’ Lunch was first started back in 1900.

With more current immigration, an abundance of restaurants and bakeries serving food from Spanish-speaking countries can be found, many of which are located on Grand Avenue in Fair Haven. Some examples are El Coqui, Cositas Deliciosas, and Mi Lupita. At Mi Lupita, there’s an abundance of freshly baked breads and pastries lining the shelves of the small shop’s walls. Yolanda Guzman, the woman who started the business, is from Mexico. There, she baked one of her specialties, the nutty, buttery pan de fiesta which she now shares with New Haven.

My favorite sushi place is a small restaurant in a vacant lot near the Yale Bowl by the name of Jerry San’s. It can go unnoticed very easily as it doesn’t look like much, especially given its location. It’s only six blocks from my house, so I walk there all the time. I go there so much that I am friends with most of the waiters and chefs there. The chef who started it, Jerry San, is still the head chef there. Jerry was professionally trained in Forest Hills, New York. After five years of hard training, he built his reputation up and, in 1999, he opened Jerry San’s and still works there! Jerry San’s is very authentic, with cheap prices and authentic pictures hanging from the wall. It makes you feel like you’re at a humble Airbnb in Japan!

What ties these places together is that they all have immigrant heritage,and to this day still add to the rich diversity of flavors that combine, educate and delight the New Havener’s palate.