Cecilia Chiang? s road to Chinese food 江孙芸的中国美食路

彭姝喆

美国中餐女王江孙芸，漂泊万里，跌宕数十年，获得餐饮界的“奥斯卡奖”，让世界看到中国美食的传承。

1 Cecilia Chiang， named the“mother of Chinese food in America”， a famed restaurateur who helped introduce real Chinese food to America in the 1960s， died on October 28， 2020 at the age of 100. Opened in 1961， Cecilia s legendary San Francisco restaurant， the Mandarin， was arguably the best Chinese restaurant in the US for over 30 years. She challenged the American idea of Chinese food and transformed their appreciation for authentic Chinese cuisine.

2 Ms Chiang was born in Wuxi in 1920 as the seventh daughter in a wealthy family. After her parents died， Cecilia managed the businesses  finances while still in her teens.

3 Ms Chiang came to San Francisco in 1959. Once in San Francisco， she met two acquaintances who wanted to open a restaurant. Ms Chiang agreed to put up a huge deposit. But when the two women quit， Ms Chiang found to her horror that the deposit was not refundable （可退還的）. She decided to open the restaurant herself. “I began to think that if I could create a restaurant with Western style service and the dishes that I was most familiar with—the delicious food of northern China—maybe my little restaurant would succeed，” she wrote in her book.

4 The Mandarin， which was opened in 1961 as a small restaurant， introduced customers to mainly Sichuan， Shanghai and Canton dishes. The early days were especially tough. But little by little， Chinese diners， and a few Americans， came regularly. Overnight，the tables filled and became a huge success.

5 Ms Chiang enjoyed many extraordinary honors. In 2013， when she was 93， she received the long overdue Lifetime Achievement Award from the James Beard Awards， known as the“Culinary（烹饪的） Oscars” at New York s Lincoln Center. Cecilia considered it her legacy to have redefined what Americans know about Chinese food and culture. In her acceptance speech， Cecilia said， “This is an incredible honor. James Beard was one of my close personal friends， so this award holds a special place in my heart.”

Ⅰ. Choose the best answers according to the text

Detail

1. When did Ms Chiang start to manage the businesses  finances？

A. In the 1920s.

B. In the 1930s.

C. In the 1950s.

D. In the 1960s.

2. Why did Ms Chiang open a restaurant alone？

A. She wanted to live a better life.

B. She needed to get her deposit back.

C. She decided to help her acquaintances.

D. She wished to spread Chinese food across America.

3. What can be Ms Chiang s chief achievement？

A. She changed American s eating habits.

B. She won an Oscar award for her restaurant.

C. She showed Americans the charm of Chinese food.

D. She recorded many recipes for Chinese dishes in her book.

4. Which of the following best describes Ms Chiang？

A. Smart but stubborn.

B. Adventurous but careless.

C. Devoted and brave.

D. Enthusiastic and ambitious.

Ⅱ. Discussion

Have you ever heard of Cecilia Chiang before？ Can you search for more information about her？

Ⅰ. Analyze some difficult sentences in the text

1. Cecilia Chiang， named the “mother of Chinese food in America”， a famed restaura

teur who helped introduce real Chinese food to America in the 1960s， died on October 28， 2020 at the age of 100. 江孙芸，被誉为“美国中餐之母”，是一位著名的餐馆老板，她在20世纪60年代把地道的中国美食引入美国，于2020年10月28日去世，享年100歲。

【点石成金】本句中，named为过去分词作后置定语;a famed restaurateur who

helped introduce real Chinese food to America in the 1960s作同位语，其中，who引导的

是一个定语从句，先行词为a famed restaurateur。

2. But when the two women quit， Ms Chiang found to her horror that the deposit was not refundable. 但当这两名女士离开时，江女士惊恐地发现，押金是不可退还的。

【点石成金】本句中，that引导的是一个宾语从句，to her horror意为“使她震惊的是”。

Ⅱ. Memorize some text centered chunks

manage the businesses？蒺 finances 管理企业的财务

agree to do sth 同意做某事

decide to do sth 决定做某事

be familiar with 对……熟悉

little by little 一点一点地

acceptance speech 获奖感言

close personal friend 亲密的私人朋友