1/21/2024 0 Comments Sky chop suey menuYou know, the American West is resource rich and labor poor. Mark Johnson Chinese settlers in the West were key to building the West. John Hooks That is historian and author Mark Johnson. Mark Johnson Butte's Chinese community was the largest Chinese community in the Rocky Mountain West, at about a thousand.Īustin Amestoy And who are we hearing from there, John? Butte at this time is this bustling, packed mining city, and it's full of diversity with much of its population made of immigrants from all around the world, including China. John Hooks We got to go back to the late 1800s in Butte. How far back do we have to go to find the start of this story, John? It's a story about the Chinese-American experience of a distinct, authentic culture and cuisine that was created in this chaotic mixing bowl of the American West.Īustin Amestoy Well, consider me intrigued. But the story behind the Pekin is not just the story of this one restaurant. That sounds like a really multi-generational effort. It's a Chinese restaurant on the top floor of this old building in uptown, filled with these closed-curtain private dining booths.īut what's really significant about it is that it is the oldest, continually operating family owned Chinese restaurant in the country, kept running by members of the Tam family for over a century.Īustin Amestoy Wow. John Hooks The Pekin is an institution in Butte, which I experienced on a guided visit with the current owner, Jerry Tam. Well, I've definitely heard that name before, and I'm not even a Butte guy. A listener wanted to know what is the story behind the Pekin Noodle Parlor?Īustin Amestoy Huh. John Hooks The question this week is one I was well-situated for at my home base here in Butte. Welcome, John.Īustin Amestoy So what are we digging into this time around? By Montanans, for Montana, this is The Big Why.įor this episode, our Southwest Montana Reporter John Hooks is back. We'll answer questions large or small about anything under the Big Sky. This is a show about listener powered reporting. Austin Amestoy Welcome to The Big Why, a series from Montana Public Radio where we find out what we can discover together.
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