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Wandering Spoon

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Story Map  |  May 2015

The California Table: Hangtown Fry

      One of San Francisco's oldest and most iconic dishes is Hangtown Fry. First served at a mining camp in the Sierra Foothills, this luxurious blend of tender eggs and deep-fried oysters tells the story of the city's golden boom times.

During early shortages, as 49ers streamed into San Francisco more quickly than the frontier city could absorb, chicken eggs could sell for 50 cents each (just over $14.00 in 2014).

From the hard work of early entrepreneurs in the egg industry to the gilded tastes of lucky prospectors, read more about Hangtown Fry.

What’s New

Contact me about

Stories

Learn more about my skills and experience as a mixed-methods researcher, narrative writer, and strategist working in accessible and sustainable food systems. I’m happy to explore with you the diverse ways I can support your organization’s mission-based goals.

Art

As a member of the artist collective Survival Project, I still have a few copies of Journey. It’s a layered story-map we printed to accompany our multi-sensory installation about life-changing journeys through difficult terrain, a project that extended our exploration of issues in our previous work, Famine.

Food & Micro-Entrepreneurship

Are you looking to launch a small business that melds your culinary passion with community-based values? Are you still procrastinating on calculating your cost of ingredients? Do P&L and Cash Flow statements blur together? Are you looking for someone to help you set deadlines and provide professional accountability? If so, I’m here to help! Please contact me to explore how I can support your dreams of self-employment in the food world.

Email Me

thy+hello@wanderingspoon.com

Pun Stuff

Shirts, Aprons, Totes

Designed by my BFF, Bryan Wu

More Projects

Leah’s Pantry is a wonderful organization that provides nutrition and cooking programs to underserved communities throughout California.

Asian Culinary Forum brings together a diverse community of chefs, farmers, academicians,  artists, writers, entrepreneurs, and home cooks to explore issues connected to Asian food around the world.

Check out two personal mini-projects below. The first traces the geography and history of one of San Francisco’s iconic dishes. The second one follows water in all its forms along its meandering journey to the city.

Happy Harvest Season!

As 2023 unfolds into a new year, I continue working with my nonprofit clients, including one especially close to my heart, SF-based Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center. As an instructor and coach focused at RenCenter (and an alum myself), I guide diverse micro-entrepreneurs toward completing their business plans and launching their dreams.

I also remain dedicated to consulting with organizations working to solve critical issues of food security, especially those working to ensure access to basic resources for healthful cooking and eating. As part of my community-building toolkit, I’ve been expanding my qualitative research skills, which now encompass community-led oral history, inclusive meeting facilitation, and consensus workshopping. 

Please stay in touch. Although I no longer teach cooking classes, do let me know how you’ve been keeping meals spiritually nourishing for those in your circle. Share with me your favorite simple, comforting recipes. And, as always, send any questions you have about healthful food and cooking on a budget...I’m here to help.

xoxo,

Thy

Story Map  |  May  2015                                Source: NASA, Earth Observatory

From Sea to Sink: The Journey of Water to SF

The movement of water from vast oceans to the faucets in our kitchens, while directed by the ingenuity of human engineering, still follows the rules of science. This series explores the different forms that H20 takes along that long and complex journey.

With every record-breaking drought, understanding the nature of water is even more critical as we envision a more sustainable future.

© Thy Tran