Meanings of refugee’s ethnic food in the city of São Paulo from the perspective of welcoming

Abstract

This article discusses the different meanings of ethnic food for enterprising refugees in the city of São Paulo, from the perspective of reception, and its object of study is the sale of so-called ethnic/traditional food, in small businesses. From a survey of articles, we sought to investigate the presence of welcoming and sociability in the ethnic food trade, through qualitative analysis. In addition, semi-structured interviews were carried out in loco with enterprising refugees from Syria, Palestine, Turkey, Uganda and Venezuela, in order to investigate the context of refuge, ethnic origin, motivations to undertake in the area of gastronomy and meanings of their food from origin. After content analysis of the dialogic elements of the interviews, triangulation was performed with dimensions inherent to the theory of hospitality. The results show that the refugees interviewed have very different histories of reception upon their arrival in Brazil. In addition to sustenance, ethnic food provides visibility to their culture, customs, and realities, which differ from those portrayed in the media – often characterized by conflict, war, and poverty. Moreover, through ethnic food, new social relationships are established.