A Banquet for Cecilia

How Cecilia Chiang Revolutionized

Chinese Food in America

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

pub. 4.29.2025

40 pages

Ages 4 - 8

Author: Julie Leung

   Illustrator: Melissa Iwai

Character: Cecilia Chiang

Overview:

"From an early age, Cecilia Chiang could be found delighting in the sounds and smells from her favorite room in her home—the kitchen. Little did Cecilia know that she would one day have to escape war and travel to a faraway country, destined to change Chinese cuisine in the United States forever.

Experience the dishes Cecilia Chiang enjoyed throughout her life as the seventh daughter in a large family to the owner of the famous Mandarin restaurant in San Francisco."

Tantalizing taste:

"During a time when Chinese food in America was seen as cheap and greasy, Cecilia Chiang served dishes that showcased the best of our homeland. She encouraged her diners to be open to something new and different.

Her first menu at the Mandarin included this introduction: 'Imagine you are a Chinese family…' A simple but revolutionary ask: to put yourself in someone else's shoes – perhaps a seventh daughter who once lived in a palace, peering into the kitchen to see the banquet emerge."

And something more: Julie Leung in the Author's Note explains: "Through Cecilia Chiang and the Mandarin, Americans were introduced to China's diversity of flavors and cooking styles. She presented Chinese cuisine as a fine – dining experience – worthy of western media, reviews and awards – and pioneered a culinary awakening in this country." And as someone who had the good fortune to dine at the Mandarin in San Francisco, I can agree!