NEW YORK -- Chinese cuisine in America has come a long way from its early incarnation. For a long time, Chinese-American food tended to be thought of as cheap, greasy fast food to be eaten directly from the boxes it came in. But these days, Chinese restaurants are featured in fashion magazines and the cuisine is curated in museums, marking a big change in the way it is perceived.
Fortune cookies, egg foo yong and General Tso's chicken are bastardized versions of Chinese food that regularly feature on menus in the U.S. Popular impressions of Chinese food as low-quality fare were partly caused by chefs forced into the business. Immigration law in the late 19th century restricted employment for Chinese-American immigrants -- most of them men -- leaving many with little choice but to work in laundromats and restaurants.
