I think this is the first time that’s ever happened: I made a video at one restaurant, it went out of business, and then I made a video at the next restaurant that opened in the same spot.
If I’m being 100% honest with you, I’ve avoided going to Harry Food. One simple reason is the name. It throws me off, and I think it’s kind of funny. The restaurant is named after the husband of the couple who owns it. His name is Harry. But why not call it Harry’s Food instead of just Harry Food?
The name is easy to chuckle at. I know I have. But then I went in, met the owners, and realized the name might have more to do with our culture than with how they chose a name.
I wasn’t sure what to expect at Harry Food, aside from knowing I was going to get food. I finally decided to go in because I’d seen a few videos from fellow influencers and noticed their naan tacos.
That’s right, a place named Harry Food serves naan tacos. That’s because the owners are Indian. They serve a variety of things, from smoothies to traditional Indian dishes to fun reimaginings of Indian and American food, like their butter chicken pizza or their naan tacos. They have dishes like curry lamb over rice and mango lassi, but they also have regular pizza and smoothies, to name a few.
Talking to the owners, I learned that their decisions about the name, the logo, and even some of the dishes on the menu were shaped by the culture around them. They wanted to make sure they could attract customers and appeal to the area. I’m not sure if they were deciding between a more American name or a more traditional Indian one. But I do know that wanting to fit in and bring customers through the door influenced not just their name and logo, but their menu too.
Would they sell more chicken tikka masala if they put it in a taco made from naan instead of serving it as a traditional Indian entrée? Who can honestly know? But arguably, yes.
I’m the type of person who wants to truly get to know people who have immigrated to America through their food. I want to try their traditional dishes exactly as they’re meant to be. I probably won’t ever visit India, just based on timing and circumstance. As a married, 40-year-old man who runs his own business and has an almost 4-year-old at home, I’m probably not going to make it to India anytime in my life.
As much as I’d genuinely love to visit India one day and experience the culture, food, and history for myself, I’ll most likely have to rely on meeting people from India who have immigrated to America: the ones who have come here, opened restaurants, and settled down in the communities I visit.
I want to try traditional Indian food. I’ll just have to hope I can find a traditional Indian restaurant and learn about the place, the people, the culture, and the flavors through the menu and the owners themselves.
I’m happy to say that over the years, I’ve done just that. Not that I’ve learned everything from my visits to Indian restaurants. But when I visit an international restaurant, I try to make a point of asking questions without prying. Where are they from? When did they come to America, and why? Then I ask about the flavors, the dishes, and the spices.
Eating food from different places is one of the most enjoyable parts of what I do. Don’t get me wrong, I love the food from New York and our various regions, and understanding how something was created and why. But I also love trying foods from foreign lands I may never visit.
So I think it’s important that we ask ourselves a question. If someone immigrated to our community from another country, would they feel comfortable enough? Would they feel safe enough? Would they feel like they could be successful enough to open a restaurant serving their traditional food, with a traditional name? Or would they worry that our community wouldn’t embrace them?
I hope I’m the type of person who lives in a community that supports international restaurants and the people who run them enough that they’d feel safe opening a traditional restaurant in my neighborhood.
So I highly encourage you to get out and visit Harry Food in Fairport. Is it alone worth a three-hour drive? No. But it’s definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area.
