Pad Thai Diplomacy
The popularity of Thai cuisine abroad is no coincidence.
Have you noticed that there are many Thai restaurants compared to the population of Thai immigrants in Western countries? In the US alone, there are 5,342 Thai restaurants for around 300,000 Thai-Americans. In contrast, there are 54,000 Mexican restaurants for around 36,000,000 Mexican-Americans. Why is Thai food so over-represented in the American restaurant space?
It turns out that the rise of Thai food is not a natural phenomenon. Since 2002, the Thai government has funded and supported thousands of restaurants around the world that make “authentic” Thai food through the Global Thai program. Although Westerners are becoming more adventurous eaters (i.e. more willing to try non-European food), Thailand was the first country to pioneer the concept of gastrodiplomacy. Gastrodiplomacy is a strategy countries use to promote their traditional foods to foreign audiences. It often helps countries improve their global reputation and increase tourism. You can learn more about gastrodiplomacy in the Quartz video below.
