It's hard to believe that there was a time before there was Chinese food in the United States.
However, the tipping point came in 1961, when Chiang opened the famed Mandarin restaurant in San Francisco, and brought Chinese haute cuisine and its culture to the United States.
Now, a documentary on her life is in the works.
The movie, "Soul of a Banquet" by Wayne Wang Productions, details Chiang's early life in China and her experience after moving to the U.S.
"I have to say something about the fish. In China, the fish always left. Because, Fish in China pronounce 'Yu', in Chinese we says '富贵有余(fu gui you yu)', and this is because the sound 'Yu', means you're going to leave something for next generation, for tomorrow."
94-year-old chef Cecelia Chiang says that she found it difficult to find real Chinese cuisine when she first arrived to the United States. Then she decided she really have to do something, try to educate Americans and tell them what the real Chinese food is.
Before moving to America, Chiang had never cooked before. She started cooking when raising her two children with her husband and decided to open a restaurant in San Francisco.
"I'm not cook at all, then after I came to this country I of course could not afford to have cook. So I started to learn how to cook. Started with rice, making rice and soup and then cook the meals for two of my children."
Chiang says she never thought there would be a movie about her and her life, but now her mission to educate the American public about Chinese food has been accomplished.
"I really never thought about it. I just thought what can I do? The most important thing, I just want to really educate American about the Chinese food and I think I did it."
Chinese haute cuisine, brought to America by chefs like Cecelia Chiang, is changing the perception of Chinese food in the United States. Going to a Chinese restaurant carries a whole new meaning nowadays, as it is no longer synonymous with a cheap takeaway or quick bite in a Chinatown cafe.
For CRI, I'm Zhang Ru.
