For the last month Americans have been watching soccer with the World Cup being played on U.S. soil for the first time in more than 30 years.  The final game is this weekend.

As people from around the globe visit, the tournament has highlighted a sharing of cultures. Not only as people show off their own communities in support of their national teams, but also as tourists try American cuisine.

Videos on social media have shown people from Europe coming over and being impressed by the food. That raises the question of what makes the culinary landscape in the U.S., a country founded by immigrants, so different.

Chef Nick Sanchez is an immigrant who serves as the director of the Patchwork Culinary Project. He joins The Metro to discuss the impact of immigrants and refugees on the country’s culinary landscape.

“They bring their food and culture and their flavors with them,” Sanchez say. “Those flavors eventually become our daily meal staples.”

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Hear the full conversation using the media player.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and stream on-demand. Never miss an episode — subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, NPR, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Longtime chef Tyrrell Hutchins curates meals with a dual purpose: connect ancestral traditions with contemporary technique. He demonstrates this through his Happy Sunday pop-up events. It’s an immersive multi-course dining experience that takes place every other month.

On June 14, the menu will feature Black American cuisine in anticipation of the Juneteenth holiday.

Hutchins joined The Metro to explain what inspired this month’s  menu and the Happy Sunday format. Additionally, Hutchins discussed why it’s important to connect and work with local farmers.

“I feel like it’s very vital to capitalize on the things around us,” Hutchings said. “Our urban farmers are using a lot of ingenuity to create and produce and I want to highlight what they’re doing at the highest level.” 

Hear the full conversation using the media player above.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and stream on-demand.

Never miss an episode — subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, NPR, or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro