The group has been helping Asian restaurants fight the stigma and survive through social media

#StopAsianHate has been trending on social media, but one group has been fighting discrimination since the beginning of the pandemic.

It all started with a conversation over dinner. A few friends were talking about ways to fix a problem.

We wanted to make it a positive environment, co-creator of “Chow Down in Chinatown” Stevie Vu said.  There was a lot of xenophobic sentiment about Asian-owned businesses.

It’s how the Facebook group “Chow Down in Chinatown” was created.

It’s a place to highlight, showcase all these restaurants, Vu said.

Through the powers of food and Facebook, for the past year, the group has been helping Asian restaurants fight the stigma and survive through social media.

They are scared of Asian restaurants. So the group helped a huge amount to let people know, ok they are safe. They are clean, Alex Au-Yeung, owner of Phat Eatery, said.

And it’s worked.

For Kitty, a Facebook post about her restaurant Chung Wang Chinese BBQ was shared over 200 times.

A lot of people are afraid to go to a Chinese restaurant or Asian restaurant. That’s why we have this group to help the Chinese restaurants survive, Kitty said.

And that brought lines of customers, wrapped around the restaurant.

When there’s a business like really, really down, they get support so I really, really appreciate that, Kitty said.

The group has gotten over 15,000 members in the past year. But that’s a number they hope continues to grow, as they continue showcasing the incredible foods these restaurants have to offer.

And they’re not just recognizing restaurants in Southwest Houston. It’s eateries all over the city, including those at Katy Asian Town.

It’s brought life. It’s brought attention towards them, and it’s exactly what the group was created for to begin with, Vu said.

The group will stay online to help people open their minds and expand their menu.