South Asian Foods Most Americans Have Never Tried | Spice Road

Rupak Ginn dives into the flavors and stories behind some of Chicago’s most compelling South Asian food destinations. With writer Jyoti Chand as his guide, he visits Thattu, where Kerala’s bold culinary heritage takes center stage, Cafe Nova, a beloved Sri Lankan restaurant built on resilience and community, and Sukhadia’s, a sixth-generation family business carrying forward a centuries-old legacy of Indian sweets. #srilankanfood _____________________________________________________ Featuring Café Nova Sukhadia's Sweets and Snacks Thattu Jyoti Chand Vinod Kalathil Margaret Pak Kiso Sivarasa Jayant Sukhadia Sneh Sukhadia Host / Producer Rupak Ginn Director / Producer Vicky Lee Producer Sami Khan Executive Producers Carrie Lozano Lois Vossen Royd Chung Stephen Gong Donald Young Senior Manager, Short-Form Content Pamela Torno Supervising Producer Susan Cohen Editor Jaron Henrie-McCrea Director of Photography Jana McLain Second Camera Operator Lucinda Harstrick Additional Cinematography Sami Khan Assistant Camera Ian McAvoy Original Music Alam Khan Sound Recordist Alan Chow Post Sound Michael Gassert Colorist Jeff Sousa Conform Artist Jason Saulog Post Supervisor / Online Editor Kyle Crichton Assistant Editor Vicky Lee Archival Producer Adrián Gutiérrez Archival Researcher Miranda Jaramillo Morales Ornela Valdez Music Supervisor Jaron Henrie-McCrea Production Assistant Alex Von Bruchhaeuser Pre-Production Assistant Ishaan Bhattacharya Post Production Supervisor Raul Mendez Archival Footage and Images K T Arun Jyoti Chand Rupak Ginn Vinod Kalathil Won Kim Margaret Pak Kisothan Sivarasa Sneh Sukhadia Alamy/DVArchive-Retrofootage Chicago History Museum, ICHi-025847; Mukul Roy, photographer Chicago History Museum, ICHi-061457 Chicago History Museum, ICHi-092925; Mukul Roy, photographer CriticalPast NDTV Pond5/Ajka_Stindl Pond5/floristils Pond5/GovernmentFootage Pond5/StockFilm Pond5/StockFilm Pond5/Subas12345 Takeaway TheBabyStories-stock.adobe.com SPECIAL THANKS Nancy Redd Independent Lens Short-Form Funding Provided by: Corporation for Public Broadcasting John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Acton Family Giving Ford Foundation Jonathan Logan Family Foundation The Artemis Rising Foundation Park Foundation Wyncote Foundation Brandt Jackson Foundation The deNovo Initiative Action Circle for Independent Lens Spice Road is a co-production of MIRAFILMS, LLC and Independent Television Service (ITVS), and The Center for Asian American Media (CAAM), with funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). This program was produced by MIRAFILMS, LLC, which is solely responsible for its content. © 2026 MIRAFILMS LLC. All Rights Reserved.