In Heart of Gathering, we shine a light on event creators who bring together niche communities and share their passions with the world. Take a look at the story behind each creator, and see how their passions have helped them find and build their unique community. Watch MAMA’s full story below.
Looking around at the LA Fashion District parking lot that serendipitously became the home of MAMA’s Nightmarket, Jared Jue can’t help but get a little emotional. “We all kinda knew that this was meant to be,” he says of the space, which was at one time home to the City Market of Los Angeles, a wholesale market established in 1909 by Chinese, Japanese, and Russian immigrants.
Jue felt drawn to the space after visiting a nearby location that wasn’t right. When he found out the history of the market and the immigrants who established it, he knew MAMA’s Nightmarket had found its home.
Inspired by the famous night markets of Asia, Jue saw an opportunity to represent Los Angeles’ often-overlooked immigrant-owned restaurants. “Preserving immigrant culture through food” is his mission. The best way to give voice to these communities, he says, is through their flavors. Food is “the one piece that everyone can share easily without having to speak the same language,” Jue says.
Jue’s goal is to bring awareness to the ethnic food that exists in the city every day. By exposing Angelenos to these foods — coconut snail, for example — he hopes they will seek them out on their own time. “We’re really bringing different corners of LA together through the food and the importance of what these dishes represent, which are the stories that they’re built on,” he says.
Come for the Food, Stay for the Good Times
Food is what brings people to MAMA’s Nightmarket, but the event is so much more. In addition to highlighting the restaurants of Los Angeles’ immigrant communities, MAMA’s Nightmarket is a party — including not just food but karaoke, arcade games, a full bar, and other fun.
It wasn’t an easy road. The first Nightmarket was set to launch in March 2020. Like so many other events during the pandemic, MAMA’s Nightmarket was put on hold. But as Jue watched the very restaurants he hoped to feature at the market struggling due to the pandemic, his mission of preserving immigrant culture through food became even more important.
This immediate need gave birth to MAMA’s Driveway Kitchen. Jue worked with the restaurants to create pre-order menus and set up satellite delivery solutions.
“We sold these meals by telling their stories,” Jue says, “During that time, it really connected a certain community, especially during a very unique time for everyone.” Then, when the Nightmarket was set to launch again in March 2022, the pandemic once again stopped it in its tracks. But Jue and his Nightmarket kept adapting. Eventually, in May 2022, during Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the first Nightmarket launched.
Finding a Center
MAMA’s Nightmarket was born out of Jue’s own passion. As a fifth-generation Chinese-Japanese American, Jue practices Tai Chi and attributes his interest in f preserving art and culture to his background and practice. He uses the Chinese martial art to “reset” himself in the mornings — and help him with problem solving, an especially important element to event planning.
“If you can find the center of something, you can find that solution,” he says. Traveling has also inspired his love for food and culture. People don’t realize just how much international cuisine can be found in Los Angeles. “There is a lot to be excited about here in Los Angeles and in the United States,” he says. “It seems very obvious, but it’s not.”
Jue’s instinct that others might share his desire to explore LA’s rich immigrant culture and cuisine was right. The largest MAMA’s Nightmarket served authentic ethnic dishes to more than 5,000 guests. “Throw the event that you really want to go to yourself,” he says. Jue and the MAMA team are just getting started telling immigrant stories through food. Even more big things are to come, Jue says. ”We’re just stacking the foundation still for something really big.”
See how Jared brings immigrant culture to Los Angeles through food.
Check out more of our “Heart of Gathering” video series starring Legacy Boxing Club, Mountain Stage, Oddities Flea Market, SoulfulofNoise, and Marrow.
