When Liz F. Tzeng came to Baltimore from New York in the early 2000s to attend Morgan State University, she wasn’t planning on building a food business in Charm City.
But Baltimore eventually became home, and what Tzeng felt was missing from the city’s food landscape helped plant the seed for Paradise Island Cuisine, a Caribbean-Asian fusion concept that is now bringing its distinctive menu to farmers markets and events throughout the Baltimore area.
Tzeng recently appeared on WJZ’s “WJZ At 9” to discuss the story behind Paradise Island Cuisine and where Baltimore residents can find the business around the city.
Coming from New York, Tzeng was accustomed to a food scene where different cultures existed side by side. Caribbean, Asian, Latin and African influences weren’t difficult to find, and food represented considerably more than something to eat. It was culture, identity and community.
Baltimore offered Tzeng something different.
At Morgan State, she found a community that welcomed her and helped turn what was supposed to be a college destination into a place she would eventually call home. She also became acquainted with Baltimore’s own unmistakable food traditions—from chicken boxes and half-and-half to the city’s love affair with seafood.
But she still wanted some of the flavors and cultural variety she remembered from New York.
That eventually became part of the idea behind Paradise Island Cuisine.
The company describes its foundational food cultures as Haitian and Taiwanese, but the menu doesn’t stop there. Paradise Island combines Caribbean and Asian influences with dishes inspired by several other culinary traditions.
That means a Paradise Island menu can move from spicy Caribbean jerk chicken and Haitian black mushroom rice to Thai basil catfish, oxtail quesadillas, Caribbean vegan basmati paella and Japanese-style omurice fried rice omelets.
It’s fusion in the literal sense of the word.
But Tzeng’s idea wasn’t simply about putting different flavors on the same plate. Wellness became another part of the concept.
She wanted to challenge the idea that eating with health in mind meant abandoning the seasonings, ingredients and traditions that make cultural food what it is. Paradise Island’s menu consequently includes vegan and vegetarian selections alongside seafood, chicken, oxtail and other traditional favorites.
The company’s own story connects that philosophy to its families’ experiences with food and health, looking back toward generations of plant-based culinary traditions while incorporating influences from other cultures.
For Tzeng, getting there wasn’t immediate.
Building Paradise Island meant dealing with the less glamorous realities behind entrepreneurship: financial pressure, transportation problems, staffing, family responsibilities and the everyday challenge of keeping a food operation moving.
Then COVID-19 changed the conversation surrounding food.
The pandemic pushed health, diet and wellness much further into mainstream discussion. For Tzeng, those ideas weren’t new. They were already part of the philosophy she had been developing through Paradise Island.
Today, the company is taking that philosophy directly to customers through farmers markets, festivals and other community events while maintaining a Baltimore kitchen at 210 S. Central Avenue.
And the business has traveled beyond Baltimore. Paradise Island says its food has been served at events and markets in multiple states and Washington, D.C., while its mobile operation has allowed the company to introduce the concept to customers outside Maryland.
Still, Baltimore remains an important piece of the story.
Tzeng arrived in the city as a Morgan State student looking for an education and found a community that ultimately became part of her identity. Years later, she’s contributing something back to that community through food.
Paradise Island Cuisine isn’t trying to replace Baltimore’s chicken boxes, crab cakes or half-and-half.
It’s adding another flavor to the table.
And in a city made up of neighborhoods, cultures and generations with their own food traditions, Tzeng is betting there’s room on that table for jerk chicken, Haitian rice, Thai basil fish and a little Taiwanese influence too.