A Place at the Nayarit

ABOUT THE BOOK: In a world that sought to reduce Mexican immigrants to invisible labor, the Nayarit was a place wherepeople could become visible once again, where they could speak out, claim space, and belong.

In 1951, Doña Natalia Barraza opened the Nayarit, a Mexican restaurant in Echo Park, Los Angeles. With A Placeat the Nayarit, historian Natalia Molina traces the life’s work of her grandmother, remembered by all who knewher as Doña Natalia––a generous, reserved, and extraordinarily capable woman. Doña Natalia immigrated alonefrom Mexico to L.A., adopted two children, and ran a successful business. She also sponsored, housed, andemployed dozens of other immigrants, encouraging them to lay claim to a city long characterized by anti-Latinxracism. Together, the employees and customers of the Nayarit maintained ties to their old homes whileproviding one another safety and support.

The Nayarit was much more than a popular eating spot: it was anurban anchor for a robust community, a gathering space where ethnicMexican workers and customers connected with their patria chica(their “small country”). That meant connecting with distinctive tastes,with one another, and with the city they now called home. Throughdeep research and vivid storytelling, Molina follows restaurant workersfrom the kitchen and the front of the house across borders and throughthe decades. These people's stories illuminate the many facets of theimmigrant experience: immigrants' complex networks of family andcommunity and the small but essential pleasures of daily life, as well ascross-currents of gender and sexuality and pressures of racism andsegregation. The Nayarit was a local landmark, popular with bothHollywood stars and restaurant workers from across the city andbeloved for its fresh, traditionally prepared Mexican food. But as Molina argues, it was also, and most importantly, a place where ethnic Mexicans and other Latinx L.A. residents could step into the fullness oftheir lives, nourishing themselves and one another. A Place at theNayarit is a stirring exploration of how racialized minorities create asense of belonging. It will resonate with anyone who has felt like anoutsider and had a special place where they felt like an insider.

Skylight Books of Los Feliz will sell copies of A Place at the Nayarit during the breakfast, which Professor Molina will gladly sign after her program concludes.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Natalia Molina is Distinguished Professor of American Studies and Ethnicityat the University of Southern California and is a 2020 MacArthur Fellow. Sheis the author of the award-winning books How Race Is Made in America:Immigration, Citizenship, and the Historical Power of Racial Scripts and Fitto Be Citizens? Public Health and Race in Los Angeles, 1879–1939 and coeditor of Relational Formations of Race: Theory, Method, and Practice.

ABOUT THE CLUB: Founded in 1925, the Los Angeles Breakfast Club still thrives with food, friendship, and fun. Our meetings are held in our clubhouse, Friendship Auditorium, located at 3201 Riverside Drive, near the corner of Los Feliz Boulevard, in Griffith Park. Best described as a variety show, attendees enjoy a catered breakfast, silly songs, club traditions, and an interesting presentation from a guest speaker.

TICKETS: Sales on LAbreakfastclub.com close 48 hours before breakfast. Non-members are $25 and Members are $18, utilizing a special promo code.

Please arrive between 6:45 - 7:00 AM sharp! Doors close at 7:15 AM. Your admission includes a buffet breakfast, enjoyment of our 97-year-old club traditions, plus a special presentation from our Speaker of the Week!

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- Surgical disposable face masks or medical-grade masks (i.e., KN95, KF94, N95) must be worn at all times unless actively eating or drinking.

- Cloth masks may only be worn if they sit on top of surgical disposable masks.

- Masks must cover the nose and mouth completely, and must not have any exhalation valves, vents, or holes of any kind.

- Remain 6 feet physically distanced wherever possible.

- The Los Angeles Breakfast Club requires proof of full vaccination, along with a government or education issued photo ID, upon arrival. Per the guidelines set by the CDC, full vaccination means that at least 14 days have passed since receiving the final dose of an FDA-authorized or WHO-listed COVID-19 vaccine. For anyone who is eligible, the LABC also requires attendees to have received booster shots. A one-month (30 day) grace period is given to those eligible but have not yet received booster shots. Booster shot eligibility is defined as:

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• Johnson & Johnson vaccine recipients ages 18-plus are eligible for a booster 2 months after their initial vaccine.

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