{"id":2156,"date":"2025-05-26T10:34:36","date_gmt":"2025-05-26T17:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theredlandsbulldog.com\/?p=2156"},"modified":"2025-07-02T16:01:04","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T23:01:04","slug":"behind-the-scenes-of-the-asa-night-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theredlandsbulldog.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/26\/behind-the-scenes-of-the-asa-night-market\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Scenes of the ASA Night Market"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Asian Student Association (ASA) held their fourth annual Night Market<\/a> on Feb. 22. ASA is a University of Redlands student organization founded in 2015 that celebrates Asian cultures<\/a> with several events throughout the year. This club is open to all students, including those without Asian heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a chance for students to get to know each other, connect with others on campus and with alumni and find a place where they feel heard during their college experience,\u201d ASA President Tracy Lam \u201825 and Treasurer Jenna Overmeer \u201825 said in a subsequent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ASA cabinet members shared that the Night Market was started to raise campus awareness about cultural diversity. One of ASA\u2019s biggest events, it also draws attention to their organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an amazing night that works to make the Asian community at Redlands feel seen and gives everyone the opportunity to try amazing foods from all around Asia,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preparing for the Night Market, Lam and Overmeer said, is a year-long process. Budgeting, booth leader sign-ups, donation requests and other logistics start in fall semester. Students who want to represent their culture sign up to be booth leaders, resulting in a slightly different spread of countries each year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each booth leader assumes the responsibility of designing the menu, including the dishes offered, serving sizes and stamp price. They are also in charge of decorating their booth and making or catering the food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lily Phanthavong \u201826, who joined ASA as a freshman, was the Laos booth leader this year. She said the Night Market encouraged her to stick with ASA her freshman year and inspired her to become more involved in the organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the spring semester, performances are planned out and booth leaders get their food handler\u2019s licenses. Volunteer opportunities, such as assisting with booths and set-up, are also posted. When the big day finally rolls around, tasks are finalized as booth leaders prepare their dishes and decorations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFour of our cabinet members cooked in a Brockton apartment every day for three days, including the day of the Night Market,\u201d Lam and Overmeer said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each booth is allotted a budget for making or catering food. Lam and Overmeer explained that this event is funded by previous Night Markets, RSG funds, fundraising events and donations from the Johnston center and diversity organizations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the local businesses that ASA members partnered with was Nate\u2019s Desserts, a bakery in Eastvale, for the Japanese booth\u2019s Ube and Matcha Brownies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ube and matcha brownies from Nate\u2019s Desserts are served up at the Japan booth during the Feb. 22 ASA Night Market. Ube is a purple yam common in deserts because of its sweet and nutty flavor, while matcha is a variety of green tea that has become a staple in Japanese cuisine.
Photo Credit: Frank Perez, University of Redlands Marketing and Communications photographer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe loved their concept of creating traditional American desserts that are fused with Asian flavors,\u201d the ASA cabinet members said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lam and Overmeer said this year\u2019s event went better than previous ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne major decision we made this year was to rent easy-up tents for each booth,\u201d they said, \u201cwhich really set the tone of the event and enabled us to hang up stringed lights to make this event truly feel like an Asian street market.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were also excited about the large turnout, as most booths had completely sold out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
All of the Lumpias, Pancit Bihon and Ube Puto from The Philippines booth were sold out as the Feb. 22 ASA Night Market came to a close. This booth was one of the several that sold all their dishes.
Photo Credit: Student Photographer Zoe Anderson \u201825<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Along with this Night Market, other ASA events include a Lunar New Year celebration and KBBQ, with bi-weekly meetings from 4:30-5:30 p.m. in the Hunsaker Multicultural Center. Lam and Overmeer said all are welcome to attend these meetings, which highlight Asian culture and create a bonding space. You can stay up to date on ASA events by following their Instagram page @asaredlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

July 2025 Correction: An earlier version of this article referred to ASA as “Asian Student Alliance” and has since been corrected<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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