Contribution by Michele Svengsouk

MS: [I] love stories about food and the way it connects people and cultures [to] a place in time.

What is a food or drink memory that you feel really speaks to to Altadena?

MS: Our orange tree! we would look forward to oranges every year and I was always trying to incorporate them in savory dishes.

A favorite was an orange and marinated golden beet salad with a slightly spicy vinaigrette made from the orange juice.

What what/is your favorite Altadena restaurant and why?

MS: Miya! My husband is Lao and they made the best sautéed morning glory, like his family would make. Plus, I would see Dave driving his Tuk Tuk around.

If you are currently displaced, has there been a dish that has brought you comfort? If so, what is it?

MS: […] That’s hard to pin down. I miss making my roast chicken at home, I had it nailed down there and I’m trying to master it where we are living right now.

Why do you want to contribute to this project?

MS: […] Food is therapy and memory and connections.

Michele Svengsouk is an illustrator, designer, and long time resident of Altadena.

As of the publishing of this post (November 2025), her and her husband remain in limbo. Their house stands inexplicably in the burn zone, but they are displaced indefinitely and in a holding pattern with insurance. Michele has offered to help illustrate neighbors’ stories from this project where photographs are absent.

Michele drew the following two images based on her favorite Altadena restaurant, Miya, which is in the burn zone on Lake Ave but which survived the fire. She loves their fried oyster mushrooms, and remembers the joy and normalcy of seeing Miya’s owner, Dave, drive his Tuk Tuk past her home. The original blue and yellow three wheeler burned in the fire. More recently, a new yellow and green one was found as a “replacement,” or, more simply and correctly, the Miya Tuk Tuk of this new, post fire chapter.

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Note: This contribution was sent to Altadena Cooks through google form and email correspondence, and responses have been edited lightly for clarity. See an issue? Please email me at altadenacooks@gmail.com