Amintiri cu gust. Studiu de caz asupra diasporei române din Madrid, Spania

Drawing on the principles of sensory anthropology, this study explores how taste functions as a key element in shaping the everyday experiences and cultural identities of the Romanian diaspora in Madrid, Spain. While sensory anthropology has often focused on festive occasions, this research highlights the significance of ordinary, habitual practices by examining the persistence of childhood tastes among Romanian immigrants. Based on twenty interviews with members of the Romanian community, the study identifies recurring patterns in the recollection of taste, emphasizing memories associated with family celebrations and holidays spent with grandparents. These recollections reveal a desire to reconstruct childhood through simple acts of culinary mimesis, sustained by both memory and imagination. As a result, the taste of childhood emerges as an unattainable ideal, negotiated within a sensory landscape shaped simultaneously by Romania and Spain. The article argues that Romanian migrants construct their own regimes of taste as a means of preserving cultural identity while adapting to a transnational environment.