National Fortune Cookie Day

The story

National Fortune Cookie Day, celebrated on July 20, invites people to enjoy the sweet and crunchy fortune cookies commonly served at the end of Chinese meals. These crisp cookies contain a message, ranging from profound wisdom to clever riddles, promising good health, luck, or future fortune. Despite their association with Chinese culture in the United States, fortune cookies have a complex history.

Originating from Japanese crackers called “tsujiura senbei,” these cookies likely arrived in the U.S. in the late 19th century with Japanese immigrants.

The Golden Gate Park's Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco is credited as the first U.S. restaurant to serve fortune cookies, with Benkyodo claiming to have invented the vanilla and butter flavoring and introduced mass production around 1911.

Other businesses also claim contributions to the cookie's invention. During World War II, Japanese American bakeries making fortune cookies closed due to internment, leading to Chinese American entrepreneurs taking over production. Today, over 3 billion fortune cookies are produced annually, primarily in the United States.

Wonton Food in New York is the largest manufacturer, producing over 4 million cookies daily. Despite occasional misuse as a symbol of Chinese culture, perpetuating stereotypes, fortune cookies remain a beloved part of American culture. National Fortune Cookie Day offers a chance to appreciate these treats and reflect on their unique history and significance.