We had the good fortune of connecting with Harrison Tran and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Harrison, let’s talk legacy – what do you want yours to be?
I want to be someone who brings people together, both cross-culturally and by strengthening the bonds within the Vietnamese community. I hope that my expression as an actor can be a window through which others can relate, to both shared and foreign experiences. I aspire to use food in the same way, and hope that my often out-of-pocket Việt-Texas BBQ fusion recipes can be a gateway for people to open their minds to unfamiliar flavors and ideas.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am an actor first and foremost, and an extension of that is the fusion food and recipe content that I create. All my life, I had a dream of making the US Olympic Swim Team, and it was very difficult when I had to accept it would not happen; however, that led me to a low point in 2022, when I realized that my true passion all along was acting and I moved to Los Angeles from Texas.
By day, I work as a Senior Financial Analyst at a tech-manufacturing company – finding this job enabled me to make the move and spend all of my days and nights building a foundation through technique and training. Acting, at its core, is about connecting with others, and food is no different.
I began creating food content because I knew that I needed to tackle my ingrained self-consciousness of my voice by practicing. Understanding and honoring my Vietnamese heritage is one of the most important things to me, and I have always loved Texas BBQ (I’m a self-proclaimed BBQ Pitmaster) – the fusion of the two cuisines is what I do, and I pair content with stories that can have varying vibes.
I think my unique heritage through my bloodline and roots, growing up in Texas, paints me distinctly and uniquely. My passion for acting and connecting with others pushes me to both create recipes that are gateways to unfamiliar flavors, and also share feelings that others hopefully find easy to relate to.
The most difficult thing for me has been finding my path, because there is nobody that has exactly the same life as me. Going from a life so dedicated to athletics in swimming for 16 years, to working as a financial analyst, to moving across the country alone with no family or friends previously paving a path for me – I have learned to lean on and focus more on the people and things I do that bring me joy, and that I love. When I follow that feeling, everything becomes clear and I feel I am living life like I should.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to Orange County and give them a Vietnamese food tour. I would also take them to Koreatown and give them a Korean food tour, to the best of my ability, since I do love Korean food but am a little less knowledgeable on that front.
I would also be sure to take them to the west side of Los Angeles – perhaps El Porto to go surfing, drive up to Los Leones and do a hike, and go further up to Malibu.
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My brother deserves so much credit – when we lived together a few years ago, he showed me again how to follow my heart and go with my feeling in life, which led me to discovering my true passion in acting, and subsequent food content creation hobby. I’d just started working a corporate job and that changed me in some ways. My brother also taught me the art of Texas BBQ, an integral part of the food content that I make.
Website: Harrisondtran.com
Instagram: @harrisondtran
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091499093516&mibextid=LQQJ4d
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@harrisondtran?si=u-j29R0qJ0cYpcUX