Resilience through constraints: the entrepreneurial journey of first-generation American restaurateurs

Purpose This study aims to investigate how first-generation American restaurateurs construct entrepreneurial meaning and resilience under structural, psychological and existential constraints. It aims to advance a dynamic, process-oriented understanding of immigrant entrepreneurship beyond traditional models of opportunity recognition or capital accumulation. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative approach, the authors conducted 19 in-depth interviews with immigrant restaurateurs in the USA. Data were analyzed inductively to develop a conceptual framework comprising four iterative phases: entrepreneurial grounding, enactment and improvisation, identity solidification and legacy construction. Findings The findings show that resilience among first-generation American restaurateurs emerges not as a fixed personal trait but as a socially embedded, adaptive process. Informants responded to constraints such as limited capital, marginalization and industry precarity through improvisational learning, strategic experimentation and deeply rooted identity work. The resulting framework highlights how these entrepreneurs navigate uncertainty while constructing long-term visions rooted in personal and cultural meaning. Originality/value This study offers a novel framework for understanding immigrant entrepreneurship as a resilience-driven journey shaped by constraint, identity and improvisation. Rather than viewing resilience as an outcome, the authors present it as an ongoing, meaning-making process. The findings contribute to entrepreneurship literature by highlighting the hybrid logics that underlie immigrant business adaptation and the psychosocial dimensions that have been overlooked. Practical implications are outlined for designing culturally responsive support systems, mental health initiatives and opportunity structures that recognize the complex realities of immigrant-owned ventures.