Author Archives: Kayoko Akabori


June 16, 2010

The Golden State Thursday Lamb Burger (LA)

by Kayoko Akabori

My bestie Sara and I were literally driving up to The Golden State last week at around 4pm, when I got a phone call from Little Brother (LB), who lives in LA. LB: Where you at? Me: Just pulling up to The Golden State. LB: Nooooo! It’s Thursday! Me: What does that mean? LB: They […]

Happy Hour: Moonshine + Tales of the Cocktail Finalist!

by Kayoko Akabori

Paystyle is out today. Moonshine has him and Vanessa busybusybusy, and they’ve relegated to the sleep cycle of a newborn (sleep early… or just whenever they possibly can). Man, if that isn’t a major life change for the out-and-about couple, I don’t know what is. But isn’t she just ADORABLE??? I’ve adopted her as Umamimart’s […]

The Chicago Ten: The Green Mill (#3)

by Kayoko Akabori

Whenever I travel to a new city, I try to make sure to visit a jazz club. The jazz scene in Paris, Tokyo and Rome are unreal! There’s just something about going out and listening to jazz at some grimy club, while sippin’ on a classic cocktail that transports you through time. In New York, […]

June 14, 2010

The Chicago Ten: Frontera Grill (#4)

by Kayoko Akabori

Sorry, these posts on Chicago are totally lagging. I’ll crank these last four out this week, I PROMISE! These will be la creme de la creme of what Matt and I ate during our trip. We went to Rick Bayless‘ well regarded nouveau Mexican joint, Frontera Grill on our first night in town. I practically […]

June 8, 2010

The Chicago Ten: Floriole Cafe & Bakery (#5)

by Kayoko Akabori

My dear friend Leslie alerted me about this bakery when she found out I was going to Chicago. Her friend Sandra Holl had just opened Floriole Cafe & Bakery in the Lincoln Park section of Chicago, and she urged me to make a visit. Sandra and her husband had a supportive following through the farmer’s […]

June 6, 2010

Heads Up – Umamiventure #26: San Pedro Fish Market (LA)

by Kayoko Akabori

I’ve been dying to visit the San Pedro Fish Market since Sara wrote about it a few years back. It’s the perfect summertime Umamiventure! Although it’s always summer in LA, isn’t it? Sigh. Since I’ll be in LA this week, let’s all get together and gorge on fresh oysters and crab and shrimp and drink […]

June 4, 2010

Happy Donut Day!

by Kayoko Akabori

Today is National Donut Day! I woke up this morning in high anticipation for this and walked over to my local donut shop, Colonial Donuts. Love me a glazed donut first thing in the morning. According to Wiki, this day was created by the Salvation Army in 1938, to commemorate the ladies who served donuts […]

June 3, 2010

The Chicago Ten: Hot Doug’s (#6)

by Kayoko Akabori

Hot Doug’s (The Sausage Superstore and Encased Meat Emporium) was really the ONLY place Matt wanted to go to during our Chicago visit. Our conversations leading up to the trip often went like this: Kayoko: Should we go to Burt’s Place for pizza? Matt: Sure, I’ll leave it up to you. But we’re going to […]

May 28, 2010

The Chicago Ten: The Violet Hour (#7)

by Kayoko Akabori

Photos by Matt K. and myself. Heard about The Violet Hour, a little speakeasy-esque bar in the Bucktown/ Wicker Park area of Chicago, courtesy of Paystyle. When Pay suggests a place, I follow, no questions asked. Matt and I definitely walked up and down the street a few times and looked around like baffled, confused […]

May 24, 2010

Letter from the Editor: Moving Out + Kayoko Chocolates

by Kayoko Akabori

People have mentioned to me that they want more of an “editorial voice” from this blog. I’m a serious Twitteraholic, so ya’ll can find me there anytime for some rude and crude remarks in 140 characters or less. But I’ll do a “Letter from the Editor” once in a while, like Martha Stewart or Dana […]