Since moving back to California, I’m trying to branch out more and find new places to eat all over the Bay Area. A few weekends ago my parents and I took a nice drive out to Pescadero, a quaint little town out on the coast, just south of San Francisco. We had an awesome Umamiventure […]
Author Archives: Kayoko Akabori
September 18, 2009
Golden Egg Eggplants
Got these adorable little eggplants the other day at the farmer’s market. They are about as long as the iPhone (per Yamahomo’s consistent size proportionalizer), and look like cute chubby nubs. The color is, as its namesake describes, golden with dark brown streaks running up its skin. I have found little about them on the […]
September 16, 2009
The Umami Reader, vol. 070
Take note:– Michelle Obama, KICKS ASS, as usual.– Sam Kass, the White House chef, is HOT. (It’s true, I have a penchant for bald men).– The fact that it’s named “Victory Garden” after WWII is kinda creepy.– Check out the comments- racist slander, mudslinging and conspiracy theories abound.– I know some of you may have […]
September 13, 2009
Coming Up – Umamiventure #19: Din Tai Fung (LA)
With all the talk about xiao long bao aka XLB aka soup dumplings on here these days, no one should be surprised that it won the poll (up there on the top right corner) for where we would go for the next Umamiventure. XLB it is!!! So we’re taking a trip to Din Tai Fung […]
September 11, 2009
MYOGA! (With Cold Udon)
While rummaging through my fridge the other day (fine, fine, my parent’s fridge) I was delighted to find a hefty package of myoga. SCORE! It’s so difficult to describe, this myoga. Vegetable? Herb? Spice?? They grow in the ground, so maybe it’s just simply a bulb?? Colors: A gorgeous spectrum that moves from bone-white to […]
September 6, 2009
Packaging Whore: Mon Chouchou Baumkuchen (Osaka)
Newest omiyage (gift) in the Akabori household from Japan: green tea Baumkuchen from a patisserie in Dojima, Osaka called Mon Chouchou. From the website, it looks like it is a relatively new shop (2003), that takes its inspiration from the old world of Osaka, calling Dojima the “New York of Japan.” Of course the most […]
OPEN!: Ode to Jean-George
My quest for an open restaurant in SF for Labor Day continues. Ritz-Carlton: closed. Chaya: closed. Acme Chophouse: closed. I’m about to tear my hair out- when I get an idea in my mind, I obsess over it. I want to dirty overly-pretentious-bleach-white linens. NOW. Since I’m relatively new to the left coast, I still […]
September 5, 2009
CLOSED!
Been craving a fancy meal so I called around to try making reservations- but all the restos I want to go to in Bay Area is CLOSED for Labor Day. UGH! How does anyone expect me to stimulate this wilting economy if you close your establishment on my day off??? Gary Denko: closed!Chez Panisse: closed!Zuni […]
September 3, 2009
Preserved Lemons/ NYT Mag/ 1999
I made a boo-boo yesterday and opened up my Moroccan preserved lemons a week early. OOPS!!! I thought that it had been a month already, but apparently it’s only been three weeks. Oh well, I’m closing it up again and pretending I didn’t do that. I did have a taste though and they’re a shockingly […]
September 2, 2009
Umamiventure #17: Tomales Bay Oyster Company
Photo by Thien V. Visiting the Tomales Bay Oyster Company has been high on my priority list since CJ wrote about it last year. Fresh, just caught oysters? Overlooking the bay? Picnic tables? BBQ pits??? If that isn’t a dream scenario for you, don’t talk to me. But obviously all of you felt my enthusiasm, […]