Umami Mart

My first post for Umamimart and it’s going to look like a confession of an ultra lazy cook. My mother did not bring me up to subsist on ready-meals and instant ramen. I used to do a lot more adventurous cooking as a student, and I’m of the rare breed that actually likes cooking for […]

Just got these pics by She-Rene, who I ran into outside at the SF Underground Market a couple weeks ago. I confess I never made it inside where the market was being held. I showed up to this discreet warehouse, on a side street in the SOMA district, and the line literally snaked down the […]

This butter is fresh off the farm and totally off the hook. I bought it from Lancaster, PA (Mennonite?) farmers of Millport Dairy, at the Union Square Greenmarket. It’s big– about 5 inches in diameter– and only $5.

Sunrise Mart is a tiny little Japanese market in the East Village with a distinct, and authentically claustrophobic Tokyo feel. Located right above St. Mark’s Bookshop, the seedy porn shop-esque entrance is easy to miss. I have spent a lot of time here. You’ve gotta brave the rickety elevator ride up to the second story […]

After a 4-year, 4-month hiatus, I am back in Berkeley. Robotland (a.k.a. Tokyo) was good to me, but finding myself shuffled in line at the Berkeley Bowl between one of these, and Zack de la Rocha‘s doppelganger on a weekly basis has got me feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Not only is it great […]

I took my mom to Bali in December. I loved it. Being a visitor is good, since I didn’t have to deal with too much local crap. Bali, although thought to be one of the best resort islands, is yet a developing country. My friend Tonny and Corey moved there, and they have a fabulous […]

Happy New Year everyone! This year’s resolution for me is to try to post more since I’ve been pretty lazy for some time now. I went home last month, and found a couple of interesting items that hasn’t been posted by Yoko in Tokyo JUNKtion. 1.) Fanta World, BIG APPLE, Limited Edition. Fanta is widely […]

I went to visit my dad’s grave yesterday and on my way there, we had to transfer trains at an adorable little station, Surugaoyama in Yamanashi Prefecture, at the foot of Mt. Fuji. At the kiosk, I spotted a snack named “Unagi Bone” made by Ichimaru foods. I loved the retro packaging and that there […]

I can’t call myself a potato chip connoisseur, but Utz is by far my favorite brand. It’s a company out of Hanover, PA, and I used to always buy a big bag of it at the store when I lived in NY. It’s totally no-frills, and super cheap, at 99 cents a bag. I had […]

After trying two Kit Kat flavors available in Japan with gag-inducing colors: light aqua for the Ramune Kit Kat and salmony orange for the Mango Pudding Kit Kat, I was seriously relieved to see that the Caramel Pudding Kit Kat was poo-colored just like the OG chocolate Kit Kat. As I busted open the package, […]