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September 28, 2011
To Live and Eat in LA
“To live and eat in LA, it’s the place to be; You’ve got to be there to know it, what everybody wanna eat” – Tupac Alright, alright, Tupac didn’t say “eat”. But instead of talking about hoes and tricks, he should have rapped more importantly about the bounty of food to be found in LA. […]
September 23, 2011
Journey From Coffee Bean to Coffee Cup
A visual diagram of how a coffee bean from Guatemala evolves into a Four Barrel cup of coffee in San Francisco, California. Photo by Johnny Lopes. Taken at the OPENeducation event in Berkeley, CA.
September 22, 2011
OPENeducation: Bob Cannard of Green String Farm
PREFACE OPENeducation: Napa Valley Bee Company +++ My A-HA! moment during OPENeducation in Berkeley was when Bob Cannard asked me “Who was the last person that made noodles in your family?” When I became red-faced and unable to answer the question, he followed up with another: “Isn’t it time that you started taking up noodle-making […]
September 20, 2011
OPENeducation: Napa Valley Bee Company
OPENeducation was a daytime event at the Berkeley Art Museum, and part of the Chez Panisse 40th Anniversary weekend. The event gathered 15 or so organizations creating an outdoor classroom, with kids and adults doing the educating, learning and eating. There was a lot to experience at the event. I surveyed the whole area with […]
September 16, 2011
OPENharvest: Umamimart Goes to Japan
I am ecstatic, beyond words, to announce that Yoko and I will be joining the Bay Area-based art and food collective, OPENrestaurant, on a special trip to Japan in October. We will be there for three weeks, visiting farms and fisheries, interviewing people, blogging and producing live video coverage throughout Japan–all which will culminate in […]
The Ume Project: The Aka-Shiso Edition
This post is rather late, for which I apologize. Er, about a month late. SORRY! Where has all the time gone? How is it already mid-September? I look outside and the leaves are turning color. The light gives off a deeper glow. It is dark at 7:30pm. Sigh. San Francisco’s (non-existent) summer is officially over. […]
September 9, 2011
Super Faminto: 5 Days in Paris: Birthday Dinner at L’Epi Dupin
L’Epi Dupin near Le Bon Marche is normally a quiet place full of neighborhood types and locals. Their course meal is a bargain. Old types sit and drink. The snobbery was at a low. When our mixed mash group of birthday celebrators reserved a month before, they probably didn’t expect the entire ambiance of the […]
September 8, 2011
Umamimart Shop Fall Sale
Fall is officially here, I would say–the sunlight a bit more orange, and the air a bit crisper. We love autumn here at Umamimart, so we’re celebrating with a SALE in the Umamimart Shop. We’ve slashed prices up to 40%! Yes the gold cocktail shaker, the famous Umamimart mug by writer Anders, and the stylish […]
September 5, 2011
Postcard from LA: Yoshinoya Takeover
I’m in LA for my best friend’s wedding. I love LA, you know that? There’s an energy here that doesn’t quite exist in sleepy SF. Plus, this is the city where my family first landed in AMERICA. We lived in the cuttycuts of Koreatown with cockroaches. Nostalgique. Driving around with my brother, I noticed something: […]
September 1, 2011
Ramen Underground (SF)
I must admit that Washi and I have more-than-healthy appetites and the lunch boxes at the Edible Schoolyard event did not satiate our piggie tendencies. After our pleasant, healthy sandwich meal, we decided to check out the latest the Financial District had to offer in terms of ramen. Thanks to a tip from my brother-in-law […]