Umami Mart

Just got back from lunch at Google– this time on the main campus. Dude, cafeteria is so ridiculously insane: Indian bar, sushi bar, and an “East Meets West” bar where they had BACON FRIED RICE!!!! It’s on the menu once a week, which is to say I will be sneaking in every week to get […]

As my introductory post, I would like to tread upon virgin Umami Mart territory… DUN DUN DUN… *HOSPITAL FOOD*! Perhaps it doesn’t have the allure of airplane foodstuffs, but hospital food is interesting in a way that one day you might have to visit your grammy there or maybe you end up there after partying […]

Lavender flavored soft serve (or “soft cream” as they call it here in Japan) from the Hotel New Akao’s Herb House in Atami. The subtle hint of lavender was just right, not overwhelming. I wish American chefs would use more flowers and herbs to flavor sweets. Like macarons from Laduree! Gotta love this purple soft […]

Went to Boston this weekend to visit my super pals Alda, Jade and Mo. I pranced around Cambridge (I’m not supposed to call it Boston, am I??) all weekend pretending to be smart, which took a lot of work, so ultimately I just ate and slept in excess. It’s hard being me, I know. Besides […]

When we were near the Great Barrier Reef a few weeks ago, Jack and I rented a car for the day and drove from Port Douglas to Cape Tribulation- a beautiful daytrip through the Daintree Rainforest that reminds me of the Road to Hana in Maui. Before arriving, a man on the plane had told […]

I am in SFO this week with my mom. Surprisingly mother is doing pretty well despite 17 hour time difference between here and Japan. We are having a very good time, especially in terms of the dining scene. I will blog all about it once I get back to New York, but I had to […]

Tessa Liebman, private NYC chef and foodie extraordinaire, has been doing a lot of food research in Mexico lately. Now she’s back and has launched and AMAZING new business I think you should all know about called “CHIDA”. Chida (which means “cool” in Mexican kid slang) serves up “Nieves” (snows), a frozen treat that lies […]

Dear Pink Mango, I mean Red Berry, I mean Red Mango, From the beginning, everyone was talking about how Red Mango is true frozen yogurt, that is certified by American Yogurt Association or whatever as “frozen yogurt”. We waited for a long time in the big apple for your arrival. Meanwhile, we queued up at […]

In LA, I was finally able to meet up with my personal favorite food blogger, Oishii Eats aka Jeni (I hope her name isn’t a secret). I’m embarrassed to say, but in the overcrowded sea of food blogs, OE is the only one that I consistently keep up with- it’s totally unpretentious, easy to navigate, […]

In Rome we stayed in Trastevere, which is a hip, bohemian hotspot on the other side of the Tiber, near Vatican City. It’s a great neighborhood, sorta Williamsburgish, lively at all hours of the night- lots of bars, clubs and restaurants. For my last supper in Italy, I wanted a typical Roman meal- and Trastevere […]