156. Bay Area - Gathering for Bo Ssam at Namu Gaji (SF: Mission)

While waiting in line for Bi-Rite Creamery, have you ever peered in through the windows of the restaurant next door to see what those happy hipster looking people are eating? Well, near the windows it is likely that you will find an interesting array of Asian American fusion cuisine based on Korean roots, like a grass fed burger with kimchi relish or a bowl of handmade ramen with 4505 hot dogs.  At the communal table in the center of the restaurant you may find a crowd pleasing bo ssam pork belly dinner.  This is what Namu Gaji is known for.  The dinner feeds at least five hungry hippos with divinely crisp pork belly, raw oysters, fresh local vegetables, pickles, kimchi, and all the lettuce, cabbage, and sauce imaginable.  It is similar to the bo ssam dinner from David Chang's Momofuku Ssam Bar in New York, but unlike Momofuku, it doesn't take forever and a day to get a reservation for the meal.  And rather than just being a hip spot to meet up, Namu offers a nostalgia from the Lee brothers' childhood that gets transcended into the food. 


I gathered my friends from my study abroad program for a little catch up dinner in the city.  It has been five years since we left Shanghai, and it was time for a family style meal for us to share food and share updates on our lives.  Just like old times, Joyce suggested the restaurant, and I did the ordering.  Before we began our extravaganza of wrapping pork belly in various vegetables, we started with the Sichuan pepper chicken wings and the okonomiyaki.  The chicken wings wowed with its numbing peppery spice, and the okonomiyaki awed with its ever eerie dancing bonito shavings.  The Japanese quiche like pancake was more authentic than it was modern Asian, and I can appreciate that.  It was hot in temperature (it comes on a skillet) but warm in the emotion that it was served with.

The homeyness of the food on the menu was just enough to make my friends from Fudan feel comfortable and right at home, which made for an ideal spot to convene and connect.  Until the next gathering, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

Namu Gaji
499 Dolores St. @ 18th St.
Mission District
San Francisco, CA 94110

ML - 20130903

154. Bay Area - Tasty Indian Pizza and Wings (Bay Area: Sunnyvale)

Tasty Indian Pizza combines the best of Indian fare and arguably the most cherished American food to bring a unique Indian-American perspective on bar favorites like pizza, wings, and nachos.  I like that the name of the restaurant tells you exactly what you are getting.  But hey, if you don't like the insides of a samosa on top of your pizza, then there is good ol' pepperoni for you too.

My friends and I hit up Tasty Indian Pizza not for the pepperoni but for, well, the tasty Indian pizza.  We ordered half of the 3 Idiots and half the Saagar.  The 3 Idiots half of our pizza was adorned with Indian butter chicken, which is really just the dark meat portion of chicken tikka masala, and garnished with chilies and jalapeños, making for a spicy taste that can be easily washed down with cold beer.  The 3 Idiots, as I have since learned, is a major Indian blockbuster that was the highest grossing Bollywood film when it was released.

The Saagar half of the pizza was mainly a creamy spinach pizza with pineapple, jalapeño, red onion, and cilantro.  The pineapple sounds absolutely bizarre in that mix of ingredients, but once that spiciness creeps up onto your taste buds, you'll be glad that the sweetness of the pineapple is there to put out the fire. 

We also order the spicy tandoori wings.  The outside resembles the glowing red chicken fired up in the tandoori oven, but the inside is even more tender than the traditional version.  The skin is just slightly crisp, not enough to produce a real crunch, but one bite into it, and the meat oozes with juiciness.  It is now one of my favorite ways to have chicken wings.  A fair warning though... the chicken is hot in both temperature and spice.  Be prepared to sweat.


What is cool about Tasty Indian Pizza is that not only does it have seriously delicious food, it is also an ideal spot to gather your friends for football and beer.  Sounds like a perfect spot for Sunday, doesn't it? We have already declared we would return for the other pizzas on the menu.

When football season is over, let's get Tasty Indian Pizza take-out and stream 3 Idiots, yeah? I'll take your silence as consent.  Until next time, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

Tasty Indian Pizza (AKA Tasty Subs and Pizza)
528 Lawrence Expressway
Sunnyvale, CA 94085

ML - 20130906