Post 60: San Francisco - For Love and Adventure

Back in April I headed up to San Francisco to witness Boy and Girl tie the knot.  Boy and Girl's wedding theme was For Love and Adventure, a very fitting theme considering that Boy and Girl love to travel, love food, and of course, love each other very much.  I thought it would be creative to put a little wedding spin on this post and dedicate it to Boy and Girl.  Here are something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue that I came across on my adventure through San Fran. 

Turtle Tower (SF: Civic Center)

Something old - Chicken pho (pho ga long)

It's not that the chicken is stale or that the noodles are old... in fact, the chicken is juicy and tender, and the noodles are picked up by the owner fresh each day.  Chicken pho is old in the sense that it's something familiar, something homey, something comforting.  Speaking of comforting, this big bowl of chicken noodle soup was what cured six Saturday morning hangovers.  And what better way to cure a hangover with a steaming bowl of clear broth made from organic, free range chicken? Only in San Francisco will you find the chicken used in pho to be good not only for man but for the animal as well.  Think chicken pho is good? The server says, "pho ga long is better!" If you're alright with giblets, you'll certainly agree.

Little Delhi (SF: Union Square)

Something new - Badami chicken

The first dish I order at Indian restaurants is usually chicken tikka masala.  The creamy yet spicy curry dish is simply irresistible.  This time, however, I went for something new.  The first dish that I ordered was the house recommended badami chicken, a dish prepared by adding tandoori chicken to creamy curry with ground pistachios and cashews.  Grinding up the pistachios and cashews contribute a depth of flavor to the curry so that it's not just spicy but a bit nutty tasting too.  It went great with the garlic naan, and it tasted even better as a dipping sauce for the samosas too.  Even Kevin, who wanted nothing other than garlic naan, helped himself to a few extra spoonfuls of this exotically fragrance dish.  Badami chicken was definitely something new for me.  If only more Indian restaurants served this dish along with the other items on the menu.

Hong Kong Lounge (SF: Outer Richmond)

Something borrowed - Sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaf (秘制果蒸粽)

I'm not sure what inspired Hong Kong Lounge to create an enormous, eight dollar, Chinese sticky rice wrap at dim sum, but I wouldn't be surprised if they borrowed the idea of super sizing everything from the land that's known for foot-long sandwiches, double-decker burgers, and extra large slurpees.  Often times dishes that are made to gargantuan proportions are somehow neglected if not by health, then by flavor or by lack of quality ingredients.  This sticky rice wrap is not the case.  It's full of savory pork, flavorful Shiitake mushrooms, roasted peanuts, fresh egg yolk, and saucy sticky rice.  Check out how big the wrap is sitting next to the tea cup.  That's some heavy duty Chinese flavor, for real.

SFO Aviation Museum & Library (SF: San Mateo Co.)

Something blue - Boy and Girl's wedding (SF: SFO Intl Airport)

If I were to really highlight something blue that I ate, it would just be the bleu cheese from the salad at the wedding.  But how far would I get talking about the bleu cheese in a salad? What was truly blue (in color not emotion) was the wedding itself.  From the Pan Am stewardess outfits on display to the creatively packaged Hershey's chocolate bars to the handmade table decorations to the groom's tie and the M&M's, there were vibrant shades of blue everywhere.  A beautiful color... a beautiful wedding theme... a beautiful couple.

Cheers to the happy couple, Moritaka and Cheryl.  I wish you a lifetime of happiness, much love and much adventure! I can't wait to hear more stories of food and travel.  Until next time let's get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110428-0501

Post 59: Decimated by that Ten-Course Omakase (LA-South Bay: Torrance)

After seeing pictures from the last omakase I had, a soon-to-be-wed Mr. Zhou said, "I want that."  And that he was about to get.  So the more we talked about that, and the more others heard about that, the more people wanted that.  So that became an event, and I made it my duty to gather together the long lost souls of my fraternity (and their significant others) so we could have... that. 

That became a ten-course omakase at Hirose in Torrance.  In a tiny, little shop in a gigantic strip mall, ten of us attempted to devour ten courses (each) of freshly prepared Japanese art.  Some succeed... some failed.  Some were smart and decided against decimation.  The only Japanese one at the table went for the teriyaki instead... maybe they know something the remaining Sinos and Formosans don't..?  Hmm...

This is what our that looked like... and if it seems like the pictures get progressive blurry, it's because they do.  Somewhere along the second or third course, I thought it was an incredibly intelligent idea to pair the remaining courses with a shot of sake (each)... and then some.  The day after this omakase meal was the Sunday of Father's Day, and let's just say I learned how to say hangover in Mandarin.  See how many sake glasses you count in the pictures below...

Braised pork
bonito fish broth

Itadakimasu! One bite of a simple cube of pork started off the meal.  Not only was it balanced by the savory flavor of the soy and the sweetness of the swine, the lean meat to fat ratio was perfectly balanced as well.  The green onions provided just a hint of fresh crunch to the square.

Sardines ambish

Ambish? Korewa nandesu ka? To my knowledge this word is not in the English dictionary.  Trust me, I looked it up via Webster and Google.  But from what the server told us, ambish is a word that describes something that has been deep fried and then submerged in vinegar.  So that is exactly what we had for our second course... a duo of deep fried, battered sardines served chilled in a dish of light vinegar.  Not eye opening, but horrible either... something to jump start the saliva, I guess.

Duck with potato salad
red and green shishito peppers

Two succulent pieces of duck lay atop a fluffy bed of whipped potato.  The potato salad had just enough mayo to make it creamy, but it wasn't so delicious that it stole the duck's thunder.  The duo of dueling colored shishito peppers added a vibrant color to the presentation, but the tender and flavorful duck was still the star of the dish.  Oishii desu. 

Raw oyster with ikura

Aiiiiiiiiiiiiiii! When the fresh oyster had arrived, a little school girl's scream may have been heard at the table.  And it may have been me.  As small as this little devil was, it was just enough as a teaser to prep my tongue for the fresh fish that was about to arrive.  Although the two drops of ikura on top tempted many of us to order another round.

Sashimi course
Yellowfin tuna, bluefin tuna, amberjack, octopus, sesame sebring snapper

Glistening fresh, vibrant in color, smooth in texture... what more could you ask for in a sashimi course? The chef even skipped out on the salmon and yellowtail that's typically served and presented us with some rare choices such as amberjack and sesame sebring.  The yellowfin and bluefin tuna were both meaty, yet they melted away with ease.  And the color of the sesame sebring was as beautiful as a fluffy white cloud with a metaphoric silver lining.

Salmon, tofu, yam and pumpkin braised in shoyu broth
This is usually a dish made at home and simmered in a large pot by an obachan.  Like a pot roast or a beef stew, it's a hearty and somewhat soupy dish that is supposed to conjure up feelings of home and the warmth of grandma's kitchen from childhood.  Halfway through the bowl of tofu and yam, I started missing the oden that my grandma makes.  You know it's good when the chef can give you a feeling of home in the form of a bowl of veggies.

Tempura course
fish stuffed zucchini flower, snow crab leg, salmon wrapped with shiso tempura

This tempura zucchini flower was the product of a delicate Japanese ingenuity.  Flaky white fish was the hidden surprise inside the flower of a vegetable that seemed to have more aesthetic appeal than nutritional value.  The zucchini flower announced its subtle flavor without even a whisper.  No self gloat, no bragging, just simple confidence.  Just a little sea salt, and it's good to go.  No tempura sauce necessary.

Beef top sirloin over five vegetables
bamboo shoot, Brussels sprout, eggplant and yuzu, pear and string bean, Yukon potato

Another dish was presented to us with an attention to detail so microscopic that only the Japanese can claim.  Five pieces of medium rare beef sat on top of a line of five different complementary vegetables, all of which provided the meat with a evenly balanced texture and flavor.  Not only were the vegetables merely placed beneath the beef, they also  helped anchor the beef in a way that helped us enjoy the angled presentation.  My favorite was the yuzu essence that somehow made its way down either side of the plate so that even the bamboo shoot on the far left and the potato on the far right was influenced by a hint of the spicy pepper.  Consistency over variation... I liked that.

Noodles with chicken yaki 
grated daikon radish, ginger, and sesame in soba sauce

Although the noodles were accredited as the lead in this dish, it was the supporting elements that really helped the dish come together.  White meat chicken and carefully grated radish along with ginger and sesame created a harmonious lightness that was a great way to end the meal.  Many times, Asian cultures (think Chinese and Korean) serve carbs (think fried rice) as the final dish to ensure that the guest has been stuffed full... but Hirose found a way to nudge us close to 100% rather than pushing us over the brink of satiation. 

Azuki red bean mousse
grapefruit, melons and mint

Nine courses down... one to go.  Even if you're stuffed, how can you refuse dessert? It's dessert! The good thing is that the dessert was served in a shotglass-sized cup... bad thing is that the shotglass-sized cup reminded me of all the sake we already drank.  And if there is just one lesson that I have learned from the glory days of college, it's that dairy and alcohol don't mix.  Remembering my lessons learned, I decided to have some fruit... and pass the mousse down.  Okay, I had one little bite, and it was smooth, creamy, but delightfully light... a nice way to finish a ten-course meal formerly known as "that."

As I channel the emotions I felt at the end of that dinner for this post, I sensed a gradual creep of the infamous post large meal food coma... which is what I sense now.  A slow, lethargic, I want to stop writing kind of feeling.  I feel decimated.  And so... the writing shall stop.  Until the next omakase, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110618

Post 58: Be Happy... Chatting over Tartare (LA: Beverly Hills)

Back when I still had full use and employment of my teeth, a long lost friend and I decided to throw on our bourgeois attitude and roll up to Chaya for a five-course chef's tasting.  I had B.H. tattooed on my aura for that meal.  And if the letters B and H didn't mean Beverly Hills at that time, it meant be happy for the two of us.  And we were as happy as two long, lost friends could possibly be... we watched beautiful people sit and just be as beautiful as their food... and we chatted as puffy, white clouds rolled away in the big, blue sky... and we chatted as the big, orange star we call the sun lowered itself to cast a shady gloom over my risotto... and we chatted until the last dollop of vanilla caramel ice cream camouflaged itself against the ceramic dish it came in.  These are the three dishes from Chaya Brasserie that made us the most happy.

Melon y jamon
compressed melon, burrata cheese, salame, arugula, aged balsamic vinegar reduction

The first time I had melon and cured Italian meat in combination, I was a recent high school graduate vacationing with family in Canada of all places.  It was the Fairmont resort somewhere in the wilderness of Alberta that introduced me to my first combination of sweet melon and salty Italian prosciutto.  I hadn't had a serious relationship at the time, but I knew I was in love.

There's something about the contrasting sweet and salty flavors and the rough and smooth textures that makes complete sense... like when smooth slices of salty ham is placed on top of fibrous triangles of pineapple on pizza... when sprinkles of course sea salt is introduced to smooth, sweet caramel anything.  I love that I can take the salami or prosciutto and fold it over a freshly cut piece of melon.  I breathe a sigh of happiness when I do it... as if burdens have been lifted from my shoulders and pressures from life tip toe away from my heart.  I feel the same comfort when I wrap myself in blankets at bedtime.  It's not the same blanket wrap that I do when I'm freezing in the middle of winter or the blanket wrap that I do at the end of a tough day.  It's a light, delicate wrap.  A peaceful one that produces a sigh of happiness.  The kind you do on vacation.  Yes, that one.  And each bite is like having your head hit the fluffiest of down pillows... again and again... happiness.

Salmon tartare and mi-cuit
tartare: wasabi tobiko, cilantro blossom, pickled daikon radish squares
cucumber raita, wild arugula, ahi amarillo aioli, seaweed jelly
mi-cuit: sovid, wasabi creme fraiche

It's not quite tuna tartare yet not quite salmon sashimi... it's a profound dish in its own right.  The seemingly simple dish of salmon tartare actually produced a couple of wows.  The tenderness of the salmon protein became even more supple as the light layer of olive oil marinated with the salmon's own natural lipids.  Is anyone thinking about bikini mud wrestling besides me? Not so much? Hey, the analogy works.

What else works are the uniquely shaped but uniformly sized pieces of salmon.  They fit together like a chaotically constructed Jenga set teetering on the edge of collapse, yet they remain as stable as the Bird's Nest in Beijing.  So rather than being distracted by which piece of salmon is bigger or smaller than the other, the tongue can simply relax and focus on how fresh the salmon is... and the brain can say, "wow, this is good... wow, wow, wow."  The brain will be so pleasured by the bliss of deliciousness that it won't know it's fish at all.

Spring pea risotto
Japanese green risotto, sugar snaps, English peas
Parmesan, mascarpone, curry, basil, confetti flowers

Normally I wouldn't find rice and vegetables to be very exciting, but the spring pea risotto invoked a sense of happy relaxation in me.  It was as beautiful tasting as it was beautiful looking, albeit the image was marred by both the lack of natural lighting and my lack of savvy with photo editing.  But no matter... what's good is still good.

The feeling of intense absence of tension in my body was brought by the sudden surprise of curry in the waves of creamy rice.  I had a feeling that it was Japanese curry powder, which unlike Thai or Indian curries, is a bit more subtle and slightly sweet.  The taste is not as prickly on the tongue as a Thai green curry or an Indian masala.  Other surprises came in the form of a pea here and a pea there, just the right amount of healthy vileness and just the right amount of pleasant, non-shocking discovery.  This was the kind of dish that I could eat by the pool.  I wouldn't mind replacing the obligatory poolside cocktail with this risotto dish either.  Swirling a big, metal spoon around in creamy, not firm, not mushy, perfectly spiced rice is so much more gratifying that twirling a swizzle stick in a martini glass.  It's just not the same.

The final dish was a beef duo of short rib and tenderloin with porcini puree and daube sauce.  It was... alright.  And the dessert tasting was a chocolate croissant bread pudding with vanilla caramel ice cream.  I was already too happy to be bothered with a sugar high.  But no matter... good food and a good friend to jumpstart a Friday evening creates a casual, lingering happiness that carries over into the start of Saturday.  To the start of a happy weekend, everyone... let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

Esther of e*star LA posted on her off-menu tastings at Chaya Brasserie here.

ML - 20110610

Post 57: Wisdom Teeth Food

Not everyone remembers when their first tooth fell out, but everyone remembers when they had their wisdom teeth pulled out.  I was fortunate enough to experience this extraction of dental knowledge this past week.  After being completely scared by all the wisdom teeth horror stories from friends and family, I was hell bent on making sure I had all the culinary concoctions to make my discomfort bearable.  The last few days I have been able to consume the following items... most of which are not the least bit glorious, but I guess that depends on who you ask.

Lucky me... Kimmy dropped by with a dozen mini Beard Papa's cream puffs and two regulation sized puffs.  I started off by scooping out the insides of one mini cream puff... but by the end of day, I managed to devour seven mini cream puffs (the puff portion and all) and one regular sized cream puff.  Yes, I did that in just one afternoon.

I also managed to spoon in two cups of my favorite Japanese flan from Mitsuwa Marketplace... along with a number (four to date) of Korean honeydew melon flavored jumbo popsicles.

Since my face was throbbing with crimson fury, and the Maytag-produced hemispheres of ice weren't sufficient, I thought that the best way to calm the swollen rage down was with some Taiwanese shaved ice.  I dragged my mom with me to a local joint called Tasty To Go for their acclaimed mango shaved snow.  Being the obedient son that every Asian parent hopes to call their own (even I make myself sick sometimes), I ate all the cold, frigid, brain freezing ice... and left the nutritious, fiber-filled, vitamin-rich mango for my mom.  Heh, heh, heh...

After I thought that I would hit the roof with an uncontrollable sugar high, I decided to counter all the sugar with some protein... eggs.  I employed a very sumptuous recipe for Japanese style chawanmushi (茶碗蒸 or steamed eggs), which is a soft and simple way (and probably the most glorious of the aforementioned food choices) to endure the discomforts of wisdom teeth extraction.

Ingredients:
2 eggs, beaten
1 can of chicken broth
1 package of ikura and/or uni (optional)

To set up a makeshift steamer, pour four or five cups of water into a large soup pot.  Fill a rice bowl one-third of the way up with water, and place the rice bowl into the large soup pot.  Fire up the stove.

Combine the two eggs and just half a can of chicken broth into a ceramic bowl.  Whisk until smooth.  Carefully place and balance the ceramic bowl carefully on top of the rice bowl into the large soup pot.  This is now your makeshift steamer.  Place the cap of the pot on top, and let the eggs steam away for no longer than five minutes.  a chopstick into the middle to see if the eggs are still runny; the eggs are ready when the center has solidified.  The texture should be similar to a soft custard or a delicate flan.

Here's the glorious part.  After the chawanmushi has cooled off, spoon some ikura or uni onto the surface of the egg.  All of the ingredients should be easily conquered by even those who under the effects of Vicodin or Tylenol No. 3.  Here's my disclaimer: if your medication says you should not operate heavy machinery, please do not attempt to build a makeshift steamer no matter how simple it is.  Let your mom and dad, spouse, significant other or indentured sibling do this for you.

I hope these eggs distract you from your dental debacle.  Oh, and if the steamed eggs work, fire up the stove again... as long as there are more eggs, you still have half a can of chicken broth left! Until solid food invigorates my diet, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110728-31

Post 56: Islamic Chinese for Uncle Ma (OC: Anaheim)

When I mentioned that there was Muslim Chinese people and hence, Muslim Chinese food, many of my co-workers responded that they never knew such people or cuisine existed.  So I decided to do a little research by browsing online and asking various family members about this unique group of individuals that happen to make delicious noodles and flatbread.

The Muslim Chinese are descendants of Arab and Persian Silk Road travelers.  Athough they have intermarried into the local Han Chinese population through many generations, they retain their religious beliefs such as the consumption of Halal meat and the restriction of pork from their diet.  Chinese Muslims are considered Hui people, which are one of the 50+ officially recognized ethnic minorities in China.  There is also a sizable ethnic Hui population in Taiwan as well.  In China, a large portion of Hui or Muslim Chinese are surnamed Ma (馬), meaning horse.  However, the root of the last name Ma supposedly originated from the Muslim name Muhammad.  It's no wonder that so many of the Islamic Chinese restaurants in Southern California are named Ma.

I dropped by Mas' Islamic Chinese Restaurant to grab some Muslim Chinese food, specifically the beef noodles and the sesame flatbread as a way to remember my Uncle Joe.  My Uncle Joe happens to be surnamed Ma and also happens to have parents who are Hui Chinese.  In fact, they even have a Koran that has been translated into Chinese characters.  But that all might just be coincidental...

Thin sesame flatbread (芝麻大薄餅)

listed on the menu as thin sesame bread with green onion

The sesame flatbread is what I came here for.  And let me warn you... the flatbread is no joke.  It's a platter of sixteen slices of sesame sweetness that will make your eyes open wide and your jaw drop completely open.  It's larger than an XL pizza pie, and it's something that even a family of four will have trouble finishing due to its sheer size.  The flatbread has a texture that is a cross between the firmness of a leftover French baguette and a spongey Ethiopian injera.  The look of it is also a combination of sorts... it reminds me of the delicate nature of an Indian naan but with the girth of a rustic Australian damper (bush bread).  When a co-worker took his first bite of this bread, he exclaimed, "it tastes like sesame."  No kidding.  There seems to be more sesame on this plane of bread than there are grains of sand on the beach.  But it's the sesame and the chopped green onions inside that form the base for flavor.  And it's the bread itself that forms an awesome foundation for whatever sauce or soup it gets eaten with.  Hint: it tastes great with the next item we ordered.



Green onion, ginger, and garlic stir-fried lamb (蔥爆羊肉)
listed on the menu simply as lamb with green onions

The absence of pork from the Islamic diet leaves a gaping void for a Muslim Chinese restaurant to fill.  And although Mas' seems to have filled that void with fish and seafood, it's lamb that seems to be the underacknowledged champion protein.  Each of the lamb dishes on the menu has been prepared with strong and flavorful ingredients (pickled cabbage, Chinese style barbeque sauce, chili peppers, etc.) to minimize the gamey taste that lamb naturally has.  The dish that we ordered was no different.  Upon first whiff the gamey taste dominates all other smells.  But one bite into the lamb, and the pungent garlic, spicy ginger, and hearty green onion immediately knock out that gamey flavor.  It's almost like Taiwanese stinky tofu... the smell is horrible, but one bite and you would think someone took Febreeze to the air.  Well... okay, maybe not so much.

Beef stir-fried with hand-sheared chow mein (牛肉炒刀削麵)

listed on the menu as beef dough sliced chow mein

Noodles! Oh, noodles and pasta are my weakness... especially freshly prepared noodles.  This "dough sliced" chow mein refers to the way that the noodle is prepared.  Rather than making hand-pulled noodles (think ramen or spaghetti), the chef takes a blade to a big ball of fresh dough and shears the noodles off one ribbon at a time (think machete).  For a less violent image, think about that Tillamook commercial that shows the block of sharp cheddar getting sliced one perfect perpendicular plane at a time.  But think a lot faster... and less perpendicular... and also imagen a vat of boiling water at the other end of the figurative machete plank.  After a quick boil and an even quicker stir-fry with bountiful slices of beef, bean sprouts, green onion stalks and scrambled egg, the result is a chewier, more elastic version of the typical Cantonese beef chow fun.

Beware though, there was a significant layer of leftover oil on my plate.  If you are an avid gym-goer, then by all means, help yourself to another slice of flatbread to swivel around and soak up the fatty juices leftover by the lamb.  But if it's tough for you to hit the gym (if you have absolutely no discipline like me), then maybe taking a swig of that hot tea (to wash away the oil) is a better idea.

I have yet to learn more about the Muslim Chinese dishes or even about the people and their history, but sesame flatbread is a good start to further exploration.  I hope future culinary curiousity reveals more surprises about a people or world culture previously unknown to you.  To new discoveries and to my Uncle Joe... until next time, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110725

Post 55: Dear Uncle Joe

Dear Uncle Joe,

I was very sad to hear that you passed on this week.  You were always a fighter, a tough guy with both your words, your spirit, and your eating habits... someone who I admired very much.  I did not get a chance to speak to you in your final days, but I just wanted to say thank you for all those times you picked me up from school when I got sick.  Thank you for instantly taking me and Emily to Knott's every time wanted to visit Snoopy.  The one thing I really want to thank you for is teaching me to live life with spontaneity and adventure... to live it up.

The best way that I can remember you is by dedicating this post to you and by sharing some of your favorite foods with everyone.  We all know that you loved spicy food, particularly mala spicy hot pot, so my mom and dad accompanied me to have some mala huoguo (麻辣火鍋) in your honor this past week.  I even upped the spiciness to mid-level spiciness (中辣) just to feel the exhilaration of chili-scented sweat dripping down my face.  We ordered thinly sliced beef and fatty pork, and we kept the vegetables to a minimum... just the way that you would have eaten it.

Today I also got a chance to walk through the world renowned company that produces a condiment that you seemed to have used more often than you drank water.  I'm not allowed to mention the specifics of where I visited, but I'm sure you know that there's only one spicy sauce in a squeeze bottle that absolutely cannot be substituted.  As we were driven on the golf cart past tens of thousands of drums of fire red vegetable, I just kept thinking that you would be amazed... and you'd probably start salivating.  The smell of chili and garlic in the air definitely penetrated the depths of my lungs.  It may even have popped a few avioli here and there.  It is absolutely incredible that I got to see what the founder literally built with his bare hands, from the piping to the walls of the warehouse.  Immediately afterward I passed by the supermarket complex that you designed and constructed, and I thought... you both built things from the ground up, and the two of you would have been good friends.

Oh, and last but not least, I'm going to stop by China Islamic Restaurant to have some Chinese Halal food.  I'm sure you remember 清真馬家館... we used to have family gatherings there all the time.  I could never figure out whether we frequented that restaurant because you liked the food there or because the restaurant and your family shared a common name (馬).  Regardless, I'm going to chomp down on their beef noodles and the giant sesame flatbread (芝麻大餅) for old time's sake.

Here's to you, Uncle Joe.  Thank you for everything that you've taught and instilled in me.  Thank you for spreading your love of spicy food to all of us.  Seeing someone overflowing chili sauce in their bowl of pho will definitely remind me of you.  And of course, I'll continue to live my life with spontaneity and adventure.

Your nephew,

Michael

ML - 20110702

F.A.T. News 8: The Glory Days of Airline Travel

I was browsing through the Travel section of the Times when I found this electronic flip book of sorts.

This would make a cool, non-Kindle kind of book:
Airline travel then and now
graphics reporting and interactivity by Tia Lai, LA Times

We don't quite live in the glitz and glamour of the Pan Am days, but traveling around is still pretty cool.  Since we can't exactly travel back in time, we can definitely tune in to Pan Am, the new TV series airing in the fall on ABC.

Makes me want to be a pilot:
Come fly with them: Upcoming 'Pan Am' TV show capitalizes on '60s airline style
article by Mary Forgione, LA Times



It has a bit of Catch Me If You Can essence... adventure, sex appeal, and young stupidity all combined together.  And of course, it takes place during the glorious travel days of the 1960s.  The commercials look pretty promising, so it may become a new must-watch for me.  Ah, which reminds me... I should blog about the '60s-themed wedding I went to recently.  Congratulations Girl & Boy!

ML - 20110712

Non-F.A.T. Post 2: Akufuncture's Samuel Wang

It looks like I've been away from the blogging keyboard for quite some time... but not without good reason! Last month I was offered an opportunity to blog for taiwan543.net, an online magazine that serves to "close the gap between Taiwan and the world" by promoting the achievements of Taiwanese and Taiwanese-Americans.

I met the King of Fashion:
Akufuncture's Sam Wang on Persistence
article by Michael Lin, tw543.net

I got a chance to interview Samuel Wang, a fellow UCSD Triton alum, who created the Sino-chic streetwear company Akufuncture.  The clothing line fuses urban style together with Chinese culture, which Sam believes is one way to make Chinese culture cool again.

You can read the article in its entirety here.  

The interview is my first published piece beyond high school and outside of this blog.. perhaps it will lead to a guest position at the Times or Rolling Stone someday.  We all start somewhere, right? Enjoy... and happy reading!

ML - 20110711/20110628

Post 54: Sushi for the Soul (SD: Pacific Beach)

It's been a while since I've had a nice meal.

I've come to realize that I need a nice meal every so often just to rejuvenate my soul.  It doesn't necessarily have to be an expensive meal or have extravagant presentation, and it doesn't require swift customer service.  It's just got to feel healthy.  And by healthy I don't mean five fruits and vegetables or whole grains... I mean emotionally and mentally healthy... something that's just good for your soul.

So after a brisk run on the sands of Ocean Beach, Allie and I chased our workout with a nice breakfast at To The Point Café.  The replenishment was a chicken apple sausage egg sandwich held together by a buttery croissant with pesto cream cheese.  And the reward came in the form of mimosas... a traditional one for me and a lavender lemonade mimosa for Allie.  Thumbs up for Sunday mornings.

But that wasn't our nice meal.  Our nice meal was spent at Sushi Ota in Pacific Beach.  We sipped hot green tea, eavesdropped on the conversations from neighboring tables, and watched the quick movements of the Japanese restaurant.  And we did this while enjoying a platter of fresh yellowtail (hamachi) sashimi, a deluxe chirashi, and the fisherman's roll.  That was definitely some sushi for the soul.



The hamachi, a favorite for both me and Allie, was fresh enough to melt in your mouth.  Five beautifully carved, diamond-shaped pieces fanned out across the porcelain white plate, each piece that stood behind the first increased in size on a mound of shredded daikon and shiso.  And a drop of wasabi adorned the corner of the plate like the mole just above Niki Taylor's lip.  Simply beautiful.  And who cares if the yellowtail was from the radiated waters of Japan? I'm ready for my superhuman power, preferably the power to move things with my mind.



Our deluxe chirashi included that same yellowtail, sweet shrimp (ebi), salmon (sake), whitefish, octopus (tako), sea urchin roe (uni), squid (ika) stuffed with fresh crab meat, tuna (maguro), freshwater eel (unagi), fatty tuna (toro), and egg (tamago) that was stamped with the Ota authentic seal of approval.  Staring at this stunning box of rice and fish I completely forgot about the pickles (tsukemono) and the salmon croquette off to the side.

The fisherman's roll is what sealed the deal for us.  Whitefish and avocado hide within the rice and nori, and two kinds of onion sit atop of the roll.  Onions that were fried to a crisp provided the foundation for the topping of expertly sliced, raw green onions.  More yellowtail? Yes, please.  Slices of the beautiful sakana hung over each piece of sushi... like the smiling cheese from an In-N-Out Double Double... like the tongue of a hungry dog waiting for a juicy steak... or more like my tongue hanging out of my own mouth.  Man, just look at that sushi.  I'd hang a picture of this on my wall any day.

If that's not sushi for the soul, I don't know what is.  Replenished, stuffed to the brim, and happy as a clam, I declared, "I don't want to go to work tomorrow!" 

But I knew I was ready for Monday morning.  Until the next nice meal, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110522

Post 53: National Doughnut Day 2011

Last Friday was National Doughnut Day.  I wrote a post on National Doughnut Day last year after opening my eyes to some simply amazing doughnuts in Seattle.  Okay, scratch that.  I wrote two posts.  Counts on fingers.  Yes, that's right... two posts.  So to celebrate the big culinary holiday this year, I thought about heading to a local donut shop to purchase a dozen for the office... but I was running late, so no donuts.  But I walked into the office with a resounding chorus of, "Where are the donuts man?"

I have a habit of wanting to feed people until they balloon to human-sized chubby marshmallows, so I think everyone expects me to bring food in.  But lucky for me, I walked into our kitchen and found two boxes of Krispy Kreme, courtesy of colleagues on the other side of my cube wall.  So, "hey, uhhh... there are donuts in the kitchen!"

So happy National Doughnut Day to everyone.  No special doughnuts to celebrate with this year.  But I have found a few places in the Orange County area that require a visit.  In the meantime, check out my So Cal Krispy Kremes and my NYC Dunkin' Donuts.



And kick up your feet while bumming around to Bruno Mars', "The Lazy Song."  That's what I have on repeat lately.  Until the next culinary holiday, let's all get S.O.F.A.T.

ML - 20110603