Let's end February with a heavily hungover BANG! and guzzle down as much as we can, while we can, of San Francisco's Strong Beer Month. Please join the Bay Area Umamimart crew (Yoko, CJ + myself) on Sunday...
As you might expect after seeing my last post on Strong Beer Month, I went on quite a bender last week and tried out all six strong beers at Magnolia and five out of six at 21st Amendment. Last night, I had...
All photos by Yoko Kumano unless otherwise specified. On a warm, sunny day in San Francisco, 23 guests and I had the distinct pleasure of visiting Sutton Cellars Winery for an afternoon Vermouth Class, where we learned about its history, evolution, production methods, and...
February is upon us, and for those of us in the Bay Area it brings Strong Beer! If you have not heard, February is Strong Beer Month in San Francisco, a time when two of the local microbreweries Magnolia and 21st Amendment...
Sylvan Mishima Brackett is the mastermind behind Peko Peko, a Japanese catering service in the Bay Area. After working as Alice Waters' assistant for SIX YEARS (dude must have the patience of a Zen master. Just kidding, love you Alice!), he apprenticed in...
Updated 1/28, 9am PST: THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT! Stay tuned for February's Umamiventure! Updated 1/28, 9am PST: THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT! Stay tuned for February's Umamiventure! When I first read about Carl Sutton's vermouth in the...
Still on a quest to find excellent tan tan men in the Bay Area. Tan tan men is ramen with ground beef and cilantro, in a spicy hot soup-- I used to eat it all the time in Tokyo. Here's a bowl I had last...
Find out more about okara, or tofu lees, aka soy pulp. What it is, how to use it, and okara recipes.
Last month, I took a relaxing trip to Pt. Reyes with one of the best books I have read this year, the Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan (The Girl with...
Every time I would go to someone's house in Tokyo, they would likely offer me sencha before I even settled onto my zabuton or chair. Sencha is made by steaming...
Step-by-step instructions on how to use a water stone to sharpen knives, especially carbon-steel and stainless steel hÅchÅ (Japanese cutlery).
A step-by-step recipe guide to ferment your own soybeans and make natto at home.
Photos by Mike Brandeberry and Kayoko Akabori. 'Tis true: there lives a kickass distillery named St. George Spirits, just east of San Francisco, right across the Bay Bridge, in a little town that bleeds into Oakland, called Alameda,...
