I had so much fun illustrating this map of all the farmers markets in Silicon Valley for the current issue of Edible Silicon Valley magazine. My local market is the Mountain Goat/4 corners (see it? Click here for a bigger image...
It's been three months since I went to Vietnam. For an entire week, Johnny and I scootered around Saigon, and then a few days down the Mekong Delta. It was an unforgettable trip, that I have yet to recount here. Once I get all the...
From the refreshing mugi (barley) varieties to musty imo (sweet potato) that demand your full attention, shochus are always the choice of drink for me. I fell in love with shochu while I lived in Tokyo. From oolong-hai's to oyuwari imo (sweet potato shochu with hot...
By Haan Ridell Dill (Anethum graveolens), also known as "Lao coriander" depending on where it is grown, is a lovely herb very much used in Scandinavia. I LOVE DILL, a fantastic thing we all have growing here in our back gardens. Pytt I Panna, is...
I went to France for the first time. As I packed for the trip, all I could think about was the scene from The Devil Wears Prada where Anne throws her cellphone into a fountain. Everyone looks so stylish in that scene, or in...
Whenever I go to Sushi Kuni alone for lunch, I always sit at the sushi counter in front of Kuni. It's usually packed with Apple employees and the staff are usually all running around like a bunch of crazed chickens -- so even if...
Umami Mart is a place where ideas and people come together, take charge and create magic. This is true for the blog, the online shop, and our brick-and-mortar space in Oakland, CA. When writers, friends, friends of friends, customers, food + drink enthusiasts, and...
The Japanese dish hambagu derives from the Hamburg steak. Hamburg steak is the patty of a hamburger. Hamburg Steak were usually served with a side of potatoes in Germany. The Americans put the Hamburg steak in bread -- hence the hamburger. The Japanese appropriated the...
Two years ago, bored at work with nothing better to do but read through American ex-pat ramen journals, I decided to start my own ramen blog. I didn't tell anyone about it for a year because I was only using it to learn more...
By Steven Sharafian I spend a fair amount of time making tsukemono (pickles). I focus mostly on quick-pickles that only take a couple of minutes to prep and have a short curing period. This seemed to flow into the idea of pairing carrots with...
On my recent trip to Japan, Kuni and I went to a kona-ya (flour shop) in Ikebukuro, Tokyo called Hokutou Seifun. They hold soba and udon noodle-making classes on the second floor of their storefront. Our fingerless noodle master was dedicated to...
Zac was born at the end of last year, so for the last eight months CH and I have been super busy being (can I say awesome?) parents. We do our best and as a result he seems to really like us, the rest of...
Everytime I go to LA, I like it more than the last time. I didn't really like LA as a teenager... maybe it was because I would have rather been blasting Head Like A Hole in my bedroom with the curtains drawn all day....
I recently spent a month visiting my family in Tokyo. I had so many great meals, went to an onsen (hot springs), a winery, and paid my respects to my family's gravesite. Many places to visit. I also had an opportunity to meet my new Instagram friend,...
Shochu tends to be the drink of choice around here on Umami Mart, but we know that it's still pretty unfamiliar terrain. Yoko and I firmly believe that there is a place for shochu in the States, but it may take...
Yakitori is the perfect food: delicious, dainty morsels that come in a variety of ingredients and flavours which you keep eating and ordering on repeat. And on skewers. What is it about skewers that enhances the taste of grilled meat and veg a thousandfold?
Don't we all have that certain staple food, drink or condiment in our lives that is devastating when it cannot be found in the kitchen? For some, it is Sriracha, or cream for their morning coffee. Or a cold can of beer. For...
Hambagu (hamburger) curry rice with an over-easy egg and a touch of fresh cream. Our uncle's curry shop Hungry Ajikawa has been around for 35 years. HUNGRY AJIKAWA 2-17-8 Misaki-cho Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo T: 03-3261-5323
Yup, that's right, we'll be closed for most of July 4 week. We're heading down to LA to give a sake tasting at Bar + Garden in Culver City! The Oakland shop will be closed from Monday 7/1 through Thursday...
We're going to LA! That's right, we'll be spending a few days in sunny Los Angeles, driving down Sunset Boulevard with the top down searching for the Walsh residence in Beverly Hills. Then, poolside sunbathing in our bikinis, sipping on Mai-Tais with little...
