What Makes an Iron Chef?

One week from tonight, The Food Network will premiere its latest reality show. Well, almost reality if you believe there is a thing as Kitchen Stadium and a Chairman who reigns over it with a cadre of this nation's top chefs. I mean, really, who out there thinks the Chairman actually ponders all week thinking what should be the secret ingredient?

Now that I've burst your Santa Chairman bubble, let's get down to the nitty gritty of this new show and why I'm looking forward to it. This isn't a bunch of amateurs competing for their own show, or a gaggle of sous chefs hoping to open their own restaurant. This is going to spotlight cooking by some of the nation's best chefs, many of them owners of top-rated restaurants and James Beard-award winners. So this show has the best chances of spotlighting real cooking, instead of fancy editing of drama between reality show contestants.

Iron Chef (the original from Japan) is one of my favorite imported TV shows for its quick cooking and energetic TV commentating. The American version, Iron Chef America, has held up well although Alton Brown, while knowledgeable, doesn't carry off the same witty banter I enjoyed in the Japanese original. Still, I enjoy watching the judging to hear the Iron Chefs and real world chefs presenting their dishes and describing how they made it.

When Iron Chef America expanded from the typical three chef format to four, I thought it was so unnecessary. But then newbie Iron Chef Cat Cora has grown on me with her clean cooking and local charm. When I heard the show was going to look for another Iron Chef, I again thought it was so unnecessary. Does this mean less TV time for the fantastic Morimoto? (I doubt Bobby Flay will let anyone steal away air time from him ;-) Then I read that Mario Batali's contract with the Food Network was allowed to expire and no effort was made to bring him back to Food TV, so then appeared a real opening on Iron Chef America. (Now, those are going to be some big orange clogs for someone to fill.) I mean, people, this time "it really counts." (Is that the right slogan for the MLB All-Star game? Anyone?)

Starting next Monday, Oct. 8, I'll be posting recaps of the show (check back around 7 p.m. PST to give me time to get back from the gym and get a quick snack before posting). And as a preview, here are the eight cheftestants and Iron Chef hopefuls with my predictions:

John Besh, chef and owner of Restaurant August in New Orleans. With his boyish good looks, Besh is going to give Flay a run for his money in cornering the Iron Chef charm. I think he has the best chance of winning the competition because he has one Iron Chef battle under his wings and has the perfect personality for TV. (And did I mention his good looks?) A James Beard winner in 2006, Besh has been featured as a judge in various Food Network competition shows. His only negative may be that the show already has a Southern representative with Iron Chef Cora so you know the yanks in New York programming won't allow another one to sneak in.


Chris Cosentino, executive chef of Incanto in San Francisco. If anything, I predict chef Cosentino's hair will win. I bet it can cook on its own! Still, I'm sure Cosentino's Italian style will actually fill nicely the void left by Batali. So that means Cosentino also has a likely chance of winning. I put him and Besh among the top competitors and probably going head-to-head in the finale. Cosentino would bring a lot of excitement to Iron Chef America because he's a believer of using every part of the animal in his cooking, which means he has an innovative flair that will definitely impress the judges' panel. His only negative is that he lost in his previous appearance as a competitor on Iron Chef America. I guess the judges weren't that impressed by his offal fixins.

Jill Davie, TV chef host of Fine Living's "Shopping With Chefs." One of two female contestants, Davie was an up and coming restaurant chef, working at restaurants such as Charlie Trotter's in Chicago before helping to open LA's Josie's Restaurant. But TV apparently lured her away from the kitchen. Her bio on the Food Network says she was a Sunkist spokeswoman and appeared on Food Network shows such as "Date Plate" and "Party Starters" (didn't watch either). While she apparently has the TV chops, I think she's a long shot in being a Iron Chef because it's been awhile since she's worked in a busy kitchen.



Traci Des Jardins, chef and owner of Jardiniere in San Francisco. Des Jardins is the second female cheftestant and the second with Bay Area ties! (Go San Francisco!) Her restaurant Jardiniere is among the best in the city (and recently had an anniversary and makeover of its downstairs bar, now known as J Lounge) and she has won numerous awards and magazine recognition. She's also gone head-to-head on Iron Chef America and won! Despite the prestigious portfolio, Des Jardins may not have the TV personality required by the Food Network (although I have to say she really glammed up for her photo shoot). If she can bring out her personality during the competition, then her chances may increase. For now, she's in the middle of the pack.

Gavin Kaysen, chef de cuisine of El Bizcocho in San Diego. I'm going to call Kaysen "chef cutie." This 28-year-old will definitely win the young female American Idol voters if the Iron Chef battle was chosen by viewers' choice. But I don't think that's going to happen. So Chef Cutie will provide some nice eye candy but will probably not win the whole tamale. What he does have going for him, other than his TV good looks, is that he's trained in French cuisine and that's a style of cooking that's lacking on Iron Chef America (there was a well-known French Iron Chef in the Japanese show). So if the producers feel they want to bring in that side of traditional cooking, Chef Cutie may have a chance.



Morou, chef and owner of Farrah Olivia Restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia. OK, how do you become known as the one-name chef? Is Morou the Cher of the food world? Hmmm, interesting. This South African native is the wild card in this competition. I don't know much about him but he will bring a unique approach to cooking that American TV has never displayed properly, African cooking. So if he has a personality to match his apparent cooking chops, then he may be the sleeper of the series.



Aaron Sanchez, chef and owner of Paladar in New York. The only chef from New York, Sanchez is a true celebrity chef making TV appearances and writing his own book on Mexican-style cooking. His appearance on Iron Chef America is actually airing tonight as I'm writing this preview, so maybe I'll get some insight about his style although I'll probably be watching Desperate Housewives. I think Sanchez might have the chops to be an Iron Chef, but his Latin style of cooking seems to duplicate Bobby Flay and Cat Cora. So he's also in the middle of the pack.




Michael Symon, chef and former host of Food Network's "Melting Pot." I have to say, I never watched Melting Pot when Symon was on so I can't say I remember him. Similar to Jill Davie, Symon has a true career in food TV with several appearances in a variety of food shows over the years. I don't think he'll be much of a challenge, however, since his style of cooking seems to lack a definite voice. Plus, not to be mean, but doesn't he look like he should be on TLC's "Monster Garage" instead? I could be wrong.




So that's it! Again, my top picks are John Besh and Chris Cosentino's hair. Check back every week for my recap to see if my picks change.

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Creamy Cassata Gelato

Recently when I was in downtown Berkeley, I visited one of my favorite gelato shops, Gelato Milano, which is conveniently a few steps away from the downtown Berkeley BART station. The gelato there has such a buttery consistency that it's a real guilty pleasure. I typically eat the fruit flavors, but this time I tried some Italian treats. Above is a Cassata-inspired gelato topped off with the classic Tiramisu flavor. The tiramisu flavor was great; it really was just like eating the cream in a tiramisu dessert. The cassata was a new flavor for me. Cassata is a traditional Sicilian cake that has bits of fruits, often orange flavor. So this gelato flavor had a definite orange flavor, which I like, and a similar creamy texture like the tiramisu. These Italian dessert-inspired flavors seemed to have a bit more air in the gelato than the normal dense buttery consistency. So it was like eating whipped cream frosting. Still, it was an interesting new flavor to try. Instead of making a whole cassata cake, you can just buy a scoop! ;-)

Gelato Milano, 2170 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. PH: 510.649.1888. Web site.

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Dish on Dining: Jai Yun

Family Dinner with Chef Nei
923 Pacific Ave. at Powell, San Francisco [[Update 11/26/07: New location at 680 Clay St. at Kearny]]
Chinatown/Nob Hill neighborhood
PH: 415.981.7438
Chef's tasting dinners daily with primary seating at 7 p.m.
Reservations required. Cash only.
Web site

Growing up Chinese, I’ve been to my share of Chinese banquets, where dishes and dishes of food come one after another until you actually hear people saying: “please, enough.” But I’ve never heard of a Chinese tasting menu, where diners give up control of selecting the menu to the chef. (My mom would never leave it to the chef; she would think the chef would give us whatever dishes he couldn’t move that day.)

So when fellow food blogger Foodhoe suggested Jai Yun and its multi-course chef’s tasting menu, I was intrigued.

I’d never heard of Jai Yun, so I did some research on the Web and found raving reviews in the San Francisco Chronicle and among some food bloggers—one even calling the restaurant’s chef and owner Nei Chiaji the Chinese version of Thomas Keller. Now that’s a pretty high standard to live up to and it did more than raise my expectations of dinner at Jai Yun.

Our initial attempt to go to Jai Yun was foiled when the restaurant closed for a few days near the end of summer. So Foodhoe made a reservation for the following Thursday, which is surprising because all information on this restaurant says they’re closed on that day. But with confirmation in hand, Foodhoe and I walked the hills of San Francisco’s Chinatown to the door of Jai Yun.

NOTE: Two important things about planning to eat at Jai Yun. 1) Reservations are required and it seems like there’s only one seating, at 7 p.m. If you call later in the day, you’re more likely to reach the chef’s son, who speaks a little more English than his wife. 2) Bring cash, despite the fact that the fixed price for the dinner can go as high as $100 per person. This really is a family-run restaurant.

The outside of the restaurant looks like any tiny Chinese restaurant you’ll find in Chinatown, except it’s plastered with several Zagat logos. You walk in to what some might consider a dive but what I think is a real mom-and-pop restaurant with casual décor and a lot of Christmas lights. Foodhoe and I were the first to arrive so we picked a table near the window. We were given menus that didn’t list the food items (because that’s decided by the chef) but instead gave us information about the chef’s approach to dinner (he selects fresh and seasonal ingredients from that day’s market) and his upbringing (he’s originally from Nanjing, which is the ancient capital of China not too far from Shanghai). Behind me were placards with Chinese characters and English translations describing various dishes.

After being left alone for quite some time, the hostess (my guess is the chef’s wife) came back to get our decision about our dinner level. The minimum for dinner is $45 per person but Foodhoe and I decided to kick it up a notch and go for $55. (More adventurous people can go for even higher menus in the $75-100 range.) Then we sat back and waited for the feast to begin.A young man dressed in a well-worn T-shirt (my guess is the chef’s son) started us with the cold plates. He brought out mini plates with food neatly piled into a tiny molehill and briefly announced each dish to us. There were too many plates to photograph so here’s a couple of snapshots of some of the cold dishes. A total of nine plates arrived and they included (in order of appearance): 1) Jellyfish salad, 2) thinly sliced Lotus Root Salad, 3) Green Radish Salad, 4) thinly sliced Preserved Beef, 5) Pickled Cabbage, 6) Mixed Mushrooms with Shark Fin, 7) Dried Tofu slices, 8) Cucumber Salad and 9) Cilantro Salad.

A clear distinction of all the dishes is the fantastic knife skills of Chef Nei. The cucumber were paper-thin and you could almost thread a needle with the jellyfish (OK, maybe not, but they were the thinnest jellyfish slices I’ve ever seen.) There were so much precision in each cut that many of the pieces looked identical.

The taste was a mix bag of things familiar and things not: the jellyfish was bland, the lotus root was nicely pickled, so were the radish, which had a nice crunch with an underlining sesame oil flavor. The sweet-and-sour vinaigrette was perfect in the pickled cabbage but was virtually nonexistent in the cucumber. The tofu tasted like every other vegetarian dish I’ve had at a Chinese restaurant (and I don’t like forced vegetarian dishes at Chinese restaurants) but the thinly sliced preserved beef had an interesting spicy flavor.

After Foodhoe and I dissected each of the tiny dishes (which really could have come in one big appetizer platter) then came the warm dishes. I’ll discuss each as they arrived at our table.

Foo Yung Abalone, one of Chef Nei’s signature dish. It’s very thinly sliced abalone moistened by fluffy fried egg whites. The warmth of the egg whites blended perfectly with the tender flesh of the abalone. I could see why many people like this dish. My only thing was that, visually, this dish looked like barf. It was just a big white blob. But a tasty blob nonetheless.

Gluten with fresh bamboo shoots, green bellpepper, carrots and mushrooms. I don’t think I ever ate gluten, until I took one bite of the squishy product and realized this is the thing they throw in all those Chinese vegetarian dishes. Based on my comment above, you can guess that I wasn’t thrilled by this dish.

Ginkgo Nuts and Shrimp. This stir-fry dish was filling, but the ginkgo nuts were more like garbanzo beans instead of the herbal-tasting ginkgo nuts I’m familiar with. (My mom often put ginkgo nuts in her clear-broth soups.) The overall dish also had the familiar cornstarch glaze found in most Chinese stir-fries, and this was a flavor base that would come back often in upcoming dishes.
Soybean Tofu Chop Suey. I don’t think Chef Nei would admit to calling this a chop suey—the Americanized version of Chinese stir-fry—but it really felt like it was from the same family. This was just a mix of soybeans (the edamame) and thin tofu strips with a mix of other vegetables and oyster sauce. I was starting to feel like we were eating at a vegetarian restaurant.

Green peas, corn and fish. This fish dish was unusual in that the white fish was chopped into tiny bits the size of the peas. But that didn’t necessarily change the taste. It was like any other stir-fry plate you might find at other fine Chinese restaurants. It didn’t tickle my taste buds with new flavors.

Special Orange Beef. This is the basic deep-fried beef with orange sauce. Most Chinese restaurants would make this technique using pork ribs, but Chef Nei uses thinly sliced beef. The texture was interesting and the slight orange sauce with bits of orange peel didn’t overwhelm the plate. It also had a slightly spicy flavor representing the chef’s Northern-style cooking.

Celery with Five Spices and Dried Tofu. Just when I thought we were done with the vegetarian dish, we get another tofu selection. This was brightened by the crunch of tiny young baby celery pieces. I wasn’t a fan of the pressed tofu that were julienned to match the celery and didn’t get any five-spice flavoring.

Braised Pork Leg. In case you weren’t keeping count, this is course No. 17. And it was finally at this point that my mouth exploded with flavor. And why wouldn’t it when you’re fed slow-cooked meat? This dish is actually based on one of my favorite specialty dishes at Cantonese restaurants. At some restaurants, tender duck pieces are slow cooked and the meat encases a mix of herbs and other vegetarian ingredients created into a mound. This dish is often called Duck with Eight Treasures and you have to order it a day in advance at most restaurants because of the slow cooking and preparation required. At Jai Yun, the chef used a pork leg and creates the same tender meat with brown sauce like the duck dish I’m familiar with but with added layers of flavors such as five spice and hoisin.

Hubei Winter Melon. Initially I thought Chef Nei didn’t really have a clear theme to his tasting menu, and then I realize that he has basically set the course based on spiciness. As the meal went on, the dishes got spicier. Prime example is this winter melon dish. I’m more familiar with eating winter melon as a soup, so I was surprised to find it as a hidden treasure. Where was it hidden? In a big mound of spicy pork ragu that was delicious and hot, contrasting nicely with the cool, tender winter melon meat in the center.

Kung Pao Chicken. I was disappointed to hear that our final dish, course No. 19, was Kung Pao Chicken. Don’t get me wrong, I love Kung Pao Chicken, but there’s been some debate about how authentic this dish is to Chinese cuisine. Maybe it is, but I thought it wasn’t as innovative a dish to serve for a tasting dinner. It was definitely the most spicy of all the dishes served that night and this was when I wished we had a bowl of steamed rice.

NOTE: Rice isn’t served in this tasting menu because the chef doesn’t want you to get full before you’ve eaten all the dishes. I guess you could request rice at the end, but by then you’ll probably be too full.

After ending our tasting menu on such a spicy note, Foodhoe and I agreed that it would have been nice if we were given some kind of sweet dessert. We didn’t get anything. So we just gulped our water and paid the bill, which came out to be about $70 for each of us after we added tax and tip to the $55 base we selected.

On this Thursday night, there were only one other table dining with us. But it was a table of 10 and despite them being the only other table, the dynamics of the room made their laughter and chatter much louder than expected. I can’t imagine what it would be like if it was a packed house.

So let’s get one thing clear from the get-go: Chef Nei is no Thomas Keller. While Nei has wonderful knife skills, he lacks the vision and innovative approach to cooking that Keller offers in his many restaurants. (Not to mention the difference in service.) I did enjoy my meal, mostly because I like the idea of guessing what dish would come next and discussing each plate with a fellow food lover. But I wouldn’t call Jai Yun’s tasting menu a true tasting menu. It’s more like going to Chef Nei’s family home and being treated to his everyday dishes instead of special banquet-type creations.

I’m also a bit torn about whether it was worth paying $55 for 19 tiny courses when I probably could have spent the same amount for five to seven hearty servings at another fine Chinese restaurant. I also question how much thought Chef Nei really puts into his entrees because many of them seem very generic and dishes such as the abalone and slow-cooked pork leg seems to appear in every review of Jai Yun, making me wonder if he’s serving pretty much the same menu but making people think he thought up that menu that day? I mean, really, he’s in Chinatown where he easily could have tempted us with fresh seafood such as calamari or frog legs or even squab and poussin. Instead we got mostly generic Chinese stir-fries.

I didn’t leave Jai Yun disappointed, because I love eating adventures and love tasting menus. I just didn’t leave terribly impressed.

Single guy rating: 3 stars (it's like an average Iron Chef tasting)

Explanation of the single guy's rating system:
1 star = perfect for college students
2 stars = perfect for new diners
3 stars = perfect for foodies
4 stars = perfect for expense accounts
5 stars = perfect for any guy's dream dinner

For Foodhoe’s take on the dinner, check out her review and great photos (much better than mines).

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It's Like A Whole Block

I've been waiting for months for the Whole Foods Market to open in Oakland because it's just a couple of blocks from my work, which means easy after-work shopping on my way home. (Before I would shop at the Whole Foods Market in Berkeley, which is a 15-minute bus ride and 10-minute walk from my home.) Today the new Oakland store, built in the Adams Point neighborhood near Lake Merritt, finally opened to the public. And while I don't want to necessarily make this one big advertisement, I couldn't ignore the elephant in the room. (This is only the third Whole Foods in the East Bay.) You know I was there on opening day checking out the new store, and first impression is this place is huuuuge. (It officially weighs in at 55,000 square feet.)

What took awhile for this store to be built is that it's in a historic building (a former Cadillac dealership) and Whole Foods took care in retaining the facade of the former building, near the auto row area of Oakland surrounded by car dealerships. On a beautiful sunny day, there are tons of outdoor seating for people who buy a ready-made food pack and choose to eat on the spot.

This is one of many specialty food counters in the center of the huge store. This one, the Asian Express, focuses on Asian dishes, from Chinese to Thai to Japanese. Naturally this is where you'll find the sushi counter. Off to the side next to it is the roastery and charcuterie.

Near the produce section and adjacent to the wine wall is a bistro selling sandwiches, soups, roasted items and other dishes perfect for lunch. You can bet I'll be here often on my lunch hour!
Since this is a really new store, there are many "organic" and "feel good" food sayings all over the place, such as this one over the huge cheese counter.

Similar to the new store opened in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood, this Oakland store offers a spa area near the cosmetics area. I'm not sure, but I think you actually can get a massage behind those doors.

Here's the pizza counter with freshly made pizza from the Hearth oven. It's right next to a gelato counter serving gelato from Naia. Perfecto!

Here's the huge indoor area of the cafe. I love how there is so much natural light coming in with the design of the store.

I like how in the center of the store there's this huge Oakland sign. It really shows how the store is showing its support for the community, and with the crowds that gathered today and all the oohs and aahs I heard walking around, it looks like the community is happy Whole Foods is finally opened as well. It's still true that Whole Foods have some pretty high-priced products, but they also have some unique-looking and hard-to-find products that you're willing to pay the high price to get. For me, it'll be a nice quality place that's convenient. I won't shop here for all my food needs, but will come looking for things when I feel creative.

Whole Foods Market, 230 Bay Place, Oakland. PH: 510.834.9800.

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Business Lunch: Fried Rice Korean-Style

Fried rice is always my easy go-to lunch for work because I'm using leftover rice and whatever is in my refrigerator. The recipe below is for Kim Chee Fried Rice, which is inspired by my recent hankering for Korean food and from what is a very popular dish in Hawaii. The Kim Chee makes this a bit spicier dish, but tasty if it's one of your favorite ethnic condiment. And it is for me. Just a warning though, some of your co-workers may not be familiar with the smell of Kim Chee, especially when warmed in the office microwave. So be considerate and heat it up and let the food air out a bit before dashing off to enjoy your lunch! (Note: I always cook brown rice, so my fried rice looks brown because of that. You can use regular long grain white rice that's one to two days old.)

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Kim Chi Fried Rice

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Kim Chi or Kim Chee, diced finely
6 oz. ground beef or veal
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 to 3 cups day-old rice
1 egg
2 stalks green onion or spring onion, chopped
1 T sesame oil
1 T soy sauce
1 T Xiao Shing cooking wine or sherry
2 T Canola oil
salt and pepper

Marinate meat in sesame oil, soy sauce, Xiao Shing wine and a pinch of salt and pepper. Set aside for about 10 minutes.

In a wok or large skillet, warm oil over high heat and then add ground meat and stir-fry to brown all the pieces. (Use your spatula to break the meat into small chunks if needed.) Add frozen peas and cook for another minute. If you have a lot of excess oil or moisture from the meat and peas, pour it out before continuing.

Add rice, breaking up clumps with your hands if needed. Season again with salt and pepper and even a dash of soy sauce if you like it saltier. Add kim chee and green onion and mix all the ingredients. Then add egg (scramble first in a small dish) and quickly stir-fry. Plate and garnish with more kim chee and green onion.

Makes 2 to 3 servings.

Pair with a glass of Gewurztraminer.

TIP: The egg can be a tricky stir-frying challenge in fried rice. When you add it at the end like I stated above, it can be more of a glazy mess. If you don't like your egg on the wet side, then scramble your egg in a separate pan beforehand and then add to your fried rice near the end. This way your fried rice is more on the dry and fluffy side.

KIM CHEE: This Korean staple can now be found at most refrigerated Asian section of grocery stores, at least in major cities. If not, you may be able to find them at a Korean supermarket or Asian grocery store. They're typically sold in jars.

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395 Posts, 98 Recipes, 64 Reviews, 1 Year of Blogging

Today marks one whole year since I started my blog, posting my recipe for Peaches and Pork Stir Fry. When I started, I didn't really know how long I would be doing it and if anyone would come and visit. I thought I'd post maybe two or three items a week, but as some of you know I post now nearly four to five times a week. I didn't know I would have so much to talk about!

I want to thank all of you who have visited my blog in the past year. I especially want to thank those of you who have left me comments, either on individual postings or via email. I really love hearing from you and am always at a wonder as to how you've found me. In the past year I've heard from people all over the world, from a woman in London looking for a jook recipe to a Web site in Sweden that liked my asparagus soup recipe. I also heard from many of my fellow locals from my hometown of Hawaii, and of course those in my backyard here in this foodie community of the Bay Area.

I'm looking forward to the next year of blogging. I know in recent months several food bloggers have taken breaks from blogging or gone on hiatus. I can't promise I might not hit burnout, but as long as I still have fun doing this, you'll continue to find recipes, reviews, shopping finds and more. In fact, in the next few months I'm hoping to do more interviews of food people and in a couple of weeks I'll be starting my TV recaps of Food Network's new show "The Next Iron Chef." So busy times ahead. I hope you'll continue on my ride.

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Casaba: The Wrinkly Melon

It's a wet Saturday morning here where I am so probably not that fun to head out to the farmers' market. So we'll do it virtually! This is a photo of casabas, a melon that has this really interesting thick wrinkly skin. I thought they were so interesting-looking when I saw them last Sunday at the Civic Center farmers market in San Francisco. They're supposedly on the mild side and have a long shelf life because of its skin. I tried a sample at the stand and it was like a mushy honeydew. I like the name, though, casaba.

Visiting the Market With The Best
Did any of you read the New York Times article in this past week's Dining Section? The food writer got Alice Waters to come to her Brooklyn home to cook for her. How do I get that gig? I know Waters can be a pretty controversial figure, but I have to say she really loves the farmers market and it shows in an accompanying video to the story. If you haven't seen it, you should check it out here. It's like watching someone fall in love again and again.

Alice Waters photo and video courtesy of the New York Times Web site.

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Howling Over Moon Cakes

This coming Tuesday (Sept. 25) is the Autumn Moon Festival, celebrated by many Chinese families all around the world. It’s the second most festive celebration in the Chinese culture after the Lunar New Year. I remember growing up in Honolulu, my mom would spend all day cooking in the kitchen making all of her favorite dishes and then we’d spend the night hiding from our relatives who came over for the feast (my siblings and I were shy kids). Because the Moon Festival celebrates the coming of the first harvest, you have to put on a pretty big spread to make it a bountiful fall.

One of the treats of the festival (because you know there has to be sweets for any happy occasion) is the moon cakes. They’re pastries molded into a circular form to resemble the moon and then filled with a variety of sweet pastes made with ingredients such as lotus root, black sesame or red beans. There’s even some fillings that are like a minced meat pie and one resembling what can only be called a fruitcake. The moon cakes often have these decorative relief images on them, which is made by pressing them into bamboo molds with specialized carvings. Because a lot of oil is used to make moon cakes, a well-used mold will often have the dark sheen of years of happy use. (The carvings are typically Chinese characters of the bakery’s name, but they may also be some lucky words.)

The Moon Festival was one of my favorite festivals growing up because of the folklore that surrounded it. The story goes that a young couple in love (aren’t they always?) wanted to escape an angry father who didn’t want them to be together. They attempted to fly to the moon with the help of a fairy, but only the woman was able to reach the moon. But every year, during the first full moon of the fall, the couple reunites for just one night. Another story is connected to the moon cakes. During the period when the Mongols ruled China, an uprising was organized by having secret revolutionary plans inserted into the moon cakes. That’s supposedly how the Ming Dynasty came to be.

Now that you have a proper background of the festival, on to the food discussion, which I’m sure you’re much more interested in hearing. I love moon cakes but I try not to eat that many because, like I mentioned above, a lot of oil is used to keep the filling moist. Moon cakes are sold in boxes of four and you’ll find them at local Chinese bakeries, some dim sum restaurants and Chinese grocery stores. Some boxes, especially the tin boxes from Hong Kong, have elaborate designs of the lady in the moon. Some people swear by the Hong Kong varieties, saying the Hong Kong brands have a more expert technique and flavor. But these moon cakes are generally very expensive and you run the risk of it not being as moist as locally made moon cakes. (A box can run about $25 to $40.)

San Francisco is lucky in that it has a very old Chinatown with a few bakeries. For years, Eastern Bakery’s moon cakes were very popular on Grant Avenue. But when it became too much of a tourist destination, many of the locals started feeling that Eastern’s moon cakes weren’t as good. Nowadays, you’ll see a long line (even longer than usual) at Golden Gate Bakery (also on Grant Avenue) as people wait in line to order their moon cakes. (Photo at very top shows the line at Golden Gate Bakery last night at around 6:45 p.m.)

I personally feel Golden Gate Bakery uses too much butter and oil in their products, so I don’t feel like standing in their long lines for what may be a very greasy and oily moon cake. So I ended up at Eastern Bakery. (photo right) Despite being written off as a tourist trap, their moon cakes are still pretty authentic. And since I’m the Single Guy, I’m really just looking for one cake.

Above is a picture of the moon cake I purchased at Eastern Bakery. It’s made with a lotus paste filling and one egg yolk. The egg yolk is important to the moon cake because it symbolizes the moon. But you can get moon cakes without them because some people don’t like the salty flavor of the egg mixing in with the sweet filling. (The egg is preserved in salt water before being added to the moon cake.) The yolk is my favorite part because I’m a savory-sweet kind of guy. I paid $5.25 for that one moon cake (I know, moon cakes are expensive). If you don’t want to invest that much in trying your first moon cake, Eastern Bakery offers these mini moon cakes for a few dollars less.


Party in the Streets of San Francisco: While Tuesday is the private family celebration of the Moon Festival, the public festivities occur this weekend (Sept. 22-23) when the Chinatown Merchants Association puts on the annual Moon Festival street fair. Grant Avenue will be closed off to traffic and you can wander and buy things from the food booths and flower stands. If you always thought Chinatown was crowded, it’ll be even more so during this street fair that occurs on both Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.




Eastern Bakery, 720 Grant Ave., San Francisco. PH: 415.982.5157
Golden Gate Bakery, 1029 Grant Ave., San Francisco. PH: 415.781.2627

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Dish on Dining: Pyung Chang Soft Tofu House

Its Soon, Delightful
4701 Telegraph Ave., Oakland
Temescal neighborhood
PH: 510.658.9040
Cash only

I’m amazed at the number of Korean restaurants in Oakland, more so than in San Francisco. Many of them are clustered on Telegraph Avenue and they even reach the far north corner of my humble abode. So recently when the weather started to turn autumnal, I went hunting for the hot, spicy Korean comfort food known as soon—or soft tofu soup.

I walked down to the nearby Temescal neighborhood, past all the tempting foodie hotspots such as Bakesale Betty, Pizzaiolo and Dona Tomas, and found myself at the doorsteps of Pyung Chang Soft Tofu House. This small, corner restaurant in an old Victorian blends with the somewhat rough neighborhood. With its door closed, it was hard to tell past the dingy windows whether it was open for business.

But sure enough, it was. I entered and was seated at one of the rustic wooden benches that looked like they came from a summer lodge in Taiwan. Off to the side, the cashier counter looked like the front desk of an Asian youth hostel with its stark black and white Korean letterings (which I’m assuming is the menu) and a closed-circuit television of the restaurant (which I’m assuming is for the times when the place gets so packed the waitress can check to see if a table in the back is done).

The ambiance was definitely mom-and-pop. The kind of place that you can ensure you’ll get cheap, ethnic food—and if you’re lucky, cheap, tasty ethnic food.

After flipping through the pictured menu, I ordered the Original Soon Tofu Soup with Pork ($8.99). There were maybe six other versions of this tofu soup, but I decided to stick with the classic. Now typically, I’d recommend ordering a side bowl of rice in a stone pot, which is always fun to see rice come in this rustic-style stoneware. The hot stone continues to cook the rice, creating a nice bottom layer of crispy rice that’s fun to stir into your soon.

But instead of just a side dish of rice, I decided to order the Bi Bim Bap in stoneware ($10.99), mostly because I like saying Bi Bim Bap. (A few years ago, I went to Vancouver, B.C., with my sister and brother-in-law for the New Year and I got so drunk at a Korean bar on New Year’s Eve that I spent the night hunting for Bi Bim Bap. See how a food’s name can haunt you sometimes?) The Bi Bim Bap is a traditional Korean dish of mixed vegetables and some meat all blending with eggs and hot sauce over a bed of rice. It reminds me of a rice version of the Japanese sukiyaki. And of course, I ordered the Bi Bim Bap on stoneware to get that crispy bottom layer.

After I placed my order, then the parade of panchan dishes arrived at my table. Panchan (or side dishes) is a unique part of the Korean dining experience. No matter what type of Korean restaurant you go to, you’ll get some kind of free side dishes brought out to you at the start of your meal, almost like an amuse bouche, but times 10. Once I ate in a Korean restaurant in Manhattan that brought out probably a dozen panchan dishes. Even traveling alone in Vietnam earlier this year, I ducked into a Korean restaurant for dinner one night and was treated to a nice array of panchan dishes.

For this evening, the waitress brought six panchan plates to my table. I guessed five of the six: 1) there was the ubiquitous kim chi, or fermented cabbage, 2) spicy Shanghai cabbage, 3) pickled celery, 4) tiny dried fish and 5) bean sprouts in a light oil sauce. The mystery dish was thin strips of a white vegetable. I thought maybe it was pickled daikon, but it didn’t have that crunch to it. It was soft and mushy and my least favorite of the panchan selection.

Overall, I wasn’t impressed by Pyung Chang’s panchan, even though it was free. They didn’t have my favorite—pickled cucumber—and some of them didn’t seem very fresh. (The pickled celery had brown edges.)

Then my dinner arrived. And you can always tell when your dinner is coming from the bubbling sound of the soon and the popping sound of my Bi Bim Bap in the hot stone plate (maybe that’s where they get the name? LOL). And after a quick demonstration by the waitress on how to pour the hot sauce over the Bi Bim Bap (really, lady, I know how to pour sauce and that circular motion you’re doing really doesn’t add anything), I dug into my food.

First the soon, which is what Pyung Chang is known for. I mean, it’s in the name of the restaurant. The tofu was soft and creamy and probably one of the best soft tofu I’ve had in a long time. It blended nicely with the soup base with the bits of pork chunks. I have to say, though, that I would have preferred the soup a bit more spicy. I have a feeling the waitress ordered me a mild soon even though she never asked me whether I wanted it spicy or mild. (Spicy, always spicy.) So I ended up dipping a few of my kim chi from the panchan into my soup, and it was nice.

The Bi Bim Bap was a feast for the eye, as usual, but it lacked any flavor. If I didn’t generously pour on the special hot sauce (yes, lady, I did it in a circular motion), it would have tasted like watery vegetables. My Bi Bim Bap was supposed to have thin slices of beef, but I only saw a few slices of beef mixed in with all the vegetables and egg. But the rice—continuously cooking on the stone plate—was perfectly crisp and I dipped some of it into my soon.

Side note: Like any small ethnic dives, Pyung Chang has no real air-conditioning. This probably isn’t a big issue with fall coming soon, but it makes me wonder who comes here for hot tofu soup during the spring and summer? With its wooden benches, lack of air conditioning and hot, spicy food, this really is a sweat lodge.

The 7-year-old Pyung Chang Soft Tofu House has gotten a lot of attention from non-Asian eaters with the proliferation of Yelp reviews. Is the soup that good? Yes. Is the restaurant overall worth all the stars being lavished on it? I don’t think so. I recommend Pyung Chang for the tofu soon, but its lack of quality ingredients in the other dishes and the somewhat dingy interiors of the place make this more a neighborhood joint than a destination spot for people looking for superior Korean cuisine.

Single guy rating: 2 stars (would be more if I rated only the soup)

Explanation of the single guy's rating system:
1 star = perfect for college students
2 stars = perfect for new diners
3 stars = perfect for foodies
4 stars = perfect for expense accounts
5 stars = perfect for any guy's dream dinner

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Pasta for Those Who Hate Doing Dishes

When I cook, it’s either two scenes: 1) I make a big mess and pile up my sink with used utensils, bowls, dishes and cooking racks, or 2) I have a few limited pots to wash after a quick-and-easy dinner. Especially on a weeknight, I like to keep the washing to a minimum (which is why I love leftover night because I’m basically just microwaving dinner from the night before and just washing one plate).

Awhile back, I read an article in the Los Angeles Times about a chef recommending cooking pasta in your sauce. I forgot which chef actually said that. I think it was Thomas Keller. But cooking your pasta and sauce together? I’m so there.

So below is a recipe I created using that concept of one-pot cooking. Afterwards I didn’t have to deal with washing my big multi-layered pot I used to boil pasta. I just had to wash the skillet, a plate and a wine glass. Perfect for my lazy nights.

The trick with using this technique is to time when you add the different ingredients because they all cook at different times. So for example, below I cooked the chicken with the pasta in a chicken broth-tomato sauce. Then I later added in the zucchini because I didn’t want it to be totally soft by the time I ate it. So you can easily create your own pasta favorite, just know when to add the ingredients. The total cooking time, however, is always based on the pasta of your choice, which is why I chose penne because it usually has a longer cooking time than others. Enjoy!

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One-Skillet Pasta

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
1 chicken breast (about 3 oz.), cut into chunks
1 can of whole peeled tomatoes (14.5 oz.)
1 can of chicken broth (14 oz.)
1 zucchini, diced
¼ cup kalamata olives
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
1 white corn, kernels removed from cobb
¼ cup fresh basil, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
6 oz. penne pasta
salt and pepper
2 T extra virgin olive oil

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and then add garlic. Saute for a few seconds and then add chicken to brown all sides, about 2 minutes for each side.

Add broth and tomatoes to the skillet and reduce heat to a rolling simmer. (That’s like a hearty bubbling but not boiling.) Add pasta and stir occasionally. Cook for as long as it takes to cook the pasta according to the box (usually about 11 to 13 minutes for penne).

Half way through the cooking of the pasta, add the zucchini, olives, corn and basil. You can also add some seasoning now, such as salt, pepper or even dried oregano.

When pasta is done, remove from heat and add cheese and blend well. Plate and garnish with basil leaves or grate more cheese on top.

Makes 2 servings. Serve with garlic bread.

Pair with a glass of Chianti Classico.

TIP: You can use any pasta you like, but penne, rigatoni or other similar ones are preferable. Spaghetti doesn’t cook as long and may not allow your other ingredients to cook by the time the pasta is ready.

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The Next Krispy Kreme--The Bomboloni

If I had the money, I would create a chain called “Ben’s Bomboloni” and all I would sell would be this lovely, cream-filled Italian treat. That’s all I would sell, and people would drive for miles to try this luscious doughnut filled with creamy custard, Europe’s favorite Nutella, fruity raspberry or America’s favorite chocolate. I’d open store after store, and it’d be featured on every food program, even Giada, the woman that’s all Italian would come and taste it for herself first-hand. Then I’d sell shares of my chain on the public stock market and it’d have the highest appreciation of any IPO since Google. Alas, that’s when there would be an SEC investigation about some accounting thing or another and I’d have to announce layoffs and then it wouldn’t be about the bombolini anymore.

Oh well, forget that. All I have to do is go to Boriana’s Corner at the San Francisco Ferry Building and get myself their amazing bomboloni.

This weekend I was at the Ferry Building on a beautiful sunny afternoon in the city and I saw the little cart at this Italian specialty store. Now, I have to say, I’ve walked past this store many times but never really bought anything. Their prices always seemed a little bit too gourmet and high-end for me. All their products are imported from Italy, specifically from the Tuscany region of Montepulciano. But out of curiosity, I wanted to taste what a bomboloni was. Plus, I love love love custard treats.

The bomboloni, you probably guessed, is not imported from Italy. I asked the store owner and she says that she imports some of the ingredients, but she found a local producer who follows her grandmother’s recipe and this summer she began selling these wonderful doughnut treats. You can get it in custard or raspberry for $2.50 each or Nutella or Cioccolato (which I’m assuming means Italian chocolate) for $2.75 each. They’re made fresh every morning and is available at Boriana’s Corner every day.

The bomboloni reminds me a lot of the malasada, which is a popular Hawaiian treat that has its roots in Portugal. The malasada is basically a pastry that’s shaped like an oval ball and is more fluffy than heavy dough. It’s rolled in granulated sugar and is extremely popular at fairs. Malasadas became so popular in Hawaii that the bakery that made the malasada a star, Leonard's, now make them filled with a variety of fillings such as coconut or guava. So the bomboloni is very similar in that it’s coated with granulated sugar and has a doughy consistency that’s fluffy and airy. Here’s the custard version and I took a bite so you could see the custard greatness inside. The custard was so perfectly balanced, not too sweet or runny. It was creamy, firm and so tasty. What I especially liked about it was that it was room temperature with just a slight chill so it didn’t taste like it just came out of the refrigerator truck. Now I can’t wait to go back and try the other flavors!

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Back to Basics: The Omelette

Before I started this blog, I would just see what’s in my refrigerator or the market and put something together. No measurements, and definitely no staging of the finished product! :-)

Now I write everything down, every time I cook, just in case I decide to blog about it. But there are still some things I make that just happens because I’ve done it so many times and it’s so basic that I figured, eh, they probably already know how to do this. Or do they?

That’s what popped into my mind when I was making an omelette the other day. There might be some people who don’t even know the first step in making an omelette. And then there’s others (probably the purists out there) who would be aghast (is that a word? I guess so since Word didn’t correct it)—aghast I say!—that my steps are so off based.

So I decided to describe how I make my omelette. I wished I thought of taking pictures of the steps, but that’s always hard since I need my hands for cooking. So you have to just use your expert visualization skills. I recently had some leftover crimini mushrooms and gruyere cheese in the frig, so I decided to make a cheese-mushroom omelette. Here’s how it went:

Sweating the mushrooms: I don’t like my omelettes runny, and it’ll be half-way to a river when you use mushrooms, which have a lot of moisture already. So I sliced my crimini mushrooms and placed them in a non-stick skillet with a bit of extra virgin olive oil to sweat out some of the moisture. Adding a pinch of salt will help extract the moisture. I call this sweating the mushrooms because after awhile, the mushrooms will start to get moist like it’s in some spa. As a twist, I add a dash of balsamic vinegar (about a tablespoon) and then let the mushrooms continue cooking until the vinegar reduces a bit. I remove everything from the pan and set it aside until I’m ready.

Two eggs or three?: I get my eggs ready before I start making the omelette. In a small bowl, I whisk together my eggs. You’ll need about two to three eggs. I usually use three to make sure I get a nice thick omelette. I’ll add about a teaspoon of salt at this time to make sure the eggs are well seasoned. Also, sometimes when I have it leftover, I’ll whisk in some crème fraiche or heavy cream (about a quarter cup) just to give my eggs a richer texture. But it’s totally optional and I didn’t do it this time because I didn’t have either one available.

Let the magic begin: So now that I have my core ingredients ready, I start making my omelette. In the same non-stick pan that I used to cook the mushrooms (rinsed and wiped off clean, of course), I warm some olive oil first. Even though it’s a non-stick pan, I still like to use a bit of oil to make sure my omelette doesn’t fall apart if some parts stick to the pan. Also, it’s important to create that initial burn when you add your eggs. So have your pan fairly hot (about medium high heat) and then add your eggs, then after about 30 seconds, bring the heat down to medium to continue cooking your eggs but not burn your omelette. (Some people don’t like their omelettes to have any browning color, so then you have to have your stovetop on a low eat. I’m not that patient.)

Piercing the bottom: I saw a guy at an omelette station in a restaurant do this once when I was a kid. He added the eggs to the pan and then started swirling it around to cover the entire base and as it cooked, he would get his spatula and pierce some holes so that the gooey eggs on top would settle down to the heat and cook faster. So I do the same thing as I cook my eggs, helping it cook faster by scraping some small holes with my spatula.

Plump up with filling: When it looks like my eggs are 80 percent cooked, I started layering the ingredients on top for the filling. So I get my mushrooms in balsamic vinegar and place them evenly on top. I also had some leftover fresh basil, so I grabbed a few leaves and sliced them thinly (chiffonade for you French cooking experts) and sprinkled them on top as well. If you want to add a pinch of salt and pepper, this would be a good time. Then I finish everything off by grating my leftover gruyere cheese on top, about a quarter cup.

The fold: I guess this is the part that requires some talent. I’ve seen on food demonstrations a variety of ways people make an omelette. The most interesting way was when a chef did this constant shaking of the pan until the omelette simply crumbled together into one side of the pan. I’m not skilled that way, so I do an easy fold-over. Once I have all my filling in place, I use my spatula and rim the edge of one side of the eggs and then just fold that side over, creating my omelette. Sometimes if I feel like it, I’ll fold it and then flip the whole omelette one more time onto its other side just so that it’ll have a more cylindrical shape, like a burrito.

Once the fold is done and cooks just a few seconds longer to create a seal, I just slip my omelette (this is where you thank yourself for remembering to oil the pan) onto my plate, give it some garnish or more grated cheese and then enjoy a happy weekend breakfast. (Yeah, I don’t have time to do this every morning so I just save it for the weekends.)

Here’s my mushroom-cheese-basil omelette. So how do you make yours?

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Dish on Dining: Bambuddha Lounge

Is Tenderloin Hotspot Cooling Down?
601 Eddy St., San Francisco (Inside the Phoenix Hotel)
Tenderloin/Civic Center neighborhood
PH: 415.885.5088
Dinner, Tuesday through Saturday, 5:30–10 p.m. (until 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday)
Reservation, credit cards accepted
http://www.bambuddhalounge.com/

When I lived in Manhattan, hot restaurants lasted for just a few months before another new one came along and got featured on “Sex and The City.” In San Francisco, the turnover isn’t that obvious but it can still happen with new restaurants opening all the time.

So when does a hot spot lose its luster? For Bambuddha Lounge, the too-hip-to-be-near-anything-chic restaurant and club, the time may be arriving soon if not already knocking on the door.

I recently revisited the 4-year-old Bambuddha Lounge with my friend Stella because we had tickets to the Broadway show Avenue Q at the Orpheum Theatre. There are very limited dining options near the Civic Center, so I suggested Bambuddha Lounge since it’s just four blocks north of the theatre.

The restaurant is the type that believes it’s so hip that it doesn’t even have its name on the door. When you walk up to the entrance at the Phoenix Hotel, all it says at the top is “Restaurant.”

Stella and I were early for our reservations, so we cozied up to the bar for a couple of drinks. The water feature against the wall of the bar gave off a distinct chlorine smell, which didn’t add to the ambiance. In fact, because we were early, the stark sunlight of an early San Francisco summer evening made the restaurant’s interiors appear stark and dated. I began to feel like I was inside a motel instead of a hip lounge. Mood lighting was definitely in order.

Our drinks were just as tired. I ordered a Lychee Martini that had too much lychee syrup and Stella ordered a Mango Mojito that looked pretty but didn’t have any taste of mango.

After we were seated at our table, we began to study the pan-Asian menu, which is primarily influenced by Filipino, Thai and Indonesian cooking styles. The menu under Chef Jessica Gorin had a mix of small and large plates. Feeling adventurous, Stella and I mostly focused on small plates so that we could try a variety of dishes.

SIDE NOTE: Our waiter was especially patient when it came time for me to order a wine with my dinner. Because we primarily ordered seafood and was eating in a mostly Asian restaurant, I was looking for a white wine. I would say I tried probably three different white wines by the glass before I gave up, feeling exasperated, and ended up with a red wine. Like I said, the waiter was especially patient and was very willing to give me sips of each wine so I could make my selection. I give him major props for that. I do not give props, however, to the wine list that featured very weak and immature white wines. The red wine I ended up with was sufficient for dinner but nothing noteworthy.

On to the plates: First up was the Peekytoe Crab salad ($12) with an English pea-cilantro puree with wasabi tobiko and chive blossoms. The crab salad had this unusually pale coloring, but the flavor and taste overall was pleasant. The subtle flavors of the crab were brightened by the citrus notes in the pea and cilantro puree. The chive blossoms on top also added a nice texture to the overall dish.

Then came the Chilled Avocado Soup ($8) topped with grilled prawns and drizzled with green papaya and herb oil. If I were Tom Colicchio of Top Chef, I would call this dish “disgusting.” But I can’t pull off Colicchio, and I do not want to shave my head just to call a dish disgusting. All I can say was that this was “disappointing.” The avocado soup lacked flavor and I just felt like I was eating bland pureed guacamole. The only saving grace was the grilled prawns, which added the taste of caramelized shrimp. Really, how wrong can you go with grilled fresh shrimp? If they had chopped up the shrimp and spread it around the soup, then maybe the bland avocado soup wouldn’t have been so offensive to me.

Next up was the Ma Po Duck Salad, which came out looking like a fall “horn of plenty.” The cubed duck meat looked like it was pouring out of this head of radicchio. The meat itself was tender with the traditional Asian flavors of a light hoisin base, but the presentation looked like the duck threw up on the plate. (I had so many “The Next Food Network Star” and “Top Chef” judges’ table flashbacks during this meal, it just wasn’t even funny.)

Our last dish of the evening was the Coconut-Crusted Day Boat Scallops ($22) with summer sweet white corn, mushrooms, and green chilies in a caramelized coconut reduction. Just like grilled shrimp, you can’t go wrong with scallops. They were tasty and filling, and the coconut and corn base was a nice compliment. I felt the coconut shavings used to encrust the scallops were a tad over the top and really wasn’t necessary.

As Stella and I went on with our meal, the restaurant began to fill up and there were a couple of “beautiful people” to check out. (They were having drinks outside in the poolside seating.) I told Stella that during the summer All-Star baseball game in San Francisco, Yankees Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez hosted a private party at Bambuddha Lounge. So apparently Bambuddha Lounge can still draw the big names for private events and parties, but I have to wonder if the food can keep them satisfied like the big belly Buddha?

All I can say about Bambuddha Lounge is that it was convenient to the Orpheum and we were able to have dinner and get seated at the theatre in time for the opening number. Avenue Q was the highlight of the evening.

Single guy rating: 2 stars (go for the eye candy while it lasts)

Explanation of the single guy's rating system:
1 star = perfect for college students
2 stars = perfect for new diners
3 stars = perfect for foodies
4 stars = perfect for expense accounts
5 stars = perfect for any guy's dream dinner

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Food Gallery

I know this isn't really a food photo, but I did see it at a stand at the farmers' market awhile back. I'm not really sure what it is. I thought it was the blooming flower of an artichoke; those can be beautiful. (Although I tried to force my artichoke I bought at the store to bloom but it didn't. Lesson learned. No more rotting artichokes for me.) I think it's some kind of thistle. So that's why I call this "Purple Thistle in a Can."

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Classic watermelon salad

I can’t lay claims for inventing the watermelon salad. I think you’ve probably seen some on restaurant menus. To me, it’s a very Greek thing because of the simple olive oil dressing. Still, it’s one of my favorite salads to make because it looks so elegant and is very refreshing.

Lately, there’s been tons of watermelon for sale at my local Safeway. As the Single Guy, I’ve mostly been buying the miniature seedless watermelon from Dulcinea. That’s because 1) they’ve been on sale and 2) they’re easy to carry home and eat up by myself in just a few days. Along with making salad, I also like to mix some watermelon cubes with my favorite yogurt for a refreshing snack. Enjoy!

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Watermelon and Arugula Salad

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
1 cup watermelon, seedless and cubed
3 cups arugula
3 oz. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
¼ cup Kalamata olives, pitted

Balsamic vinegar dressing:
1 T dijon mustard
1 T sugar
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper

In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients to make the dressing and then whisk to blend well.

In a large salad bowl, combine watermelon, arugula and olives and then toss with some of the dressing. Plate and sprinkle the Gorgonzola cheese on top.

Makes two servings.

Pair with a glass of crisp Sauvignon Blanc.

TIP: I put the cheese last because if you toss the cheese with the rest of the salad, the balsamic vinegar dressing will make the cheese bit look gray. So add the cheese as the final touch.

FEELING YELLOW?: Recently the farmers market and some grocery stores have been selling the yellow flesh watermelon. Try this for a different take on this salad. You can replace with all yellow or mix with the regular red watermelon for more colorful plate. The yellow watermelon is supposed to be sweeter, but I think you get just as sweet red ones. So it’s mostly for the change in color.

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Berkeley's Corner Gourmet

Living in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area, I never really feel like I'm far from good food, especially with the many restaurants within walking distance of my Rockridge condo. This weekend, I stayed close to home but did venture north toward Berkeley, and I have to admit, I accidentally discovered a bit of history.

I found myself at the corner of San Pablo Avenue and Cedar Street. Just in this tiny corner on the industrial-looking San Pablo Avenue is a triad of foodie heaven with the cluster of Acme Bread Co., Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant and Cafe Fanny.

I can't believe that I've never been to this spot of Berkeley's food standard bearers. I've heard of Gourmet Ghetto a few miles east of this spot closer to downtown Berkeley. But this non-descript spot, just a few blocks east of the upscale Fourth Street shopping area, is a casual nod to fine foods. Here's a tour of the three anchor tenants:

Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant was actually the main reason that brought me to this Gourmet Corner of San Pablo and Cedar. I had recently read about Kermit Lynch Wine in Jay McInerney's book "A Hedonist in the Cellar." The book is an entertaining, novice's look at the wine drinking experience in America and I was surprised to see this New Yorker mention a Berkeley importer as one of the country's best. So I had to check out this place that was opened by Kermit Lynch in 1972 and named Wine Professional of the Year by the James Beard Foundation.

The significant, distinguishing factor about Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant is that nearly 90 percent of its wine for sale come from France. The rest come from Italy. The store does not stock any California wines. The story goes that Lynch felt that if he stocked a California wine from a winery whom he probably knew, he felt he couldn't fairly tell the winery that the wine didn't taste that great. So to remove those potential conflicts with his friends in the California wine scene, he decided to focus primarily on French and Italian wine.

Walking around, you see a wide variety of wine. I felt really lost, though, because none of the wine had notes on them to explain what was inside the bottle. So you really have to know your French wineries and varieties in order to make an educated guess about whether that bottle in front of you will work. Fortunately, you can also rest on the reputation of Kermit Lynch, who imports all the wine himself, so he's created relationships with all the European wineries he buys from. I basically placed myself in the hands of the store's able clerks who will listen to your preferences and give you recommendations on which bottles will most likely match your needs.

Based on the expert discussion I had with one particular clerk, I ended up buying two bottles: 1) a 1999 Barbera Del Monferrato (barbera grape) from Cantine Valpane in Italy and 2) a 2004 Cairanne from Domaine Catherine Le Goeuil in France. I can't wait to cook up some red meat to try these nice bottles of reds.

After making my wine purchase, it was on to bread and Acme Bread Co. This outlet is actually the very first spot where Steve Sullivan, a former busboy at Chez Panisse, decided to start his bakery with his wife. The spot is so small that only a few people can stand inside to order their breads, so a line typically snakes outside.

The bread inside with workers busy making fresh bread in the background.

On the wall were all these interesting historic posters and photos. It was very 70s. Off to the side (and not pictured) were these risque, PG-13 photos from when the bakery opened with some of the workers dressed only in aprons bringing some hot bread out of the oven. Oh, it was sooo Berkeley. The photo showed their behinds to the camera, and I just figured out as I'm writing this that someone probably thought it was fun to show the workers' buns as they brought out the buns. LOL, they're so cheeky!

Right next door to Acme, is Cafe Fanny, which is the small, casual cafe opened by Alice Waters herself. Story is Waters wanted a spot to get away from the formal hectic-ness of Chez Panisse. (More likely it was her little way of escaping the kitchen politics of the restaurant.) It's supposedly named after the heroine of filmmaker Marcel Pagnol's 1930 movies, but also the name of Waters' daughter.

Much of the cafe happenings occur outside in this large deck area. To the right is the entrance to Kermit Lynch Wine. This is a fantastic place to hangout in the afternoon on a beautiful sunny day.

The cafe inside is really tiny, but cleanly and stylishly presented. The menu is a casual, simple basic cafe food like breakfast, pastries, sandwiches and salads. Of course, it's all fresh, seasonal, local ingredients. There's a marble counter where you can eat and watch the people behind the counter, but that's the only place to eat inside, which is probably why the outdoor seating is so crowded.

Here are some of the pastries and baked goods behind the counter. Everything was very quaint and yummy looking.

I kept it simple and just got a cranberry scone with marmalade and a pot of Earl Grey tea (which was made from loose leaves, a very nice touch). The scone, actually, didn't have much taste although I loved the texture. So the marmalade, which was just the right sweetness, came in handy. It was just a relaxing experience to sit outside, in the midst of such Berkeley food history, sipping my tea and eating my scone. I didn't think of San Francisco once during my afternoon jaunt to this East Bay gourmet corner.

SPEND A DAY IN PROVENCE: If you like the idea of Provencal cooking, then save the date of Saturday, Sept. 29. That's when the parking outside these three food landmarks in Berkeley will be closed off so they can present "Provence in Berkeley." This event runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and French cooking will be served for a fixed price. The food will be prepared by Cafe Fanny and chef Chris Lee from the restaurant Eccolo. Be sure to make your way to this event for some French style foodie fun in the East Bay.

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Simple Stir Frying for End of Summer

I found a couple of leftover sweet white corn in my refrigerator. They're so cheap now at the store that I had bought a bunch and didn't eat all of them. So that inspired me to do a simple stir-fry dish that really looked and tasted like summer. All I needed was some chicken for protein and a zucchini and red bellpepper for color. And voila! My summer stir fry. Enjoy!

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Summer Stir-Fry

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
6 oz. chicken breast, cubed
2 ears of sweet white corn
1 red bellpepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 T sesame oil
1 T fish sauce
1 T Shao Hsing wine or other sweet cooking wine
2 t soy sauce
2 t sugar
1 t pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 T cornstarch
2 T Canola oil

In a small bowl, marinade chicken with sesame oil, fish sauce, Shao Hsing wine, soy sauce, sugar and pepper. Set aside for at least 10 minutes.

Remove corn from the cobb by running your knife along the side of the cobb. Set aside.

Warm 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat and then add garlic. Then add chicken pieces and brown on each side for about 2 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan, add another tablespoon of oil and increase heat to high. Then add zucchini and bellpepper and saute for about a minute. Then add corn. Add a pinch of salt for taste. Return the chicken to the pan and blend all the ingredients.

In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with a bit of room temperature water to create a slurry. Over high heat, add the cornstarch mixture to your pan a little at a time to create some gravy.

Remove from stove and serve. If you want, you can sprinkle the top with some chopped peanuts or toasted sesame.

Makes two to three servings. Serve with jasmine steamed rice.

Pair with a glass of Riesling.

TIP: Managing your liquids is important in stir-frying. You don’t want to drown your ingredients and create a steaming effect in your wok. So with the measurements I give in my recipes for the marinade, for example, never throw in the entire marinade at once. Add enough liquid to keep the ingredients from sticking to the pan, but only add a little at a time if needed. Retain any leftover marinade for later as you’re cooking. Also, the zucchini will give off more water than other ingredients, so you don't want to cook it that long or it'll be mushy and make the rest of your ingredients wet. Stir-fry is all about balancing and dancing with your ingredients!

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Dish on Dining: District

A Full-Body Wine Bar in South Beach
216 Townsend St. at Third, San Francisco
South Beach neighborhood
PH: 415.896.2120
Food served, Mon.–Sat., 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., bar open till 2 a.m.
No reservations, major credit card accepted
http://www.districtsf.com/

Last week I went to my very last Giants game for the season. I know. You’re thinking the season isn’t over yet. But it might as well be.

So I went with my friend David to try out the District wine bar, which is just two blocks north of AT&T Park. This comfy, almost pre-dot-com-like warehouse location opened just six months ago and has been packed with slick-looking business types and a few sports fan (David and me) on most nights.

District is the brainchild of a trio of newcomers to the restaurant business: brothers Chris and Ryan Vance and their partner, Jon D’Angelica. In a feature in 7X7 magazine’s Eat-Drink issue, the three dressed like how I imagined they’d want their clientele to dress: casual long-sleeve dress shirts with designer jeans. Really, they looked like they were ready to launch an IPO for some Web site where people upload things for free.

Despite being newbies (Chris Vance is the only one with experience having been the general manager at Ace Wasabi), I was impressed at how efficiently the room ran the night we visited.

Being a wine bar, District offers a long list of wine from around the world and offers several tasting flights if you’re in the experimental mood. David and I sat at the U-shaped bar in the center of the room, which gave us a good view of the many after-work clientele trickling in and looking for a spot to lounge in the cushioned chairs off to the side or the stools around the flat screen TV.

I started the evening trying the “Mountains to the Sea” flight that featured red wine from high elevations of Austria and the shores of Sicily. My server poured three glasses: the Glatzer Blaufrankisch, a 2004 from Austria; the Il Brecciarolo Sangiovese Montepulciano blend, a 2003 from Italy; and the Triumph Gurrida, a 2002 from Sicily.

This tasting flight cost me just $14 but each of my glasses were filled more than what I’ve seen at some fancier restaurants. (If you order by the glass, the per-glass pricing ranges from $10 to $16.) It really gave me a lot of chances to taste the three European wines, and I did get to the point where I was so confused that I couldn’t tell which was which. But in the end I would say the Triump Gurrida from Sicily was my favorite—warm and velvety with just a slight berry taste.

The food offerings are just as impressive as the wine list. It’s focused on seasonal ingredients with a light California flair to traditional bar food favorites. David and I decided to share the Kona kampachi tartare ($16) (on the recommendation of our server) and the red-wine braised short ribs ($18). We also ordered a pizetta, which is like an individual-pan pizza. We got the margherita pizzetta ($10) but I wanted prosciutto added on top (extra $2) but David apparently doesn’t like prosciutto. (Yes, and I still consider him a friend.)

Again, based on our server’s recommendation, we got a half-an-half. I have to say that the server was extremely helpful and accommodating, unlike our earlier server who took our wine orders. This guy knew the menu and could describe each dish, and was friendly about talking about it. It really added to the neighborhood vibe of the bar.

First up was the Kona kampachi tartare. It was a generous offering of kampachi cubed and topped with truffled ponzu and uni sauce. It was light, refreshing and slightly spicy. I really loved the extra texture you get from the uni sprinkled on top. (The uni is the thing that looks like black sesame seed but it's what you'd find at a sushi spot.)

Then came our pizzetta, with half prosciutto for me and plain margherita for David. This was another winner with its warm, fresh flavors, especially the tomatoes. The crust was a bit odd. It was a cornmeal-type of pizza crust that tasted OK but wasn’t what I’m used to when I want to munch on a thin crust pizza. Still, it was flavorful and filling.

Our last dish was the braised short ribs. Ironically, our server didn’t want to rush us so he held off on putting in the order for the short ribs and then forgot. But he was very apologetic about it and it arrived not too long afterwards. I tell this back story to explain why there are no clear photos of the short ribs. David and I were so excited to see the short ribs finally arrived that we dug right in, savoring the tender meat and warm Yukon gold mashed potatoes. I neglected to take a photo until we were half-way through devouring the dish. (I know, a first for me as a blogger!) Anywho, I guess that’s a good sign that we liked the ribs. Although honestly, I would say of the three the short ribs were the most predictable. The red-wine braise had the typical taste I’ve had at other restaurants, even at home, but it was still satisfying.

David and I were amazed how it seemed like we were the only ones at the bar eating so many dishes. Many of the people were there mostly for the drinks and the eye candy, which I think is a shame because the food is well executed and flavorful. For this wine bar, you can get the full restaurant experience without the formality.

NOTE: The bar does turn on the Giants game when it occurs, but it’s mostly ambiance. The District had a few Giants fan, but many of them looked disoriented and out of place, wondering what kind of sports bar they stepped into. But David and I didn’t care. We were there for the food.

Single guy rating: 3.5 stars (it's not your father's sports bar)

Explanation of the single guy's rating system:
1 star = perfect for college students
2 stars = perfect for new diners
3 stars = perfect for foodies
4 stars = perfect for expense accounts
5 stars = perfect for any guy's dream dinner

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What's in my frig?

I have a lot of healthy snacks in my refrigerator, like fruits, yogurt, cheese, etc. I actually try to eat four to five times a day to maintain my weight. I know, don't you hate me? ;-) So one of my favorite standby snacks is hummus. It's a great healthy snack because of the ingredients, very much the Mediterranean diet. I also think it's very versatile. I use it as a spread on toast or a dip for crackers. There are a lot of brands of hummus at the stores, but right now I'm eating this particular Trader Joe's Tomato & Basil hummus. It's so yummy. And it has the right consistency...not too dry, but not totally wet. Another brand I like is the house-made hummus at Whole Foods, but they can be pricey, of course. Along with this Trader Joe's hummus, I'd recommend getting their store-brand thin crackers. They're so crispy and tasty and nice to dip in the hummus. Is it time for my snack yet?

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Mini Dish: Armani Café

Laboring for Food on a Holiday Weekend
1 Grant Ave. at Market, San Francisco
Union Square
PH: 415.677.9010
Open Mon.–Sat, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.; Sun., noon–4 p.m.
Major credit cards accepted

I never knew the Labor Day holiday weekend in San Francisco would be such a challenge to find a nice place to eat. I was in Union Square on Sunday (which wasn’t even the official holiday) meeting my friend Jessie for brunch and we went on wild goose chases looking for places to eat.

Our first stop was the tiny Canteen on Sutter Street, which was closed for two weeks for the end of summer (reopening on Sept. 11). We headed south to Farmer Brown, which was also gated and closed for the day. Not wanting to head to a third place and strike out, we went to the closest place we knew that would also have air-conditioning—the Armani Café inside the Emporio Armani store on Grant Avenue.

Even the Armani Café was running on holiday time. It didn’t have its usual outdoor seating and it was offering a limited menu of only salads and panini sandwiches. But it had air-conditioning, and after walking around the border of the Tenderloin for the last half hour, Jessie and I were ready to be pampered.

The café consists of a beautiful oval bar in the center of the store and a few tables on the mezzanine level. Jessie and I sat at the bar and started off by ordering some drinks. (I got a Limonata, which was made with lemonade and vodka.) For our brunch-now-turned-to-lunch, we shared a fig salad and the Kobe beef panini with brie.

The salad was nothing more than a huge plate of mesclun greens that were overly dressed with the vinaigrette. The food preparer, who made the salads right in front of us, spooned out what looked like dried figs that had been reconstituted with red wine. The figs were nice but I had hoped for fresh figs. (My track record recently with ordering figs on the menu has been 0-for-3 on the satisfaction monitor.)

While the salad was unspectacular, the panini was a darling bun of beef nicely pressed and equally tender. The thinly sliced Kobe beef, cooked like roast beef, matched perfectly with the warm, soft brie. I liked how Armani Café used a hollowed-out bun instead of the traditional slices of bread and that there was virtually no trace of grease from the grill press.

It takes some getting used to eating while you’re just a few feet away from the fine designer clothes. In the back of my mind I kept hearing my mom’s voice cautioning me not to drip on my clothes—or the $1,000 suit a few yards away.

Armani Café was a nice surprise on a day when few restaurants felt the call to labor. On other days, the Armani Café is a chic respite from the Union Square crowds. It’s outdoor seating is definitely a welcome spot for a light lunch of panini or pizza. But just a warning: This isn’t the place for you if you can’t resist the temptation of shopping after lunching. You’ll pay more for a scarf than 10 Kobe beef paninis.

NOTE: Because Armani Café served a limited menu on this impromptu visit, I won’t be giving it a rating like my other reviews since this is just a mini review.

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Holiday + Heat = Line at Ici

Here I am at the end of the line for ice cream at Ici's in Berkeley today, on a Labor Day holiday. It was a beautiful day in the East Bay, about 77 degrees with a breeze. But is it really worth topping off the day in this line? Oh, you know that's rhetorical. I was there with my friends David, Ann, Stella and her son, Lucas. So it helped having friends to chat with as we waited for 45 minutes to get to the counter from where the line began when we got there at 3 p.m.

If you thought this line is crazy, just think what it'll be like on Tuesday, Sept. 4. That's when Ici is celebrating its 1-year-anniversary. And yes, you can thank me now for letting you know that if you're in the area from 4 to 9:30 p.m., you can get one free scoop of ice cream. (I should note the sign at the store said "for every customer" so I imagine that means you have to buy something first to be considered a customer. Who cares, I'd buy two scoops for an extra scoop!)

Ici, 2948 College Ave. at Ashby, Berkeley. PH: 510.665.6054

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Labor Day Paella

Labor Day seems to be like your last chance to enjoy outdoor cooking and eating, and while most people will be grilling barbeque, I decided to make my favorite--paella. This traditional Spanish dish is typically made at the beach over coals, so it seems like a real festive dish to make over the grill as well.

For the recipe below, I'm making a summer-inspired paella with artichoke and tomatoes, with some fancy-looking Maitake mushrooms I found at the farmers market. Of course, since I have no patio, I just made this on my stove top with my individual size paella pan. But you can easily make this on your grill and serve it up to your friends from the pan as a different way to send off summer. Hope you all have an enjoyable Labor Day Weekend!

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Chicken Artichoke Paella with Maitake Mushrooms

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
6 oz. chicken thighs, cut into chunks
2 large fresh artichokes
3 oz. Maitake mushrooms, cut into pieces
3 small tomatoes
1 cup Bomba paella rice
1.5 cup chicken broth
1 garlic, minced
1 t pimenton or smoked paprika
1 t salt
1 t saffron
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 T butter

Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper and 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and set aside.

Prepare your tomatoes by peeling and seeding them, and cutting into small chunks. Then set aside. Work on your artichoke next. Remove the outer leaves and cut stems and then remove the inner leaves of the choke. Then cut the heart into pieces. Place in a bowl of cold water with a squeeze of lemon.

Warm butter in a paella pan or large skillet and then add chicken to brown. Cook over medium high heat, about 2 minutes on both sides for nice brown color. Remove chicken and set aside.

In same paella pan, warm 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat and add garlic. Brown slightly for a few seconds and then add tomatoes and artichoke pieces. Add broth and season with pimenton, saffron and salt. Then sprinkle rice into your broth mixture and use a wooden spoon to even out the rice in the pan. Don’t touch the rice any more, allowing it to cook over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes.

Five minutes into cooking your paella, start adding the other ingredients. For the maitake mushrooms, in a separate saute pan, cook the mushrooms with a pinch of salt and olive oil over medium heat to bring out some moisture. When ready, add to the paella pan with chicken, placing around pan to nestle into the rice. Loosely cover your pan with newspaper or aluminum foil until rice is ready.

Remove from heat and let set for about five minutes. Garnish with cilantro or flat leaf parsley and serve warm.

Makes 2 servings. Serve with small green salad.

Pair with a nice red wine from Spain such as a Monastrell.

TIP: A good sign of paella is the crunchy bottom called sacarrat. This doesn’t mean burnt rice, but just a brown, crispy part that gives an extra texture to your paella. Sometimes this will just occur naturally as you don’t disturb the rice. But if you feel there’s too much moisture, you can increase the heat at the last two minutes of cooking to attempt to create the sacarrat.

BOMBA IS THE BOMB: Bomba rice is the premium paella rice from Valencia, Spain. But you can also find some bags simply labeled paella rice. Just make sure it’s from Valencia, the home of the paella. If you’re desperate, you can replace with arborio rice, which is the rice for Italian risotto, but your paella may be more creamy that typical paella.

SKINNING TOMATOES: To prepare your tomatoes, get a pot of water boiling and then drop your tomatoes into the hot water for about a minute. Then transfer immediately to a bowl of cold water with ice cubes. Let sit for another minute and then remove and dry off excess water. Then you can easily peel off the outer skin of the tomatoes. Cut into cubes and remove the seeds as well.

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