Happy Moon Festival

Today is the Chinese Moon Festival, which is a folk celebration that coincides with the fall harvest. So sometimes it’s known as a harvest festival and families typically put on a feast. But in the United States, most Chinese-Americans know it as “moon cake day.”

One of the signature dish eaten on this day is the moon cake, a pastry-shelled cake with a creamy filling. The cakes are traditionally round in shape to mirror the moon, but over the years people have been redesigning the moon cake, making them in various shapes and colors.

Over the weekend, San Francisco Chinatown put on its annual Moon Festival Street Fair. And this year there were, thankfully, lots of imported moon cakes for sale (I just find the Asian bakeries a bit more creative than in the United States). I even saw one booth selling durian ice cream moon cakes (it’s actually not that fun to eat).

I got a box of traditional moon cakes, but in miniature size since I’m the Single Guy. These cakes, from the famous Kee Wah Bakery in Hong Kong, were square shaped and have an interesting mold design (all moon cakes are made in a mold with intricate designs).

The filling was the traditional (and my favorite) lotus paste, which was creamy and sweet, but not too sweet. Other moon cakes can come in various fillings like black sesame and one that looks almost like a fruitcake. And of course, it’s always special when you have a salted egg in the center, again to represent the moon.

You’re probably wondering what are the pink and green pastries in the photo above. They’re known as “Teochow” moon cakes and are popular in other parts of Asia, such as Singapore and Malaysia. They’re made with a spiraling technique that creates that interesting layered appearance. (My friend Annie in Kuching makes it all look simple on her blog post.)

The box of teochow moon cakes came from a Taiwan bakery called Emperor. The pink colored ones are made from taro and the green ones are, doh, green tea.

Both the taro and green tea were a little too sweet for me, and the pastry wasn’t as flakey as I imagined they would, but that’s probably because they had to be shipped. I’m sure they probably would taste great freshly made.

One thing about moon cakes is that they are not at all light. With the filling and the pastry shell, they pack a lot of calories. So I’m glad I got the miniature ones. Hope you’re enjoying some moon cakes today too!

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Melting Cheese at the Ferry Building

Who doesn't love the look of melting cheese?

Awhile back when I was strolling through the Ferry Building in San Francisco, I walked past the Cowgirl Creamery store, which is always crowded with cheese lovers, and smelled the distinct funky smell of melted cheese.

You know, it's that smell usually associated with fondue. But it wasn't fondue but what's called Raclette, which is just melted cheese on a toasted bread with pickles. (It was sold for $5.) Just looking at the big chunk of cheese dripping down from the metal stand looked so amazing. But alas, I had to avoid it because I eat very little cheese because of my high cholesterol. Still, it made for some juicy photos.

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Smitten Ice Cream in San Francisco

The weather in the Bay Area has finally warmed up, just in time for the start of summer next week. And when the weather gets hot, everyone cools off with ice cream. The latest entry to artisan ice cream in San Francisco is Smitten Ice Cream in Hayes Valley.

I actually visited Smitten a few weeks ago, so the flavors I’m going to talk about may not be there if you visit now because Smitten makes its ice cream with locally sourced seasonal ingredients, although it does have a couple of standard everyday flavors.

When I first approached Smitten with my friend Ken, who lives nearby, I was surprised to find that it was pretty much a fancified shack or kiosk. For some reason I thought it might be a small shop on the tiny Linden Street alleyway, but it was really a shack.

I loved the chalkboard sign with the whimsical graphic illustrations of the ingredients, showcasing how the ice cream is made with natural ingredients. But the main twist to Smitten is that the ice cream is made to order using liquid nitrogen.

This isn’t my first taste of liquid nitrogen ice cream. Remember when I visited here in Chicago? So Smitten is pretty much the same idea, except it’s only been doing it since 2009 and they don’t let you create your own flavor. You have to order what they list on the menu.

The menu is also pretty limited. When I visited, there were only four flavors: vanilla and TCHO chocolate (considered the standards), and two seasonal flavors of salted caramel and rhubard. (I think right now they’re offering a summer herb flavor instead of the rhubard.)

Another thing about the made-to-order concept is that different flavors set at different times because of what’s inside; like the salted caramel takes a bit more time because of the salt. Because of this, you’re not allowed to mix flavors if you want to order a double scoop. So how did I get past this? I ordered one scoop each of two different flavors.

Ken was still full from our brunch, so he just ordered the kid’s size of the TCHO, which he thought was great and creamy. BTW, you can watch them create the ice cream, although it was a bit hard to see because of the screen they used to shade themselves from the sun. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes to get your ice cream.

My rhubard flavor came out first, and it had an odd texture and was a bit tart. Initially I thought it was too tart, but it was one of those flavors that I grew to enjoy. By the time I was done with my single scoop of rhubard, my salted caramel was ready.

The salted caramel was a bit melted on the edges, but it had a nice creamy texture although the caramel flavor wasn’t as strong. I liked it better than the rhubard, but I wouldn’t call it the best ice cream in town.

Smitten Ice Cream offers some solid flavors but is it any better just because it was made on the spot? I’ve had richer, creamier ice cream that was made earlier in the day and still tasted fresh. So the liquid nitrogen is a fun twist, but it doesn’t necessarily add anything special to the ice cream that’s eventually served up.

But the emerging foodie neighborhood of Hayes Valley was calling out for an ice cream shop, so Smitten Ice Cream has nicely filled the void.

Smitten Ice Cream, 432 Octavia St. (at Linden), San Francisco. Open daily from noon to 9 p.m. (till 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday). Smittenicecream.com

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Mana Bu's Musubi in Honolulu

HONOLULU
Hawaii is known for several food traditions and one that's high on the novelty list (because no one on the mainland would want to eat it) is the Spam musubi.

Hawaiians love the canned meat product, and they often eat it in a musubi, a Japanese traditional rice ball eaten by plantation workers who could easily pack a rice ball for lunch. But the Spam musubi isn't the only way to go when it comes to rice balls and the Mana Bu shop demonstrates that with its variety of specialty musubi.

Mana Bu promotes itself as "Hawaii's Musubi Headquarters" and it's hard to dispute that when you walk in and see shelves upon shelves of musubi. The place is so popular that the hand-made musubi often sells out by lunch. When I dropped by one afternoon after closing, I was totally confused by the sign out front on its hours. Instead of noting when the store opens, it notes when they begin selling certain popular musubi, such as 6:30 a.m. for white rice musubi, and 7:30 a.m. for all the rest, and so on. It was a bit confusing.

I returned on Saturday, when the store opens at exactly 9 a.m. I arrived early and waited for the doors to open and by 8:59 a.m. a crowd of people suddenly appear, filling the tiny store when it opened a minute later.

The flavors of the musubi varied, and they were either wrapped in nori (dried seaweed used in sushi) or naked with just a rice form. The flavors ranged from the traditional, such as a Spam lite version, to the exotic, like a Veggie Curry Pilaf. I bought about a dozen musubi for my family since that night we were going to my niece's graduation and I figured we might want a snack while waiting as they called out the names. The musubi range in price from $1.40 to $1.70 for each one.

Mana Bu also has a refrigerated section selling desserts like custard and gelatin, but probably one of its unique items is this whole strawberry mochi, which is basically a chocolate-covered strawberry wrapped in mochi, the sweet Japanese rice flour.

I didn't try the strawberry mochi, but I did eat several of the musubi. My family didn't seem to like the baked musubi because they tended to be dry, but the white rice musubi were perfectly cooked, fluffy but not sticky or dry (I had an unagi version), and the brown rice versions were also interesting. Some of the ingredients were refreshing, like shiso, while others didn't deliver, like spicy takuan. Still, Mana Bu is a tiny bit of rice heaven on Earth if you're looking for a nice snack to take to the beach or picnic. Just remember to go early.

Mana Bu's, 1618 S. King St. (at Punahou), Honolulu. PH: 808.358.0287. www.hawaiimusubi.com

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HK Milk Tea at Out the Door

Funny how you never heard of something until you go to a foreign country and discover it. Then you come back and you see it every where. That's the case with Hong Kong milk tea, or lai cha.

I tried this beverage for the first time during my trip to Hong Kong last month, and I loved the simplicity of it but how it was like morning coffee because of its intense flavor and creaminess. My understanding is that lai cha, or HK milk tea, is made with tea and either evaporated milk or sweetened condensed milk, which creates a nice caramel-like color to the drink.

Since I've been back, I've spotted HK milk tea at a restaurant in Oakland's Chinatown, and I read about it starting to be served at Out the Door, the casual sibling of the Slanted Door. There's several locations of Out the Door, but I got my lai cha at the counter at the Ferry Building.

When I ordered it, the server made sure that I understood that this was a hot drink, and not the Hong Kong-style bubble tea that people are used to here. I told her I knew it was hot, and she then told me it would take about three minutes to prepare. I ordered a steamed chicken bun ($3) as I waited.

When my HK milk tea arrived, it had the exact same aroma as the one I had in Hong Kong, that slightly floral but smokey fragrance. But this version was sweeter, and I checked later and the server said their version is with sweetened condensed milk. Even though I don't have a sweet tooth, I really liked the authentic flavor of the drink. It wasn't super sweet, but was what I imagined a latte would taste if I were a coffee drinker.

Now, the cost of $3 is probably how much I would pay for a full breakfast and milk tea in Hong Kong, but the memories this drink inspires are worth the price instead of paying for a plane ticket to Hong Kong. So I think I have a new Saturday morning routine: get a steamed bun at Out the Door and sip on a cup of HK milk tea. All I need is a Chinese newspaper and a chirping bird in a bamboo bird cage and I can retire as the Chinese old man.

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New Taste Marketplace in San Francisco

San Francisco is going crazy for the pop-up restaurants and shops, food trucks, and plain old neighborhood bake sales. There seems to be a trend of being the first to try something new, and oftentimes for new small businesses, the pop-up sale is their chance to test their products before opening up a full-fledged restaurant or store.

The New Taste Marketplace is at the center of this trend, putting on a monthly market made up of new hand-made products and small businesses hoping to develop a customer base. The monthly marketplace takes place at St. Gregory's Church in Potrero Hill, which is a bit out there but definitely worth the trek.

I checked out this month's marketplace, which took place yesterday from noon to 5 p.m. The marketplace also serves as a fund-raiser for The Food Pantry, so there's a suggested donation as admission.

Once inside, I was impressed by the layout of food vendors set among the colorful religious art of the church. It definitely creates a unique setting for a community marketplace.

Needless to say, there were a lot of food to try, more than I could squeeze in for my lunch. And some of them, while tempting, weren't necessarily great for my high cholesterol. For example, I had to pass on the above duck confit nachos from Michele Manfredi's SFQ, which really did look mouth-watering.

And these adorable chicken pot pies from Butter Love Bakeshop. I mean, come on, the shop has butter in its name. I had to be good. I was in the house of God.

But no problem, because there's something for everyone and I was able to find something good to eat that wasn't a major hit on my cholesterol. I started with this green curry dish ($7) from Nute's Cupcakes. That's right, Nute Chulasuwan is primarily a baker making creative Asian-inspired cupcakes, but she was also selling this curry on the side for fun. It was a nice, light Thai curry and in it were Thai eggplants, which was the first time for me trying them. They're shaped like tomatillos and looked a bit like figs when they were cut in half, so a new discovery for me.

Like I said, Nute's known for her cupcakes, and these were the mini cupcakes she was selling. They looked so pretty, and such interesting flavors. There was a chili-lime, pandan (a kind of leaf in Southeast Asia used to infuse dishes), caramel and chocolate bacon. Each sold for $1, and the pandan was an interesting herbal like cake, while the caramel was my favorite. But I have to say I was not a fan of the bacon, which was bits of bacon in the center of the chocolate cake. It just didn't seem right. (I wished I had tried the chili-lime, but I did order it and ended up with two pandan in my box. Oh well, next time.)

I also tried a bowl of this strawberry risotto with smoked pork shoulder ($4) from Mission Gastroclub. I liked the idea of the seasonal strawberry risotto, but I didn't really get a sweet strawberry flavor in the risotto, but the smoked pork shoulder had an intense (which I liked) smokey flavor.

OK, it seems like I wasn't helping my cholesterol with all the cakes I was eating, but they were all minis! Just like a mini lemon cupcake I got from this vendor, Pleasure My Sweet Tooth. They also had these interesting cake pops, but they're supposedly really sweet so I had to avoid them since I'm not into super sweets. I have to say they had the most pretty table.

Following the idea that everything's better with bacon, here's the popular bacon-wrapped mochi from Lindo Lo of Simply Mochi.

I didn't get the bacon mochi, but instead tried these two freshly made mochi. The one of the left was a strawberry cheesecake mochi, which I loved. It was like eating mochi ice cream. The one on the right was a Peanut Butter and Jam mochi. The peanut butter and jam filling was a bit chunky and the flavor didn't make me think of the popular childhood sandwich. Both mochi had a nice soft, chewy texture that was easy to eat.



The New Taste Marketplace had a nice community feel, like a church bake sale. And it wasn't a massive clusterjam like some other underground markets in the city. There were more vendors than my stomach could try, so I'm hoping to check out future marketplaces.

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Hong Kong Leftovers

HONG KONG
So I've pretty much wrapped up all my major posts I wanted to do about my Hong Kong trip (gosh, it's been almost a month now since I came back), but as usual I always have a few photos that I don't really feel warranted a full post but didn't want them to go to waste. So here's a special edition of Leftovers: Hong Kong style.

One night I had dinner with my uncle, and I let him do all the ordering because I wanted to see what he typically ate. We went to a restaurant near my hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui in the Kowloon side, and my uncle ordered a soup, a chicken dish, and two types of fish. (I like fish since it's healthier, so didn't mind getting two orders of it.) My favorite fish dish was this one above, which is a steamed Giant Grouper. I've never had grouper before, but what was so interesting about this preparation is that they left the skin on, and the skin seemed really thick, so it was kind of like eating sea cucumber, which is another delicacy. There actually didn't seem to be a lot of flesh, but that's why the skin preparation seemed so interesting so it gave you more to enjoy.

Yung Kee Restaurant is a venerable institution famous for its roasted goose. In Hong Kong, people prefer goose over duck, but they're prepared similar to the roasted ducks hanging in the windows around Chinatown in the States. My uncle and cousin and her family invited me to Yung Kee for lunch where we had to try the goose.

Yung Kee is a beautiful restaurant with three floors, but is so popular there can be long waits. On the top floor, you can get a reservation if you know someone. So my cousin actually got a table by calling the secretary of an executive friend. We had an assortment of dim sum dishes, which included the 1,000-year-old eggs served with pickled ginger. This is a popular appetizer in Hong Kong. I typically will eat this preserved egg in jook (the rice porridge) but never alone like this. It was nice, and the ginger definitely helps. The goose was a beautiful large platter, even though it was just half a goose, but I have to say that while it was good, it tasted just like roasted duck. It didn't seem amazingly good, so not sure what's all the fuss about. But at least I can say I went to Hong Kong and had Yung Kee's roasted goose. (BTW, Yung Kee has a Michelin star because of its goose.)

I ate a lot of snacks from two popular bakeries, and one bakery sold this 1,000-year-old egg puff pastry. (Yeah, I was obsessed with the 1,000-year-0ld egg products.) This is a mini version of the puff pastry, and while the egg portion was a bit chewy, they had a ginger flavored paste along with it that I especially liked. I bought a few of these mini puff pastries to eat on the long plane ride home.

And, finally, you can't travel to Hong Kong without eating some danh tats, or egg custard tarts. These are the danh tats from Tai Cheong Bakery, one of the city's most famous bakeries known for these tarts. But my cousin says you can go to almost any bakeries and they'll probably have good tarts, and I believe that. In Hong Kong, the danh tats are made with two types of crusts, so when buying you have to specify if you want it with a flaky crust or a cookie crust. I'm a traditionalist, so I got the flaky crust. And OMG, these were sooo good. The crust lived up to the name, but it really was the silky custard that makes them famous. I wished I could eat more, but that was the thing about my days and nights in Hong Kong, they were going from one eating spot to another and snacks were hard to squeeze in.

So that's a wrap on my trip to Hong Kong. I hope you enjoyed looking at all the food pictures as much as I enjoyed eating them. I'm already plotting when I can go back to get a bowl of won ton and more danh tats!

Yung Kee Restaurant, 32-40 Wellington St., Central, Hong Kong. PH: 852.2522.1624

Tai Cheong Bakery, 35 Lydhurst Terrace, Central, Hong Kong. PH: 852.2544.3475

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Tell Tale Preserve Co. at the Ferry Building -- (CLOSED)

Update (8/26/11): Chef William Werner announced that he was ending his agreement with his financial partners and leaving behind Tell Tale Preserve. He plans to open something else under a different name.

This morning at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, I noticed the booth for the Tell Tale Preserve Co.

If you haven't heard about Tell Tale, it's the baby of former Quince pastry chef William Werner, who dreams of opening up his own business some time this spring, selling preserves and a lot more. He's been giving previews of his products through pop-ups and now at the Saturday farmers market.

Not just selling preserves like the name says, Werner creates all types of goodies, including home-made marshmallows and decadent-looking brownies with a caramel (not jam like I thought) center.

But one of Tell Tales' more interesting items was the perfect morning bite for me. It's called the "Rebel Within" ($6) and it's a savory breakfast muffin. The savory parts come from the bits of sausage in the tasty muffin, and the rebel within is the perfect hard boiled egg inside. This was an amazing breakfast in the hand, with all the engaging tidbits of salty and gooey and fluffy soft.

I can't wait for Werner's permanent store to open to see what else he'll create for lunch and dinner.

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Hong Kong: Temple Street Comes Alive After Dark

HONG KONG
This is my first day in Hong Kong, and after a 14-hour flight arriving in the early morning before this bustling, densely populated cosmopolitan city stirs awake, I was thoroughly beaten. But after a much-needed nap (and I never take afternoon naps) and an early dinner with my uncle for some refueling, I got my second wind and ventured out onto the streets this evening to the Temple Street night market.

Temple Street is in the Yau Ma Tei neighborhood on the Kowloon side of Hong Kong. (If you're not familiar with Hong Kong, there's two distinctive areas connected by the popular ferry service -- Kowloon and what's known as Hong Kong island. I'm staying on the Kowloon side.) Everyday starting around 2 p.m., vendors set up stalls over a four-block area along Temple Street, but really much of the action begins around dinner time when the dai pai dong or restaurants with street-only seating go into full steam.

While there are a few food vendors, the majority of the hawkers sell souvenirs and tschokes. It reminds me of the Chinatown street festivals where booths are selling cheap leather products and T-shirts. It's like that multiplied by a hundred, with products ranging from the touristy Oriental items (silk blouses, tea cups, fake jade pendants) to the cheap goods (toys, fake electronics) to the just plain weird (dildos and lingerie).

This vendor was selling pickled items and preserved plums. I guess it's a nice way to start the evening and get your appetite going.

The tiny food vendors pour out onto the streets, creating their eating areas. This one with the sign "Spicy Crabs" seemed to have the largest gathering. Funny, though, the crowds seemed to be separated between the tourists and local Chinese. I didn't try any of the street food because I just had a big dinner with my uncle. But I have to say one vendor selling claypot rice dishes had some sweet smelling food!

Some vendors set up a table with displays of their dishes, like this food vendor selling a whole bunch of shellfish.

This guy was selling fresh water chestnuts on a stick. I'm not sure how this is a popular treat because water chestnut, while slightly sweet, can be pretty bland.

I saw this dog hanging out next to this big basket of durian, the smelly fruit that seems to be in a lot of Southeast Asian countries. The dog was totally sprayed out on the floor but popped his head up to pose for me.

I thought this print of the kids was creepy.

The weather is just starting to get warm as Hong Kong moves into spring, which makes this soft serve ice cream truck a good idea.

This sign is right in front of a row of stalls that had some explicit adult items like the aforementioned dildos, lingerie, g-strings, etc. I felt like a shower just walking by them.

The Temple Street night market is more a tourist attraction, with the exception of the dai pai dongs catering to the local Chinese looking for a cheap hearty dinner. To find it, take the subway (known as the MTR) to the Yau Ma Tei station and walk along Man Ming Lane until you hit Temple and just keep following the stalls.

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