Categories
#foodie friends Japan Japanese food

Sushi Party Memories.

Today was one of my (few) days off, and I spent it at my friends’ house. Their roommate had a great idea to have a sushi party for the evening, so we prepared all the raw fish/toppings and cooked a lot of rice. There were five of us eating around a small table in their living room; we had all sorts of sushi, including unagi (eel), maguro, uni, and lots of others. I felt a bit of nostalgia/happiness within me as I enjoyed the camaraderie we had tonight. Cutting up the sashimi, preparing the rice with the rice vinegar, watching dumb funny movies…

We’re only young once, after all.

Categories
#foodie American Culture Asian-American health

White rice vs. Brown rice

Interesting topic came up today in a conversation with my friend; ever since I began to eat healthier and reading up on healthy diets/etc. in magazines, I have noticed how most of the diets are very American-oriented; meaning, the foods are all just…American. Salad, sandwiches, etc. There are some “Asian” dishes thrown in, but always stir-fry or some kind of fusion.

So I asked my friend today, “Why are all these diets racist!” I say “racist” in jest, but really, how come so many health plans say “NO” to white rice? I know, brown rice has more nutrients apparently…but how come then pretty much all of Asia consumes white rice? “It’s processed, no nutrients, etc.” is what I keep reading. But tell me, how come the world’s oldest/healthiest people live in…Asia? They eat white rice; brown rice is too expensive, and most of Asia is relatively poor.

Try going into any Asian restaurant and requesting for brown rice–you won’t get it at most places. So far, I’ve only seen a few Thai restaurants offer brown rice, but even then, that’s only one type of Asian restaurant. Korean? They shot down the request when I attempted to ask for substitution. Chinese? Japanese? I highly doubt they will honor the request.

White rice forever.

Categories
#foodie dining out health restaurant

How dirty is your cook?

Ever since I started working at the hot dog carts, I feel my sense of health/sanitation has been heightened–not that I was not cautious of germs/being clean and sanitized before the job. Still, especially in food service, I believe the most important thing about the job(s) is to be very clean and reduce the risk of germ-contamination as much as possible. Some ways to do so is:

– Never touch the food with bare hands, even if hands are clean. Handle with a cooking utensil or with plastic gloves over hands.

– Never let food touch a public surface (countertop, etc.) or else it is contaminated.

– Never pick up trash/things off the ground with bare hands and then use hands to handle food–even if handling food is with a cooking utensil! Germs could transfer through the utensil.

There are many other ways to reduce germ contamination, but these are a few starters.

I bring up this topic mainly because of an incident my boss had at a “dive” burger joint he went to earlier in the weekend. He said he watched (with sheer horror) as the cook behind the counter took out UNREFRIGERATED, raw chicken breasts, throw the meat onto the grill with his bare hands, and then, without washing his hands, proceed to arrange the garnish setup (tomato, lettuce, etc.).

Unfortunately for my boss, he got food poisoning from such an incident; fortunately, he’s okay now.

Just goes to show–if possible, watch how the cook handles your food next time you eat out!

Categories
#foodie restaurant

Favorite foods.

I notice whenever I dine out with my friends, I tend to choose Asian cuisine over the usual pasta, sandwiches, etc. I also notice that, when it comes to Asian cuisine, I tend to prefer Korean or Thai.

I wonder, why is that?

I enjoy Chinese cooking/food any day since I grew up with it; I’m perfectly fine with Japanese and Vietnamese foods. So why is it almost always Korean or Thai?

There are some things at Korean restaurants which I feel are rather unique for Asian cuisine; for example, all of the starter/”appetizer” dishes they provide, including kimchi and other pickled vegetables. The sizzling hot pots are always divine, and the spices/flavors are just one of a kind. Plus, I feel like most of the foods I probably can’t make on my own at home without the help of a Korean friend.

Thai food is probably some form of comfort food for me; I used to always go to this one Thai place back when I was in school. The flavors also strike me as being more unique than some other Asian cuisines–I like spicy foods, and I like the curries.

I probably stay away from “All-American” cuisine these days because of how much I had of it while I was growing up. I remember ordering out a lot with my siblings, and we’d gorge ourselves on pizza rolls, pizza, huge sandwiches, etc. They’re not foods that necessarily satisfy my palate these days; maybe once in awhile, I’ll consider the foods for a meal, but not every week. Plus, some of the foods I can make at home anyway, so why waste the money to go out and buy something on the pricier side when I know I have the ability to cook it myself?

Categories
#foodie My San Francisco Chronicles restaurant

Mayan food in San Francisco

While walking around Noe Valley with my walking buddy today, we stumbled upon Mi Lindo Yucatan, a restaurant specializing in Mayan fare. Mayan food? It was our first time to hear of this kind of cuisine still being in existence; so we decided we would venture in and indulge our foodie-ness at the restaurant.

From what I can recall from the menu, it had a mix of fresh vegetable offerings and seafood combined with standard fare you would find in Mexico–tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc. We ordered two specials, one with beef chunks and vegetables, and the other was lobster enchiladas.

The food was very delicious and fresh; we both left the restaurant feeling satisfied, not stuffed-to-the-brim full. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone else, and hope to go back to the restaurant to try more of the food soon.