Author: TabemonoJourney

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Tabemono in SF – Affordable and Very Good Kaiseki at OzaOza

OzaOza is hidden in all the bright signs. If you look carefully and right in the middle is OzaOza’s sign. It’s easy to miss.  It’s on the second floor, next to a karaoke place.

November 22, 2016

Kaiseki is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner.  It is the Japanese version of fine dining where a set menu of in-season ingredients is made into elaborate dishes and each item is presented in beautiful individual bowls and plates.  I have tried kaiseki meals at numerous ryokans for dinner, at Michelin 3 star Kojyu in the Ginza area of Tokyo, and at Hashiri SF.   In each of these places, dinner meals then to be quite expensive, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear that a kaiseki place opened up with an affordable price of $100/person.  One concern would be that at that price, would quality suffer and you get what you pay for.  After reading OzaOza’s website, it looked legitimate, especially after hearing he was originally from Kyoto, arguably the birthplace of kaiseki.  We made reservations for a party of four. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF – Affordable and Very Good Kaiseki at OzaOza”

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Tabemono in SF – Osechi Ryori at Kappou Gomi

Update 10/21/2017 –  Unfortunately after 8 years, Kappou Gomi closes its doors as the Chef and Owner, Gomi-san is retiring.  Will miss this place for both the food and the hospitality provided by the Gomi-san and his wife Harumi.  If you like to continue reading on what is Osechi, continue reading, but  otherwise know that this style of cooking cannot be found elsewhere that I know of in the SF Bay Area. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF – Osechi Ryori at Kappou Gomi”

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Tabemono in SF Bay Area – SingleThread in Healdsburg

SingleThread (actual spelling w/o space) is located in Healdsburg in Sonoma County, California.

December 30th, 2016

SingleThread is not located in San Francisco, but it is about an hour and twenty-minute drive north in the town of Healdsburg in Sonoma County which is part of the SF Bay Area.  Although SingleThread is not a pure Japanese restaurant, it is a heavy fusion of Japanese and California cuisine.  You see the deep appreciation of Japan throughout the restaurant, from the origami crane decorations at the entrance to the proud displays of donabe cookware in the kitchen.  The ambiance and the food throughout the night gave me that nostalgic feel of eating in Japan.  In fact, later that night when we met the chef and owner, Kyle Connaughton,  he shared with us that he had previously worked three years at the Windsor Hotel in Toya, Hokkaido.  Additionally, I read on their website that a lot of their specialized produce and vegetables will be sourced from their own farm and nearby Sonoma farms.  We really looked forward to dinner that night. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF Bay Area – SingleThread in Healdsburg”

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Tabemono at Home: Matsutake Takikomi with a Pressure Cooker

Matsutake Mushroom are in season during autumn. It has what some say a spicy cinnamon taste, but I find it more like a pleasant cedar or pine like in aroma.  This year my local Japanese grocery store had them constantly stocked from September through late December.

While shopping at my local Japanese grocery store during the autumn months, I spotted matsutake mushrooms on several occasions and have been enjoying this delicacy.  It is my favorite mushroom as it has a distinctive yet pleasant aroma of pine trees and cedar.   It is usually available from September to January, and are harvested by hand, hence its high price ranging from $15/lb to $50/lb, depending on its grade.  Since I was making dinner that night, I really wanted to showcase this amazing ingredient and decided to make matsutake gohan(rice) in the takikomi style with a stove top pressure cooker as it’s faster than a regular rice cooker. Takikomi is a rice dish that is cooked with vegetables, seafood, meats, or in this case mushrooms and is usually cooked with dashi and a soy sauce mix instead of plain water. Continue reading “Tabemono at Home: Matsutake Takikomi with a Pressure Cooker”

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Tabemono Summer Vacation- Hokkaido/Tohoku 2016 Days 3-4 – Asahidake, Yumoto Yukomansou Ryokan

More selfie antics instigated by my older son. Keeps them busy during long drives.

After wrapping up Asahikawa Ramen Village, it was time to head to our first of many ryokan.  We booked Yumoto Yuomansou with the intent to do a little hiking and sight-seeing around Daisetsuzan National Park.   As we drove from Ramen Village to Asahi-dake Mountain, the drive took about an hour as it is located in the neighboring town of Higashigawa.  The kids continued their selfie antics here and there, while we drove through a very scenic road.

Mt. Asahi-dake is Hokkaido’s highest peak. Along the way, the landscape consisted of remote rice farms, trees, and lakes that were all green around us as it was the beginning of the summer months.  These farms which are called satoyama, appear as though they work with nature as opposed to totally changing the land to farmland. Continue reading “Tabemono Summer Vacation- Hokkaido/Tohoku 2016 Days 3-4 – Asahidake, Yumoto Yukomansou Ryokan”

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