Off of University Av ...

My most restaurant review for the school blog ...

People sometimes ask me for restaurant recommendations, and recently it’s been for ‘date’ venues. Supposedly, the challenge is that the restaurant needs to be a little bit off the beaten path … ‘preferably North of Menlo Park or South of Mountain View … and definitely not on University Avenue. (The chances of ‘getting spotted’ are too high).’

So with this in mind, I wanted to showcase a favorite restaurant with quality food, reasonable prices, and a casual yet intimate feel that is appropriate for a date. More importantly, it’s close enough to be easily accessible but far enough such that I have not run into classmates there … yet.

Restaurant: Sumika
Cuisine: Japanese (Yakitori focus)
Must Trys: Uni jelly, oyako-don, yakitori, roasted tea panna cotta

There are so many reasons why I love Sumika … the ambiance (classy but home-y), the view into the kitchen grill, the small / intimate size, and most importantly, the food. It’s fantastic and also new. There are some interesting items for the more adventurous diner, including ‘ume shiso’ (sour plum mixed with shark cartilage), jellyfish sashimi, and more.

Some ‘must try’s that I love include:

• Uni jelly: For anyone who loves uni (sea urchin), this will be a treat. Two slices of fresh uni on top of a delicate bonito-flavored jelly. It’s a wonderful complement, since the jelly is a refreshing balance with the richness of the uni.
• ‘Yakitori’ (skewered chicken): Given that its web address is ‘sumikagrill,’ it makes sense that its yakitori selection is a highlight of the menu. There are a variety of chicken skewers with interesting sauces, along with other specialty items such as kobe beef and scallops. My favorite was actually the liver!
• Oyako-don: This is a very casual Japanese dish that consists of stewed egg, chicken, and a bit of sweet onion over rice, but it’s done extremely well here. The chicken is extremely tender, the moisture of the egg perfect, and the rice wonderfully dressed with a bit of sweet teriyaki.
• Roasted tea panna cotta: The best panna cotta that I’ve had hands-down. Extremely light with a hint of roasted tea flavor (which matches the barley tea that accompanies your meal). It’s presented beautifully in a small wooden box and decorated with a sesame tuile, a little bit of red bean and small mochi.

In summary, the food is wonderful, and the cost is reasonable (Most dishes in the $10 range, with skewers ranging from $3 to $5 each). For any Japanese cuisine fans, adventurous foodies, or GSB guy/girl looking for a new restaurant (e.g. date venue), Sumika is definitely worth a try.

Sumika
236 Central Plz
Los Altos, CA 94022
(650) 917-1822
http://www.sumikagrill.com/

Four hours of driving; One hour of eating

From the source ...

I recently went on my first oyster shucking trek with a few classmates, and it was quite the experience - what we all agreed 'business school is all about.'

Four hours of driving along the coast of California for one hour of eating the freshest oysters I could have imagined. It was quite incredible sitting there knife in one hand, heavy glove in the other (to prevent me from stabbing myself I suppose), shucking my first oysters and slurping them up one by one ...

There was nothing particulary 'glamorous' about the event. No white linen. No oysters in their half shell on ice. No mimoellete sauce ready for dipping. Just a brown tray with dozens of oysters dressed with only the taste of the salty sea water it was just pulled out of ... accompanied by a baguette, some potato chips, and wine drank out of red pastic cups. There we sat on a wooden picnic table and looking out on the California coast. Simplicity at its best.

A must visit for anyone who is remotely interested in oysters, a scenic coastal ride (car or bike!), or just a new experience.

Hog Island Oyster Company
20215, Highway 1
Marshall, CA
http://www.hogislandoysters.com/

Who knew the bell pepper could be so versatile?

I participated in my first 'Iron Chef' competition today. Organized by the EAT club, teams of four, two hours to cook, four dishes to prepare (drink, appetizer, main, dessert), six judges total (one of which was one of my professors!)

My team and I tried to guess the secret ingredient and categorized into one of four possible categories: (1) Fruit, (2) Nut (unlikely due to allergies), (3) Vegetable (probably carrot or tomato most versatile with dessert), (4) Root vegetable (sweet potato?)

Who knew it would be Sweet Bell Peppers? (small and large ... red, orange, and yellow). The whole event was incredibly fun ... from grocery shopping, walking down the aisles picking fun ingredients that we thought we *may* use (e.g. candied ginger) to tasting all the wonderful foods the following teams cooked after us. We didn't win (got beat out by the Exec Ed students!) but had fabulous time. Next year I want to be a judge. :)

Our menu below (no pictures, since we were in a mad dash to finish cooking)

***

Four takes on Pepper

Puree
Bloody Red-Pepper Refresher

Deep-fry
Boursin, goat cheese, and bacon stuffed mini pepper
Paired with a gorgonzola sauce

Roast
Cous cous stuffed orange pepper bowl topped with a poached quail egg
Paired with slices of cumin-spiced ribeye with a spicy tomato, basil, red-pepper compote

Bake
Phyllo cups filled with sweet cream and yellow-pepper jelly
Topped with raspberries and dusted with powdered sugar

Chefs: The one-and-only Shake&Bake Team :)

***

Potato Post #2

I found the perfect potato picture in my archives!

From a visit last fall to Ubuntu: A garden potato medly - fried, roasted, boiled, accompanied by a poached egg and edible garden flowers.

Happy Potato Day

Two inspirations for this post …

1. Today is May 4 – the lovely birthday of my loveliest little sister who also happens to be the biggest fan of potatoes (in every form). Happy birthday!
2. A recent dinner conversation I had with some friends over ‘super foods’ and the sad reputation that fad diets have given to wonderful starchy foods such as potatoes

So on May 4, a tribute to the wonderful food that is the potato, with some random here and there's on potatoes ...

• My fondest potato memory: The surprise potato potluck I threw my sister before she left overseas; friends brought potato salad, potato chips, roasted potato wedges, McD French fries, and more ... she thought it was ridiculous (I'm convinced that is sister language / code for fabulous ;))
• My favorite ‘potato’ varietal: Not really a potato varietal but a close family member. I love sweet potatoes in all forms – but the simplest preparation of just roasting the sweet potato is my favorite ... the natural sugars having oozed out to leave a sweet burnt skin, which is so loose that you can peel it off at one go. Mmm ... I have such fond memories of winter lunchtimes where I would leave the office factory (in Shanghai’s industrial zone) to see the nice sweet potato vendor on the side of the street for a hot steaming sweet potato. 2 RMB (~30 cents)!
• My simplest potato recipe: Roasted rosemary potato slices. Wash potato, slice, drizzle with olive oil and chopped rosemary, and roast in oven until crispy brown. So simple yet so fragrant!
• My all-time favorite potato dish: Delica’s wasabi potato salad – the famous potato salad found at the organic Japanese deli in SF’s Ferry Building and my daily lunch (literally) for about six months before I moved to China. 'Half of a half pint of the wasabi potato salad please ... and a salmon onigiri rice ball. Thank you!' The healthiest I think potato salad can get, with crispy snap peas, edamame, fresh lettuce, and a hint of wasabi.
• My random potato nutrition 101: I always tell my friends on ‘no carb’ diets that carbohydrates themselves are not evil. Carbohydrates in excess (a heavy restaurant serving of pasta) or carbohydrates laden with sugar and preservatives (white wonderbread) are not good for you. But everything in moderation in good, particularly if it is of the natural variety. And a potato is as natural as you can get. A medium potato has Vitamin C (45% of daily value), Potassium (18%), Vitamin B6 (10%), and other trace minerals. Moreover, the sweet potato, which is extremely high in fiber, beta carotene (Vitamin A equivalent), Vitamin C, and Vitamin B6, it is known as one of today’s ‘superfoods.’

Now all I’m missing is a great potato picture. Your pictures all welcome. :)

2 ingredients ++

Dark chocolate truffles

I coated with: Crushed pistachio, Shaved coconut, Crushed almonds

Chocolate + Cream. Done.