My passion is exploring the connection between food and culture. I write regularly for Oakland and Alameda Magazines and Berkeleyside's NOSH. My blog, East Bay Ethnic Eats, gives me an excuse to track down the only Bay Area baker making fresh filo dough or learn to stuff a dried eggplant with help from a Turkish immigrant. Culture is the thread that ties together my several careers. As a sign language interpreter, educator and author, my study of Deaf culture has taken me around the world, where I fell madly in love with seed-strewn Danish bread, attacked platters of French shellfish with a small arsenal of tools and sampled a Japanese breakfast so fresh it wiggled. I'm also an epicurean concierge for Edible Excursions Japan town tours (that I lead in either English or ASL). And when I conduct in-depth cultural trainings for foreign workers being transferred to the Bay Area, I am sure to discuss the delights of doggie bags and the mystery of American restaurants serving ice water in the dead of winter. I can be found tweeting @EBEthniceats
See how a dripping blob of bacteria and yeast makes fizzy, homemade kombucha and bonds a mother and daughter. Liberally illustrated with drawings of Kombucha Killers, Vessel Guide, Friendly Add-Ins, Dangers Signs and Brewing Steps.
Feast your eyes on the images in Sip. Savor. Share!, a local food-filled photography show sponsored by the urban art collective Femme Cartel. The show opens May 9 and runs through May 26 at the Mission’s Roll Up Gallery.
Do you dream of harvesting your own super-local honey to drizzle on your breakfast bread? Wonder how hard it is to keep bees and how to start? Bay Area Bites interviewed some East Bay beekeepers and collected a swarm of resources.
PBS is soliciting ideas, characters and locations for a new documentary by filmmaker Grace Lee with the working title “Asian Chops,” that aims to discover the changing landscape of Asian America as seen through a food lens.
Peruvian personal Chef Nico Vera shares his recipe for Lomo Saltado, a Chinese-Peruvian beef stir-fry that exemplifies Peru’s rich culinary history incorporating the flavors of five cultures: Inca, Spanish, African, Chinese and Japanese.
A dozen Deaf Foodies relish the tastes and history of Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto in a 3 hour tasting tour presented completely in American Sign Language (ASL) by food writer (and ASL interpreter) Anna Mindess through Edible Excursions.
Lisa Li shows us where to buy live fish in Oakland’s Chinatown to prepare a traditional Chinese New Year feast.
To celebrate The Year of the Snake, Bay Area Bites playfully examines the food habits of each animal sign in the Chinese Zodiac. Are you a fussy Rooster, a junk food loving Monkey or a trendy Rat who has to be the first to try the newest restaurant?
Anna Mindess discovered the world’s freshest oysters and a street lined with shrimp sellers in Mazatlán.
If you suffer from triskaidekaphobia –an intense fear of the number 13 — 2013 is going to be a nail-biter. Don’t take any chances, eat lucky foods on New Year’s Eve to insure a prosperous and healthy year filled with good fortune.
Besides demystifying tamale making the event at La Cocina introduced students to three chefs from different regions of Latin America, each demonstrating their own traditional recipes and techniques that produced a variety of stuffed, steamy bundles. Post includes recipe for Alicia’s Mango Tamales.
Selome Haileleoul cooks traditionally spiced Ethiopian dishes and is serving as chef at Oakland’s Guest Chef until December 16 — where a rotating roster of chefs try out their cooking techniques for two weeks at a time.
Decorate sugar skulls with icing, sequins and feathers or learn to make bone-shaped Pan de Muerto bread for the upcoming Day of the Dead festivities in the Bay Area.
Onigilly (recently opened in the Financial District) offers an updated version of classic Japanese onigiri rice balls with generous toppings, from traditional pickled plum and salmon, to miso roasted fennel, spicy shrimp and bacon cooked with garlic butter, sake and chili sauce.
Bay Area Bites (BAB), KQED's public media food blog, feeds you visually compelling food-related stories, news, recipes and reviews from the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. Enter your email address to receive updates each time we publish new posts.
Avoid Extreme Diets – 5 Warm Weather Foods That Naturally Detox The Body
Some people use extreme diets like fasting and juice cleanses. But these aren’t necessary for most people and may be dangerous without medical supervision. Here are five foods that support the body while cleansing.
Can A Piece Of Hair Reveal How Much Coke Or Pepsi You Drink?
People are notorious for under-reporting what they consume — they lie, forget or just guess wrong. For researchers who want to know how much soda we’re drinking, a high-tech analysis technique could help.
ADHD In Childhood May Feed Obesity In Adults
People diagnosed with ADHD as children may be more apt to be obese in adulthood, scientists say. Differences in brain biology or the impulsiveness typical of ADHD may contribute to lasting, bad eating habits.
Avoid Extreme Diets – 5 Warm Weather Foods That Naturally Detox The Body
Some people use extreme diets like fasting and juice cleanses. But these aren’t necessary for most people and may be dangerous without medical supervision. Here are five foods that support the body while cleansing.
How to Make Kombucha: An Illustrated Mother/Daughter Tale
See how a dripping blob of bacteria and yeast makes fizzy, homemade kombucha and bonds a mother and daughter. Liberally illustrated with drawings of Kombucha Killers, Vessel Guide, Friendly Add-Ins, Dangers Signs and Brewing Steps.
Try A Do-It-Yourself Mother’s Day
Rather than waiting for someone to give you a treat, why not make one of your favorites for yourself? Something you can snack on all week when no one’s around. Or, better yet, something you don’t have to share. Food writer T. Susan Chang recommends slow-roasted pecans, salty-sweet matzo candy and more.
Hunan Home’s Restaurant, Radius, Guerilla Café: Check, Please! Bay Area reviews
Restaurants reviewed: Hunan Home’s Restaurant (San Francisco), Radius Restaurant and Café (San Francisco) and Guerilla Café (Berkeley).
Chris Hadfield: Space Chef In Chief
The Canadian astronaut didn’t just tweet and sing his heart out during his five months as commander of the International Space Station. He also took time out to show the world what it’s like to eat up there.
Bocanova, Willi’s Wine Bar, The Rotunda of Neiman Marcus: Check, Please! Bay Area reviews
Check, Please! Bay Area reviews these restaurants: Bocanova (Oakland), Willi’s Wine Bar (Santa Rosa), The Rotunda of Neiman Marcus (San Francisco).
Celebrate the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market 20th Birthday Bash with CUESA
In honor of its 20th anniversary, Bay Area Bites looks back on how the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market has become a San Francisco institution for chefs, home cooks, and curious eaters from around the world.
Exploratorium Elevates Museum Eating Experience
Chef Loretta Keller, the force behind the Exploratorium’s new culinary options, talks bee jet lag, living foods, and seawater cocktails with BAB’s Sarah Henry.
Grits, Fried Chicken and Gospel Brunch – Chef David Lawrence Discusses Life at “1300 on Fillmore”
Mary Ladd interviews Chef David Lawrence about his restaurant “1300 on Fillmore” which is known for fabulous grits, fried chicken and a lively Sunday Gospel brunch.
Hunan Home’s Restaurant, Radius, Guerilla Café: Check, Please! Bay Area reviews
Restaurants reviewed: Hunan Home’s Restaurant (San Francisco), Radius Restaurant and Café (San Francisco) and Guerilla Café (Berkeley).
First Impression: Healdsburg SHED
What would a wine country locavore’s paradise look like? Stephanie Rosenbaum talks to Cindy Daniel, owner of Healdsburg’s new SHED, a 21st-century grange, store, and sustainable-living center.
Bocanova, Willi’s Wine Bar, The Rotunda of Neiman Marcus: Check, Please! Bay Area reviews
Check, Please! Bay Area reviews these restaurants: Bocanova (Oakland), Willi’s Wine Bar (Santa Rosa), The Rotunda of Neiman Marcus (San Francisco).
Pompei’s Grotto, Lillie Mae’s House of Soul Food, SPQR: Check, Please! Bay Area reviews
The fourth episode of Season 8 features these restaurants: Pompei’s Grotto (San Francisco), Lillie Mae’s House of Soul Food (Santa Clara) and SPQR (San Francisco). Leslie Sbrocco shares wine tips about Napa Valley wines.
Cheese Books for the Curd Nerd
Every aspiring curd nerd yearns to embiggen their knowledge base about the dairy darlings they adore. Garrett McCord shares two books that help you gain a broader understanding of cheese and supply you with tasteful cheese-centric recipes.
Michael Pollan talks about his new book ‘Cooked’
As in his previous books, Michael Pollan argues in “Cooked” that relying on processed food disrupts our link to the natural world and weakens our interpersonal relationships. He joins KQED’s Forum in the studio.
KQED’s Forum: Mark Bittman on Part-Time Veganism
Mark Bittman talks about his new book, and how a full-time meat lover adapted to part-time veganism.
Are the benefits of genetically engineered foods worth the risks? Check out this half-hour special from QUEST Northern California that explores the pros and cons of genetically engineered crops and what the future holds for research and regulations.
Baby & Toddler On The Go: fresh, homemade foods for a busy life (VIDEO)
A precociously independent toddler packs a healthy homemade lunch and heads off to snack in Bernal Height’s Holly Park in San Francisco. This video is a promo for Kim Laidlaw’s new book: Baby & Toddler On The Go: fresh, homemade foods for a busy life.
Deaf Foodies Savor Gourmet Ghetto Tasting Tour in Sign Language
A dozen Deaf Foodies relish the tastes and history of Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto in a 3 hour tasting tour presented completely in American Sign Language (ASL) by food writer (and ASL interpreter) Anna Mindess through Edible Excursions.
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