Two long tables that seat about 40 guests Harry Potter-style, line the walls of Camino in Oakland. These dramatic slabs of wood sum up the restaurant itself – friendly and warm. Adding to the drama are two stone grills at the back of the restaurant in full view of the guests and four huge chandaliers laced with bay leaves. The rustic atmosphere reflects the menu (that changes daily) which features simple and easy-to-understand ingredients and descriptions.

I went to Camino as a party of four. Sitting nestled between strangers allowed for a very unpretentious experience, reminding me a little bit of izakayas back in Tokyo. The food, however, was definitely not reminding me of an izakaya. Being a party of four was great for trying various starters. In fact, I would like to go back to Camino with a bigger party sometime so I can experience the entire starters menu…

Our starters were:

Blood orange, Oro Blanco, grapefruit and faro with cauliflower
Probably my favorite starter since it was really delicate and well thought out. The citrus added a subtle depth that complimented the otherwise buttery cauliflower. California cuisine at its best.

Fried smelt with arugula salad, beets and herb mayonnaise
The beets were the best part of this dish. I sometimes find beets to be too sweet – these were conservative in their sweetness. Give me some time with smelt, I still can not figure these babies out.

Rock shrimp soup
Very savory. That white stuff floating on the top, most probably cheese, was the star of this dish.

Pork feet nuggets and pork head slices
Melt in your mouth nuggets were amazing, but a little heavy for a starter. I would have liked to be eating these at a bar instead.

Camino also serves complimentary bread, delicious butter and mineral water (gas and no gas).

We all ended up getting the duck as our main entree which was perfection.

On the upper left side of the plate were super sweet cooked carrots of several hues (orange, yellow and cream). Au gratin potatoes were placed on the top of the plate. These were perfectly cooked thin slices of potato in about four layers. Between each medallion was a light cream sauce. The greens are peeking out from the grilled duck on the right side of the plate. This combination of greens had the texture of cabbage but the bitter flavor of kale. The main ingredient, duck came in two styles. On the right side is a piece of grilled duck leg. The buttery layers of duck melted in my mouth after experiencing a slight crunch from the top skin layer. On the left side were four rare slices of steak-style duck. The texture was reminiscent of roast beef, giving off a really satisfying feeling of indulging in red meat, yet without the super heaviness of beef. The concept of the dish was like a really gourmet Thanksgiving dinner. Being a fan of Thanksgiving, this was a really satisfying plate.

And dessert was yet another adventure at Camino. Luckily we all had to satisfy our sweet tooth, so we decided to share three desserts amongst the four of us.

Apple and quince tart with brandy cream
Perfect crunch with this tart. I loved how there wasn’t much of anything besides apple and a flaky crust.

Hazelnut ice-cream with chocolate
Simply hazelnut. And with shaved chocolate, this dish delivered exactly what it claimed to be – hazelnuts and chocolate.

Wood oven-roasted prunes with red wine and vanilla ice cream
This was the star of the show for me. It reminded me of Cherries Jubilee (an all-time favorite of mine). The vanilla ice-cream wasn’t too in-your-face to make room for the sweet prunes. The color of the red wine was gorgeous too.

A truly photogenic meal and atmosphere, Camino will definitely be on the list for places to celebrate a fancy occasion. This gem is definitely somewhere I’d like to go for a couple of cocktails in the near future as well.

CAMINO
3917 Grand Avenue
Oakland, CA
T: 510.547.5035

Natto is the one of those foods that elicits strong reactions. I get overwhelmed with a sense of joy and excitement, but the response I hear from most people (who aren’t from or aren’t descendants of the eastern regions of Japan) is pure disgust.

I remember how clueless I was junior year in college when I stocked up on natto and brought it back to my fridge that I shared with four other UC Santa Cruzers. As I was innocently devouring a package of natto, my roommate barged in yelling “Oh my god! What is that smell?!” My answer to her was, “Are you talking about your pet rat?” as I gestured my chopsticks (all stringy with natto strands) to point at the corner of the room where her pet rat resided. She shook her head and inched in closer to me to inspect the contents of my bowl.

It never registered to me that cold food could smell — and up until that point, I never suspected that natto even had a smell.

That was my first lesson in how natto could offend people. From that day forward, I could not eat natto so long as I lived with roommates.

Natto is fermented soybeans that were traditionally made in kotatsus in Japanese homes in the Kanto (Tokyo) region. It’s like yogurt in the way that you start with a culture. In the case of natto, the culture used is bacillus subtilis and the medium is soybeans which are left in a humid, warm environment for 24 hours. The result is a mixture of stringy, luscious soybeans that are kind of like a soft cheese in texture with an aroma like no other. Some describe it like smelly French cheese… while my roommates told me it smelled like feet.

Natto is getting some attention because of its health benefits. Eastern regions of Japan have less incidence of osteoporosis. Plus, that sticky stuff apparently contains some enzymes that thin the blood, therefore, preventing heart attacks, strokes and certain types of cancers. I guess they even sell natto in pill form and call it “Nattokinase” here in the west.

My love for natto was evident from my early days — soon after I exited the womb. But our bond strengthened exponentially when I moved to Tokyo where I could indulge in my love for it with no shame or judgment from my peers. Plus they were regularly priced at a dirt-cheap 30-cents a serving. I would eat a package every morning before dashing off to work. It was like my daily cup of coffee.

So when I came back to the U.S. last month, I braced myself for an environment that would challenge my love affair with natto. It’s not that expensive here in California at about $2.00 for three servings, but that’s still about twice the amount I was used to in Tokyo. Plus, it’s not readily available, say at the local 7-11 or Safeway.

I concluded that the only way I could rely on a steady and affordable supply of natto was to make it myself. My experience with making yogurt for four years, gave me the confidence to try my hand at natto as well.

Here’s how I made it:

1) Gather together the following ingredients and supplies: 1 lb of soybeans, a store bought pack of natto, water, glass containers, foil

2) Soak soybeans overnight in plenty of water.

After one night:

3) Drain the soybeans.

4) Steam the soybeans until you can smush them between your thumb and pointer finger.

I used my rice cooker which also can act as a pressure cooker. I ended up steaming the soybeans for 40 minutes.

5) While the soybeans are steaming, sterilize the glass containers you will use to ferment the soybeans in. I set my oven to 250 degrees and placed my glass containers in there for about 30 minutes.

6) Break out the store-bought package of natto.

7) Once the soybeans are done steaming, combine them with the store-bought package of natto.

8) Mix well then place the beans into the sterilized jars. Cover the jars with aluminum foil. Poke holes in the foil so that the soybeans can “breathe” during the fermentation process.

9) Okay, the beans are now ready to ferment. The basic idea for creating an ideal environment is to keep the beans in a humid, warm climate at about 40 degrees celsius (think mid-August Tokyo in a small room on the fourth floor with no windows and air conditioning). So I decided to keep the jars in my Crock-pot filled with a little bit of water on the “warm” setting. People also seem to use ice boxes filled with hot water bottles.

10) Wait for 24 hours.

The suspense got the best of me and I took a peek inside after 12 hours:

And the next morning they really seemed all mature and grown up.

Look at the stringiness!!! I was a very proud parent.

11) But the wait was not over. These beads of joy must be aged for umami in air-tight containers for a few days to one week in the refrigerator.

12) I finally got to indulge today over rice and I experienced a deep sense of pride and accomplishment. With a dash of soy sauce and Japanese mustard mixed into my home-made natto, I knew I had achieved nirvana for my taste buds and wallet.

13) To complete the cycle, freeze a portion of the natto to use as the starter for the next batch of natto.

Chocolate ganache | Almond shortbread thumbprints with meyer lemon peel and icing.

Find my meal in pictures here.

Erin was in town for a few weeks and I went up to see her in her hometown near Santa Rosa. What a trip! We killed some roosters together, ate her first meat meal together, and enjoyed the gorgeous Sonoma County sun.

One day we decided to go “into town” to Calistoga- which is a quaint boulevard brimming with restaurants, a few bars, cafes, and hotels boasting hot springs mud baths. Oohh la la. We stopped into one of Erin’s fave joints, Cafe Sarafornia.

According to local lore, Calistoga was nicknamed “Sarafornia” by the city’s founder Sam Brennan back in the day, in a drunken slur of words between “California” and “Saratoga”.

There is nothing fancy about Cafe Sarafornia, which calls itself the “Last old-fashioned diner in Napa Valley.” It makes an effort to use local, organic ingredients (without marking up all the prices) and they have many great local beers on the menu. Here’s one of my recent favorites, Lagunitas IPA, from Petaluma, CA (right down the road).

The other notably important trait here is that they serve breakfast ALL DAY!!!!!!!! Here’s Erin with her spinach and feta omelette.

My cobb salad was no-frills, but I ordered a side of the special bananas foster pancake which was incredible.

How cute is this place?

CAFE SARAFORNIA
1413 Lincoln Ave
Calistoga, CA
707.942.0555

I took a much-needed trip back home to California in May for two weeks. I risked contracting the swine flu to indulge in my second passion after eating – photography with my grandma’s 1970s Nikon EM film camera.
I love taking photos of food in Tokyo, but there’s something about the California sun that saturates food with perfect lighting.

Paella by Kazuko Hayama (my mom) in Cupertino, CA

Sushi by Sushikuni in Cupertino, CA

Harley Farms Goat Cheese in Pescadero, CA

Burger by Frankie’s Bohemian Cafe in San Francisco, CA

Burger by Frankie’s Bohemian Cafe in San Francisco, CA

Plain yogurt with Oreo cookies (left) and plain yogurt with blueberries (right) by Yogurt Harmony in Berkeley, CA

We ventured out to Pescadero a few weeks back, which is about an hour south of San Francisco, to visit Harley Farms Goat Dairy. It was such a special Umamiventure- Yoko was here from Tokyo, and Jenny and Mitch from NYC! It was the first time on a goat farm for many of us, and I can say with confidence that we all had a delightful time. Here’s what everyone thought- photos by myself and Thien Vu.

PAMELA
I had such a good time at Harley Goat Farm! Who knew there was another special place in Pescadero besides the Arcangeli bakery!? I had never hung out with goats before. I always thought they were skittish animals, but they’re actually quite friendly and curious like dogs.

PAMELA
We were encouraged to linger with the goats as long as we wanted. I think my very favorite part was hanging out with the babies because I could get down low and hug them and I didn’t fear getting pushed over or nibbled on. As of that day, there were 267 babies, so there were lots of cuddle options.

KAYOKO
There were these cuddly sheep and llamas too!

The sheep sort of kept to themselves, despite the fact that all I wanted to do was snuggle with them. The llamas, however, were super friendly and loved the attention. Janet, our tour guide, said that they are natural born watchmen and protect the goats from predators- such as coyotes. Llamas are quite graceful, gorgeous creatures.

THIEN
Everyone on the farm is so nice and friendly. Even though it’s clear that there is always a ton of things to do on the farm, anyone will pretty much stop and chat with you to answer your questions.

YOKO
Milking the teet of a goat was the highlight of the Harley Goat Farm Tour. For $20 a person, the tour included a chance to frolic with goat and sheep, smell their excrement, milk their teets, visit the cheese making facility and taste the cheese in their magically rustic barn turned dining hall.

Milking a goat required a simple motion where you make an “OK” gesture with your hand, put the teet in the “O” part, and tighten. Once the “O” part is firmly gripping the teet, the middle, index and pinky finger (in that order) wrap around the teet.

Milking facility.

YOKO
There were about 30 people on the tour so I only got to milk one teet, once. The task was very hands-on and satisfying as the product (goat milk) appeared right in front of you. I wouldn’t mind envisioning a life of milking teets at five in the morning everyday.

THIEN
Milking a goat is fun.

PAMELA
Oh, and my other favorite part was eating Harley’s signature Monet cheese that our tour guide had just put together in front of our eyes. It was so fresh and smooth, with a layer of herbs in the middle that complemented the sweetness of the cheese. We got to eat different all sorts of different cheeses to our hearts’ and tummies’ content. I didn’t want it to end!

Seperating the cheese from the whey.


Harley’s award-winning Monet cheese.

YOKO
The barn turned dining hall was also a highlight of the tour. A long dining table that was a slice of a huge oak tree was the centerpiece. The slab of wood was curvy, kind of like the long curvy roads of 84 that took us to Pescadero. The chairs were also curvy.

YOKO
The whole atmosphere of the dining hall reminded me of Tim Burton’s A Nightmare Before Christmas (the country barn version). It was really imaginative and cozy. The next time I make the trip out to Pescadero I would really like to try the $120 evening meal at this barn.

Besides the long, motion sickness-inducing road that leads to Pescadero (don’t eat In-and-Out beforehand), I would totally recommend a visit to Harley Goat Farms. The cheese is amazingly smooth and the staff (and goats) are really friendly and pleasant. Lending me some of their vibrant energy was definitely worth the $20.

JENNY
Harley goat farm was such an amazing experience!! Normally I’m skeptical about arranged tours but it was great to experience every step of the operation, from seeing how the goats live, to milking… to chevre! As an eater, I think any opportunity to see how food is made and produced is incredibly valuable- and tasting that goat cheese on the premises made it all the more pure in flavor and experience.

THIEN
It’s a very green farm in the middle of the Bay Area – which used to be a farming area, but it’s thought of more as the Silicon Valley now. The amount of effort that they put into being green and sustainable is amazing.

KAYOKO
This visit was certainly a fantastic, hands-on learning experience, from start to finish. Definitely book your spot in advance- the tours fill up quite quickly, and they can get quite large (there were nearly 30 people in our group!).

Thanks to everyone who made it out, to Harley Farms for accommodating all of us, and to Janet for a great tour. We’ll be back!

More photos of the trip by ChimChow and softglowingsun.

*Umamiventures are organized monthly, traveling far and wide in search of good, cheap grub. Join the UM Facebook Fan Page to stay updated on all future events. Hope to see you soon!

Drove down to Palm Springs last weekend for Sashe‘s fabulous wedding weekend. It was to be a fun-filled weekend of old friends, celebrating love, excellent food, tanning by the pool, and dancin, Dancin, DANCIN!

The bad news?? Getting there. The only thing standing in the way between me and my Palm Springs tan was the Interstate 5. Ugh. Worst freeway in the world: colorless, sceneryless and a total bore of a drive.

I hadn’t driven down the 5 in years though, so before I left I googled, “Where to eat off the 5.” A Chowhound thread pointed me to the Apricot Tree, which supposedly made a kickass apricot shake. Done and done. When I saw the awesome sign for it just north of stinky Harris Ranch, I turned off the highway. Never mind it was 10am- I wanted to try that shake, and nothing was going to stop me.

Check out the restaurant! It’s like a chateau!

As the exterior suggests, the inside is huge, with really kookie decor. Old tin lunchboxes lined the ceiling; their accompanying thermoses were displayed in glass cases. The menu was typical diner food, and the breakfast looked awesome.

Random movie paraphernalia all over the restaurant- like FABIO!!!

I asked for an apricot shake to go. Here’s the guy making it for me to order.

He told me that it was vanilla ice cream, milk and frozen apricots. They harvest the apricots from the summertime and freeze them. Ohhh yahhh!!!

It was a bit sweet, but well worth the stop. How many places in this world serves an apricot shake??? So next time you’re taking that boreathon of a drive down the 5 between the Bay Area and LA, take a pit stop at the Apricot Tree- you won’t miss the sign, trust me.

Apricot Tree
46272 W. Panoche Road
Firebaugh, CA 93622
T: 559.659.2028

Google offices are scattered all over Mt. View- my friend works over at the Crittenden “campus” so we ate there. The way it works at Google is that all buildings have cafeterias inside with different themes, and there is an expansive “quad” area with a ton of outdoor seating. There are little mini kitchens in all the buildings too, with unlimited beverages and snacks. It’s pretty dreamy.

After vascilating between different cafeterias (were we in the mood for hot foods? Pizza and pasta? Or salads and sushi?), we decided on PIC, short for Pure Ingredients Cafe.

We got there sharply at noon- my friend says that by 1pm, the food is usually all gone, so you’ve gotta eat early at Google. There’s a strict no-pic policy, so I used my discretion- didn’t take any pics of the food service area, which are so pristine, but I did get a shot of my lunch which included:

- Crab mayo rolls
- Cucumber and avo rolls
- A “Philly Cheesesteak Pizza”
- Roasted beet salad with a blood orange vinegrette
- Duck a l’orange
- Baby spinach leaves
- Seaweed salad

The philly cheese pizza was pretty awesome- I watched the chef take a blow torch to a pizza topped with raw beef to cook the beef. Sweet!

Had some of this Vignette “wine soda” which is neat. Non-alcoholic and tastes like sweet sparkling wine.

They even have this great little garden in the quad, called the “Cool-Season Garden” where they grow herbs and greens for use in the cafes. They even let you take a sample! In this economy, every bit counts, right?

Look at this gorgeous kale!

I hear they are making some major cutbacks in the food department here, and at the NYC offices. In fact, they are not letting friends in at the NYC offices anymore. I better get my fill before they ban me for good!!!

Lunch now comes on these fun red plastic trays!

Rarrrr!!!

They are very proud of wrapping their burgers in paper.

You know about the Bible scriptures hidden underneath the cups, right? CREEPY!!!