Tagged: great chefs

Chit Chat: Valerie Luu + Katie Kwan of Rice Paper Scissors

A few weeks ago I got to hang out with a couple of the coolest gals in city, the duo behind the Rice Paper Scissors pop-up Vietnamese cafe. And we made this video! If you live in San Francisco and eat food, you’ve probably already heard of them. Valerie and Katie worked their way through unrelated careers, food blogging and being individual Vietnamese vendors. Now they’ve become a favorite of Bourdain and pop-up throughout the city.

We talked about the knitty gritty beginnings of their adventures and how they couldn’t have done it without The Internet. Not only did social media and the interwebs help people find where they would be, it connected them to people who shared their passion for making good food.

Of course I had to try their food along the way and it was really awesome. It’s pretty rad that these fun ladies do their own thing and break the rules (sometimes).

If you’ve heard of them but haven’t had their food yet, make your way to Mojo Cafe where they pop-up every Thursday. Also, don’t forget to join their mailing list/follow them on Twitter and Facebook so you know what they’ll be up to next.  🙂

P.S. Please check out Vice’s Fresh Off the Boat mini series if you haven’t already. In episode 2/3, Valerie and Katie hit up their favorite spots in the Mission and shock Eddie Huang with their cooking superpowers.

Special thanks to: Valerie and Katie for just being awesome and letting me follow them around, Giovanni Chumpitazi for writing the music the day before this was due, and Mojo Cafe for letting us film!

Series of Pan-Asian Pop-ups Launches Tonight!

Your opportunity to explore pan-Asian cuisines has arrived in the city! Eastern Addition will be a three-month long pop-up adventure that will take place at Vinyl Wine Bar (359 Divisidero). Every Wednesday, starting October 17, a different cuisine and a star chef will be in the spotlight. How awesome is that?! The goal of Eastern Addition is to basically showcase great chefs with different specialties that more people should know about. This is definitely something I support and you should too! There’s gonna be great food, so why the hell not?

Tonight’s pop-up (6-11 p.m.) will be featuring Tak Matsube, formerly of Bushi-Tei and his take on “Japanese Hard-Hat Cuisine,” which I’m guessing is more casual, comfort food. According to SF Weekly, the dishes will be priced at $3 to $11. NOT BAD!

I’m not really sure when tonight’s list closes, but since there is limited space, email you reservation to: easternaddition@gmail.com with your name, number and party size. Hopefully you get in! If not there’s always next week 🙂

Like Eastern Addition on Facebook and follow them on Twitter for updates and weekly schedules.

Happy Eating!

Chit Chat: Eric Ehler of Seoul Patch/Gung Ho

Photos courtesy of Seoul Patch Twitter (@seoulpatchsf)

Last week I chatted with Eric Ehler who started the Seoul Patch pop-up and is on his way to opening his own restaurant, Gung Ho. Besides actually turning out to be really cool, Eric has a great story. I also think more people should know about him and the damn-good food he makes. He’s a Korean-American chef from the Midwest who’s dedicated to making food that reflects his two backgrounds. We talked about growing up, the transition from pop-ups to an actual space and how he runs a kitchen. The next day I was invited to experience this first hand. Eric and his team (who are also really fun) got together to test the menu and have a few drinks. Growing up eating Korean food, I naturally became a huge fan. Everything I tried was great, especially their famous fried chicken sandwich. Eric takes pride in the way he makes his fried chicken and doesn’t fuck around.

His new restaurant will hopefully be open in early November (it’s at 680 8th Street in the Design District). For updates and pictures of food you should be eating, follow them on Twitter @gunghosf and check out Gung Ho’s menu here. Oh yeah, and check out my story: