Umami on the Prowl: Fooda Deli

Lunch Adventure (v. 6.25) was to the Remington College Building at the corner of Hotel and Bishop.  There's an upper walkway and a lower courtyard for storefronts that, over time, have housed more and more restaurants, so that it's now basically a two story food court with maybe a dozen restaurants, including our friends at Aloha Island Grill.  One of the newer ones is Fooda Deli.  It's been open for six months, but it's very difficult to see because it's on the lower level (makai side) without a good sight line from the street.  Which is too bad, because the menu is interesting, and the prices reasonable.

There are plenty of set plates, but making your own mix is probably the way to go.  Two choices from the list for $6 or three choices for $7.49, plus white or brown rice and soup.  So Umami went for three choices ('natch!):  Spicy Ahi Poke, Spicy Eggplant, and Smoke Chicken Leg.

So here's what you get for $7.49.  The soup changes daily, on Friday it's called vegetable soup, but it looks like and has the consistency of Chinese soup,and tastes like Korean seaweed soup.  Not bad, but not that exciting either.  The smoked chicken leg, however, was surprisingly moist, which leads me to believe that it's not smoked so much as smoke-flavored.  Regardless, it was a generous quarter, skin on (yes!) piece of chicken.  Very tasty.  The spicy ahi poke was pretty decent, but was more sweet than spicy, with perhaps a bit too much mayonaise.  Consensus was that the shoyu poke might have been better choice . . . we'll try that next time.  Finally, the spicy eggplant was tender and actually a little spicy.  All in all, a good lunch for the price.  Umami will be back!


Fooda Deli
Remington College Building (lower level, makai)
1111 Bishop Street
Honolulu, Hawaii  96813

Ketching Up: Odds and Ends from the Past Couple of Weeks

No real "story" to these, just some recent food photos.

This is Hukilau's Poke Salad:  fresh ahi poke, butter lettuce, avocado, Maui onions, vine-ripened tomatoes, cucumber, lotus root chips, with ponzu vinaigrette.  ($13)  It's a nice, big lunch salad.  Poke was solid and went well with the butter lettuce.  Lotus root chips were interesting visually and gave a nice crunch to the salad.

Went into a Taco del Mar (Ala Moana) for the first time the other day.  It sounded like a cheap way to get a burrito plate ($7).  So this is the braised chicken burrito, wet,with black beans, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.  The food is serviceable and there's a lot of it, but the whole fast food ambience is, well, kind of depressing. 

Finally, here's an interesting little sign for a "Loco Moco Don" in the window of Donburiya DonDon (Ala Moana Food Court).  It's funny to me because a loco moco is a hamburger patty with gravy over rice, with an egg on top.  "Don" (short for "donburi") is Japanese for a dish served over rice.  So a loco moco don should be . . . a hamburger patty with gravy over rice over more rice, all with an egg on top!  I'm totally going to have to try that!  Maybe after my next doctor appointment!


 

Hukilau
(downstairs from Executive Center, next to Long's Hotel Street.
1088 Bishop Street, LL13
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808) 523-3460    Fax: (808) 523-3462

Taco Del Mar
Ala Moana Center, street level, makai
1450 Ala Moana Blvd.
Honolulu, HI 96814
(808)942-1440

Donburiya DonDon
Ala Moana Center, Makai Food Court

1450 Ala Moana Blvd.
Honolulu, HI 96814
(808) 955-9517

Random Item: The Welcome Potluck Buffet Menu for theNewbies to the Office

BUFFET MENU

 

BON APPÉTIT

 

Hors ďoeuvre

Assiette de legumes à l´aube

Salad

 Salade de poulet chinois par Nicole

Asie AmySalade de riz brun

Salade de pâtes de Carol chef

Salade de pâtes au poulet faite de Dana

Saisonniers salade verte avec vinaigrette par Lynn

Salade de tofu aux épinardes par Ronelll

Brocoli salade créé par Paul

Salade de mystère Gordon

Entrée

Carne de cerdo ahumada de Dan

Adobo de poulet par Jocelyn

Thai curry vert avec du riz gluant

Ragoût de crème ala Jeff

Poulet cuit au four Michelle

Pizza farcia faite par Gary

Plat special de Duane

Brad plat surprise de la viande

 Plat mystère de Jessé

Lasagne aux legumes par Cheryl

Rosemary’s spéciale végétariens

Plat inconnu Jennifer

Brenda plat fameuse surprise

Plat unique de Diane

Sides

Cône de riz  à sushi de Sharon

Nouilles chow fun par Eden

Saimin frites ala Lorene

Edamame ala Winston

Sharon riz

Dessert

Gateau au Fromage par Geoffrey

Cupcake velours rouge ala Lana

Cupcakes cèlébre de Krishna

Dessert délicieu Tricia

Beverages

Jus de fruits offerts par Liz et Don

l´eau froide

Articles en papeier gracieuseté de Diane

Father's Day Dinner - Ocean House at the Outrigger Reef

Father's Day Dinner was at the Ocean House Restaurant at the Outrigger Reef.  It's a great location, right on the beach, such that if you had a patio table, you could probably get a view of the sunset, but for everyone standing in front of you, taking a picture.  We were inside, though, on the ewa end of the dining room, which has a slightly raised seating area.  There's no air conditioning and not much of a breeze, and with dinner at 5:30 it was a bit warm.  So unless you're in full tourist mode and going for mai tais on the patio, I think after sunset is a better bet.  Food ranged from "okay" to "pretty good."  I will, however, give props to the manager, David, (a friend of Ms. D's), and his servers, who were suitably attentive:  there when they needed to be, but no more.  So on to some food!

For appetizers we tried the "Escargot in Puff Pastry - sauteed in garlic butter, mushrooms, and melted brie cheese."  ($10)  I like that the escargot were tender and not overdone.  The addition of the brie to the garlic butter made for an extremely rich sauce.  I ended up eating most of this, which I think filled me up a bit too much, too early.

And let's quibble a little, it's not really "in" puff pastry, so much as "with" puff pastry, the little roll-shaped piece on top, the flat piece underneath all the sauce (which I totally ate!).

My "Maui Onion and Tomato Salad - Mesclun Greens, Gorgonzola Cheese, balsamic vinaigrette." ($7)  I really liked this as a second course, since the various acids cut the fat from the escargot.  The onions were sweet, and I like the asymmetric plating, with the tomatoes sliced and fanned on one side, drizzled with the vinaigrette. Actually, the plating was very nice throughout.

Like this dish.  My sister, Carolyn, ordered the "Wedge Salad," but with everything on the side.  But if you look at this plate, it's obvious that the chef took some time arrange all the elements on the plate.  He or she was lucky that it was a wedge salad, because then the lettuce is one big design element.  They should sell it like this, as, literally, a "Deconstructed Wedge Salad."

Whole plate's totally cool.

My dad's "Bouillabaisse" - supposedly containing "lobster, clams, mussels, fish, shrimp, and scallops simmered in saffron broth served with garlic toast" ($28).  The soup looked pretty hearty, though I'm not sure about the lobster and shrimp.

My "Seafood Lau Lau - Mahi Mahi, shrimp, scallops, luau leaf and Molokai sweet potato, sauteed with garlic, soy, sake, wrapped in ti leaf served with jasmine rice" ($24).  At this point, I regret eating so much of the escargot and bread early in the meal, because I think I would have thoroughly enjoyed this.  I admit it's odd to not have any red meat in the lau lau, but it's still rich enough.  There is a good amount of starch, with the potato (really good!) and the rice, which soaks up all the juice.  Nicely presented in a ti leaf.  I'll have to pace myself a little better next time, and try it again.

Lau Lau opened up to show the goodies.  Might have more of goodies than the Bouillabaisse, haha!  And I love luau leaf!  Good fun!

Beachfront in the Outrigger Reef Hotel
2161 Kalia Road (at the end of Beachwalk)
Honolulu, HI
Breakfast - Monday thru Sunday -7am to 11am
Dinner Nightly 5pm to 10pm
(808) 923-2277

Umami Fights the iPad Addiction!

Umami is back after a dalliance with new technology (okay, it's an iPad, and Umami's excuse was that it could be used for blogging.  seriously, that was the excuse!)!  There's plenty to catch up on, but today's post (below) took sooo looong to put together, that we'll have to catch up on reunion, Father's Day dinner at Ocean House,and miscellaneous foods and food observations later, hopefully tomorrow!  Until then, chow!

Umami on the Prowl - Friends of the Library Book Sale

Umami loves the Friends of the Library Book Sale!  So many books, so cheap, such a good cause!  Umami reads maybe 1% of them, but that's not really the point, is it?  Who buys books to read?  Heck, who buys books at all, much less read them?  Anyway, here's what we found, with prices ($):

Hawaii Public Television had a cooking show called "The International Kitchen."  I don't remember the years it aired, but it did produce two cookbooks, in 1986 and (I'm guessing) 1989.  The host was Nino J. Martin, whose picture adorns both covers.  They really are collections of international recipes, some from fairly famous places, like:  "Sri Lankan Curry Repast" from The Willows executive chef, Kusuma Cooray.  Some are created by Martin.  ($3 apiece, which I think is pricey for such slender volumes.  But you pay a price for nostalgia value).

Or, there's this pic, of an entertainer named Frank DeLima, preparing, yes, it's true, malasadas.  I like that his recipe calls for "1 gallon oil (for deep-frying)," because, you never know, someone might put it in the batter!

Let's see . . . other cookbooks I found:

Kathy Hoshijo's "Kathy Cooks" (fka "The Art of Dieting Without Dieting") .   I vaguely remember Hoshijo's controversial run for Congress as the candidate for "Independents for Godly Government" party.  At about the same time, I learned she had this cooking show on PBS and I thought that it was odd combination to have a vegan television chef running for Congress.  In the end, she's a vegetarian chef and the book looks to be a good primer on the topic.   ($2)

Jeremiah Tower's "New American Classics" (1986) - this is well after his stint at Chez Panisse and early in the years of his restaurant, Stars (which I did not go to when I had the chance, stupid, stupid, stupid!).  It's interesting because the pictures of the food for some reason don't look that good.  Perhaps food photography was not yet as evolved as it is today. ($3)
 

"Brennan's New Orleans Cookbook" (1961) - which is, of course, for the legendary New Orleans restaurant and family.  Heck, it was famous even before Emeril and Prudhomme . . . !  Some of the recipes:  Crayfish Bisque, Duck Jambalaya, Veal Grillades and Grits.  The names are simpler than today's hyper-verbal-dish-name-extravaganzas.  Take, for example Emeril's "Pork Roulade with Andouille Corn-Bread Stuffing, Sage Jus, and Mango Chutney."  Don't get me wrong, I'd eat that in a heartbeat.  And not to pick on Emeril (I just happen to have his "New New Orleans Cooking" nearby).  But maybe there's something to be said about for a cookbook and a restaurant that can name in dish in less than four words.  ($3)

"The Book of Latin American Cooking" (1969) - I picked this mostly because I don't have a Latin American cookbook and this seemed very readable, and the recipes don't seem overly involved.  The author, Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz, was unknown to me, but a quick google search (just now) revealed she was a famous British food writer!  See:  Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz Obituary.  "The Book of Latin American Cooking" was her second book.  ($1.  Steal!)

There were, for some reason, a lot of Chinese cookbooks available, which is to say, cookbooks about Chinese food, not cookbooks written in Chinese, though there might have been a few of those too.  I picked up two.  The first is "Florence Lin's Chinese Regional Cookbook" (1975).  Here's her Lin's bio, on the Asian Culinary Arts Institute site.  And, I, what can I say, I love the cover!  ($2)

The other one I picked up was Barbara Tropp's "The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking" (1982).  I thought I would do a comparison of Tropp's book with Lin's book, but I have to admit that's absurdly unlikely.  But, regardless (or is it, "irregardless?"), I thought this would be worth getting, as both Tropp's name and restaurant, China Moon, sounded very familiar to me.  According to Wikipedia, James Beard described the book as "...a unique achievement. [Tropp's] intelligent and thorough explanations are detailed and truly great. The choice of recipes is exciting. This is a magnum opus for any cooking addict."  Whew, that's a recommendation!  ($5)

Looking through it, I noticed something interesting, it looks like Tropp signed the front endpaper and wrote "China Moon" and "San Francisco" with her (or the restaurant's?) chop!  Supercool!  ($Priceless!)

Sale runs the rest of the week.  Umami will be back . . . !

[June 21, 2010 Update:  Okay, that didn't work out as planned.  Will need to think of another strategy for including photos.]

Umami's testing a new toy . . . Can he type from a touchscreen when he can barely type on a regular keyboard? How will using static urls instead of pic files work?? If this all works out, there should be a pic of Hukilau's ahi poke salad somewhere in this post. Keep your fingers crossed!

Punahou Alumni Luau - 2010

This is how it appears on the Calendar of Events:

The Luau
Punahou School, Rice (Middle) Field
5-9 p.m.

etc., etc.

The Middle Field location is new to me, since I'm more used to it being held on Lower Field.  But Middle turned out to be nice, since we're further away from the traffic on Wilder.  Small tent to the left in photo is band setup, beverage tent is next to that, small blue booths to the right are far right.  Main dining tent is 180 degrees from this view.  Chapel is far background left.

In the main dining tent, the reunion classes have tables reserved.  Here are the class of 1980's tables, in the calm before the storm.  There's a pic of the tent at the height of the dinner service below.

Reunion classes have their pictures taken.  Here, another class has its picture taken on the Pauahi Hall steps.

And, here, the class of 1980 takes "the stage."   You get pics like this by holding your camera up above your head, aiming, praying, and shooting.

The luau plates include (from upper left):

1)  Squid luau.  It's not as soupy and had less coconut milk than others I've had.  Because it had a somewhat firmer consistency, made up for the lack of a lau lau.

2)  Chicken long rice.  I've got two bowls because Maryann (who was in front of me), is a vegetarian and generously passed it along to me (thanks, Maryann!).  (No word on what she did with the kalua pig . . . )  This version had lots of chicken, very, very thin (too thin?) noodles, and not a lot of ginger.  Perhaps more like a chicken soup, than chicken long rice.  No problem eating both bowls, regardless.

3)  Poi. It turns out that visitors to the islands are not necessarily enamored of local cuisine, poi in particular.  So, if you're scrounging more food at a luau, sit near some visitors.  And/or some vegetarians).  You might end up more than you bargained for.  I ended up with three containers of poi, three of poke, and three lomi salmon.  (*urp*)  And, no, I didn't plan on that!

4)  Poke.  This version more of the rock salt, green onion, no shoyu variety.  I prefer the shoyu, but no problem at all with this style.

5)  Lomi Salmon.  Really nice, with lots of salmon.  Really, really, good dumped into the poi (which is why I had three of each).

6)  Kalua pig.  You really have to eat it with a starch of some sort, so I ate it with poi, or else the sweet potato.  It didn't have a lot of fat, which is good in a health sense, but I always liked having some of the grease, for the flavor and the "mouth feel" of the dish.

 At the end of the night, the band played on . . . and, I should mention that they played a cover of "Lucky Man" (Emerson, Lake, and Palmer).  Seriously, who covers that???  It was awesome.  And an awesome night in general.

Next:  Reunion Family Picnic Day at Mokuleia.  It's gonna be cool.  Peace.

Eggplant Parmigiana

My Aunty Bea dropped off some eggplants from their garden the other day and I thought I'd try to make an eggplant parmigiana.  This version is very loosely based on Marcella's Hazan's recipe in "Essentials of Classicd Italian Cooking."   First, peeled and sliced an eggplant and purged the slices with salt for about half an hour.  Then dredged the slices with flour (actually a frying mix Ms. D gave me) and fried in about a half inch of vegetable oil until browned.  Put it in a small ramekin I had lying around.

Covered slice with some bottled spaghetti sauce, some dried basil, and some Italian cheese blend.  Okay, it really should be canned Italian plum tomatoes coarsely chopped and reduced by half, leaf basil, and thinly sliced mozzarella, but this was a dry run to get the idea without obsessing on the details.  Stacked on another slice, and repeated with the sauce, basil and cheese.  Put in pre-heated 400 degree oven until cheese melted and browned.

It actually worked!  The eggplant got a little lost in the sauce and cheese, so next time I'll make the eggplant slices a little thicker and go with the real ingredients.  The layering is kind of interesting, sort of lasagna like, minus the noodles.  I've only seen the single slice version, with the eggplant presented like some sort of cutlet with sauce and cheese.  With nice wine, a green salad, and a crusty bread, it'd be a nice meal.

Frozen Semi-Baked Cake Dough Lollipop

Ms. D's daughter's aunt's friend made these Frozen Semi-Baked Cake Dough Lollipops for a baby shower.  They're pretty neat, and very, very, sweet, mostly because you get a proportionately large amount of frosting for a dollop of cake dough.

Here's a cutaway of the pop.  You can see that the dough is not really baked at all.  This pop is actually room temperature, though, so maybe it's got a firmer consistency when it's frozen.  Fun, even if it did blow my sugar levels sky high!

A Perfectly Rational Adjustment

British psychiatrist, R.D. Laing said:  "Insanity - a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world."  So snarky, yeah?  Umami says:  "Beer - a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world."  That's a much healthier world view.  So it's a healthy thing for Umami to be cruising the beer aisle, after a grind of a day, in search of a cold one.  And, boy, did we find something interesting.  Tucked up on the highest shelf, towards the end of the cooler, next to the St. Pauli Girl N.A. (which we also picked up), was this little gem of an item.  Read it with Umami . . . "Budweiser and Clamato."  Again, slowly and with feeling . . . "Bud-wei-ser and Cla-ma-to."  Or is it "Clam-a-to?"
You have to wonder, though, "What were they thinking?"  Even if this tastes good, how exactly do you market this?  To Budweiser fans?  To Clamato drinkers (all eleven of them)?  To attention starved food bloggers??  Okay, maybe they have something there!  Heck, I'd want one of these for my collection of "What-the-Hell?" food, right next to the Spam Macadamia Nuts!

So anyway Umami breaks out a 24 oz beer glass that he keeps around just for this purpose and opens up the can.  He's immediately intrigued by grapefruit juice-like appearance of the drink and tomato-y fragrance of the beverage.  In fact, it basically smells like a Bloody Mary.  And, indeed, it basically tastes like a Bloody Mary . . . like slightly salty tomato juice with very little "beer" flavor.  It doesn't have the thickness or richness of real Bloody Mary and it's not as spicy as, say, Buzz's Bloody.  But it's fairly tasty . . . call it a Bloody Mary light and also call it surprisingly drinkable!  It's still hard to see what the market for this is, so maybe I should just grab a couple of cans as curios, or for use as gag Secret Santa gifts. 


A sidebar, though, on the Laing quote.  It appears that Laing might not have actually said that.  Oh, if you Google it, plenty of quote cites will pop and say that he did, but if you push and dig, it turns out that none can give can cite where it appears.  (Or, at least none that Umami saw.  You want to check 96,000+ sites, you go right ahead!)

So what are we to say about a world that attributes words to someone who maybe never said them and proliferates the misunderstanding like a meme through cyberspace?  What are we to make of a world in which someone thinks Budweiser and Clamato is a salable combination?  Maybe that drinking the latter helps with the former and that doing so is a rational adjustment to an insane world!