Category Archives: Enticing Events

New Sustainable Sushi Restaurant, Food Bloggers Bake Sale, Guy Fieri & More

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The interior of the new Ki in San Francisco. (Photo courtesy of the restaurant)

San Francisco Welcomes a Second Sustainable Sushi Restaurant

At the new Ki in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood, you can enjoy your sushi without any guilt.

That’s because the new izakaya-style restaurant is dedicated to serving food that’s local, seasonal and sustainable. Owner Paul Hemming, a DJ, art gallery owner and record store owner, has teamed with Casson Trenor, author of “Sustainable Sushi: A Guide to Saving the Oceans One Bite at A Time” (North Atlantic Books). Trenor also helped launch Tataki Sushi & Sake Bar in San Francisco, the Bay Area’s first sustainable sushi restaurant.

Executive Chef Brian Beach, formerly executive chef of Infusion Lounge in San Francisco, sources many of his ingredients from within 150 miles of the restaurant. At Ki, you won’t find bluefin tuna, hamachi or eel — all of which are over-fished. Instead, the spotlight is on sardines, local albacore tuna, artic char, and other sustainable seafood. Dishes ($6 to $17) include kasuzuke, a seasonal fish cured in sake lees and cooked on a cedar plank; and karaage, sous-vide fried chicken served with pickled chile-usukuchi sauce.

Sushi Chef Isamu Kanai, formerly executive chef of Deep Sushi in San Francisco, turns out specialties such as scallop carpaccio served on a chilled Himalayan salt plate with grilled cherry tomatoes, red shiso pesto and baby mizuna; and “Fish ‘n’ Chips,” a specialty roll with tempura striped bass and pickled slaw topped with crushed potato chips.

Enjoy an extensive selection of sakes, served by the 4-ounce or 8-ounce pour or by the bottle.

San Francisco Food Bloggers Bake Sale

Foodies all over the nation will be baking up a storm for the second annual National Food Bloggers Bake Sale on May 14 to benefit Share Our Strength, a national organization working to eradicate child hunger.

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Cool New Water Bottle and Food Gal Giveaway

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Win a new Groove water bottle with built-in filtration system. (Image courtesy of Camelbak)Camelbak, maker of those nifty water packs for biking and hiking, wants you to get into the Groove.

A new portable filtration water bottle to be exact.

The Camelbak Groove is a reusable water bottle that comes with its own carbon filter built into the drinking straw. Fill the bottle with tap water, and as you sip, the water is filtered before it hits your mouth.The straw has a bite valve — the same one apparently used by NASA astronauts in space — that locks into place when not in use, so you don’t have to worry about spills or leaks.

It’s great to stash in your car or to keep at your desk. Or tote one in your purse or briefcase. No more spending money on disposable water bottles or worrying about recycling them.

The 20-ounce bottle is made of BPA-free plastic and comes in four colors. It sells for $25. Replacement carbon filters (each of which should last for up to 60 gallons) cost $10 for a two-pack.

The Grooves are available online at the Camelbak Web site or at stores such as Target.

Contest: I’m happy to be able to give away one Camelback Groove to each of five lucky Food Gal readers. Entries, limited to those in the continental United States, will be accepted through midnight PST May 14. Winners will be announced May 16.

How to win?

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Convenient CSA Pickup at a Caltrain Station

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Would you believe you can pick up this bounty at a train station?

Leave it to Luke’s Local — the gourmet convenience store at a Caltrain station — to make getting farm-fresh produce on your commute even easier now.

The tiny store, which opened last year in a long-vacant ticket office at the Hillsdale station in San Mateo, just started offering a Community Supported Agriculture “Meal Box” that folks can pick up once a week at Luke’s Local. Imagine getting off the train after a long day at work, then picking up a box that contains not only fresh fruits and veggies, but a couple of ready-to-heat meals that you can load in your car to take home.

A sample "Meal Box'' from Luke's Local.

Luke Chappell, owner of the store, is offering this new service in a joint effort with Farmshares, a Community Supported Agriculture program of local farms in the Capay Valley. When you subscribe to the service, you pick up your box every Wednesday night at the train station.

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Peet’s 45th Anniversary and a Food Gal Giveaway

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Peet's special 45th Anniversary Blend Tea. (Image courtesy of Peet's)

Would you believe that it was 45 years ago that Alfred Peet began roasting coffee in Berkeley, which forever cemented our love affair for a dark, strong brew made with fresh-roasted beans?

Now, each year, Peet’s commemorates the anniversary of the founding of the company by releasing an anniversary blend each of coffee and tea. No two years are alike, either, as each celebratory blend is made with that season’s new crop of the best and most interesting coffees to ensure especially bold and bright flavors.

And the companion 45th Anniversary Blend Coffee. (Image courtesy of Peet's)This year’s Anniversary Blend Coffee features Costa Rican, Burundi and Antiqua Guatemala beans. The Burundi lend a black cherry-like note to this lively coffee with subtle sweetness.

The Anniversary Breakfast Blend Tea features four micro-lots from China: Keemun Mao Feng, Yunnan Golden Snow, Golden Congou and Imperial Red. The tea blend, with its rich and malty flavor, is substantial enough to stand up to milk and sugar, if you like to sip it the British way.

The Anniversary tea and coffee are available for a limited time only — until about May 24 or until supplies last. The coffee is $15.99 per pound at Peet’s locations; and $8.99 to $10.99 for a 12-ounce bag in stores such as Safeway and Andronico’s.

The tea, $14.95 for a four-ounce tin, is available at Peet’s locations and on the Peet’s Web site.

Contest: Now, five Food Gal readers will get a chance to try both the Peet’s Anniversary Blend coffee and tea. Each will receive a one-pound bag of coffee plus a tin of the tea.

Entries, limited to those in the continental United States, will be accepted through midnight PST May 7. Winners will be announced May 9.

How to win?

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Gourmet Jerky, Cookbook Recipes Finder & Curtis Stone

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Krave's Basil Citrus Turkey jerky.

Craving Krave Jerky

When you think of jerky, no doubt it’s of those jaw-breaking, tough as shoe-leather strips sold at convenience stores and gas stations that you reach for only in desperation.

Now comes Krave Jerky, which is jerky you’ll actually want to eat.

The company was launched a year ago by Jens Hoj, former general manager of El Dorado Kitchen in Sonoma, and Jonathan Sebastiani, a winemaker whose family started Viansa Winery in Sonoma.

What sets these gourmet jerky products apart is that they’re actually tender, soft, moist and even sticky with marinade. They’re so meaty tasting that you almost feel like you might need a knife and fork to eat them. But rest assured, fingers work just fine.

The jerky comes in eight varieties, including Lemon Garlic Turkey, Sweet Chipotle Beef, and Grilled Sweet Teriyaki Pork. The Teriyaki Pork is the most tender of the bunch, with a candied-salty flavor of  a perfect Hawaiian plate lunch.

The Basil Citrus Turkey is the most toothsome of the bunch with a mild tang. Surprisingly, it also boasts the most calories at 100 per 1 ounce serving, compared to the 70-80 calories of the others. It also has the most sodium at 610 mg per serving, compared to the 140-400 mg of the others. But the turkey has 0 grams of fat, compared to 1.5-2.5 for the other flavors.

Jerky that actually won't hurt your jaw.

A 3.5-ounce package is $7.

But starting today, for a limited time only, Daily Gourmet is offering a deal on Krave Jerky. The new San Francisco-based company offers gourmet food products in special discounts for limited time offers to members, who are notified via email. Among the products that have been offered or will be are jams and vinegars from The Girl and the Fig in Sonoma, and vegan cinnamon rolls by Berkeley’s Cinnaholic.

A five-pack of Krave Jerky will be $28 (includes shipping) on Daily Gourmet.

The company was started by David Rangel, formerly with Microsoft’s Corporate Strategy Group and an executive at Groupon; and Chad Jackson, a software and Internet entrepreneur.

CookBookKarma for Cookbook Aficionados

If you love to cook from cookbooks, take photos of your dishes and post the results on your blog, you’ll be glad to discover the new site, CookBookKarma.

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