fionaeats.

sweet obachan who served us sesame tofu, bonito tataki and best cold sliced duck breast we've had in our lives. life-hack: with some broken japanese, obachan will like you enough to treat you to an off-the-menu eggplant dish, but not quite enough for it be actually be free. (at 山とみ)

errday is breakfast of champions here at shinseikai. morning beer with kushikatsu, battered fried skewers galore. dad wasn't even this happy at my graduation. the dish lady silent judgeth. (at 八重勝)

I #foodporn, therefore I am. here is a serving of a traditional taiwanese breakfast: dang-bing (soft pancake wrapped eggs) and salty soy milk with pickled radish and segments of puffy fried dough (chinese croutons?). it makes me happy like woah. (at 天廚傳統早餐)

that's Sea Biscuit, and it was unbelievably delicious.

a breakfast of oden (broth stewed daikon, tofu and fishcakes) and sauce-grilled beef tendon skewers. we stood with older japanese men along a narrow bar, washing down our feast with 10am sake in a tin cup. #ballerstatus (at 大関 日本盛)

joy is taiwanese-style meatballs in clear broth, noodles with sprouts. (at 雙連阿泉意麵)

clock wise: clam and winter melon soup, fish-fragrant omelette, grated garlic on pork slices. not seen in the shot: the happiest person on earth right now (me). (at 孟記復興餐廳)

fire-grilled iberico pork shoulder with honey-chili glaze. (at Coqueta)

I do love plates and porcelain that are custom made for the dishes. Completes a picture. 

Fried pork year with bits of sausage at Magnolia, in the Haight. A delightful pub snack with a cold lager. 

Raw uni atop thinly, uniformly sliced ika (squid), with one shiso leaf. 

Golden fried treat: sweetbreads, artichoke hearts, crispy sage and capers.  A signature dish at Locanda in the Mission. 

How tofu is sold at traditional markets in Taiwan. Wooden shelves protect tofu from being squashed, while absorbing some extra liquid. Perfect with some soy sauce, rice vinegar, and dry bonito. 

Home-made blood orange cosmo, substituted simple syrup with sprite. Green rubber matter in left hand corer is ice mold of Alien eggs. 

Mama is a local instant noodle in Thailand, comes in many flavors along the seafood-broth vein. My favorite is the stable: tom yum. Terrific for a rainy day, or with cold beer under a pool-side teepee. Yes, I am very spoiled. 

Part of the omakase at Hibiki in Taichung, Taiwan. A finale piece, because the stronger, and more buttery taste of mackerel. One of the best I've had.