Powderface Beignets at Fruitvale BART

Coincidentally, I had to go to the Fruitvale BART station the day after the verdict for the Oscar Grant shooting. It was actually rather empty and quiet on the platform where he was shot on New Year's Eve 2009. More...Downstairs, some of the stores still had their windows boarded up in anticipation...

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Hot Day, Cool Market: Grand Lake Farmers' Market

Temperatures in the 80s are considered fairly hot in Oakland. In the shadow of the 580 freeway, cooled by a breeze coming off Lake Merritt, I checked out the Grand Lake Farmers' Market for the first time.More...Sad that I missed the Big Apple Barbecue Festival while I was back in California, I took...

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Skeen's 5 & Diamond

Admittedly, I haven't done nearly as much legwork on the NYC dining scene as I did when I was in LA. Somehow not having any income puts a damper on dining experiences. Go figure. Additionally, I live so far uptown that whenever I tell people I'm in Morningside Heights, they stare at me blankly and reply,...

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What Is "Ethnic" Food?

Steak vs. Fried Goat Udders - Which one seems more ethnic?What is ethnic food? Is it anything foreign? America prides itself on its cultural diversity. This melting pot of…well, melting pots, is home to almost every type of cuisine on the planet. Yet how is it that we have a limited ideal of “American”...

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Miracle Fruit Flavor Tripping Party

Last week I helped throw a flavor tripping party for Gastronomy Society. We purchased Miracle Fruit Tablets online since we were expecting a big group and the fresh fruit would have been cumbersome and expensive. With a list of tasting recommendations, I went shopping for sours, bitter, and spicy foods. This was my first experience with miracle fruit and I wanted to get a variety of flavors.More...I...

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Fatty Crab on the Upper West Side

The dim red bulb lit up walls of retro pornography while a speaker played out the familiar ping and pong of a distant table tennis match. This was the oddest bathroom I've been in. I was locked in the unisex bathroom trying to wash my hands of the thick red sambal for the third time. But the hearty...

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Tasting with La Maison du Chocolat

With boutique locations in Paris, New York, Cannes, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong, La Maison du Chocolat don't mess around. Master chocolatier Robert Linxe's philosophy is that everyone should have one piece of exquisite chocolate a day. I'm not sure if he meant that everyone should have at least one...

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