Fancy Glass FRIDAYs returns with a tribute to the MAI TAI

I Like a good mai tai, not a fakey, sweet, or too strong one. Not one made with cheap rum- but a real mai tai. So today in Honor of the Mai Tai- a history lesson. from http://www.kevdo.com/maitai/maitaihistory.html

The classic Mai Tai is an unforgettable cocktail, an icy Jamaican rum and fresh lime juice drink with a subtle hint of oranges and almonds and a sprig of fresh mint for garnish.

Now, that's a Mai Tai.

The Mai Tai may be Polynesian in name, but it's American in origin, created not on a tropical lagoon but on the mudflats of San Franciso's East Bay in 1944, by a legendary California restaurateur, the late Vic Bergeron of Trader Vic's fame.

"There's been a lot of conversation over the beginning of the Mai Tai. And I want to get the record straight," Bergeron said before he died. "I originated the Mai Tai. Many others have claimed credit. All this aggravates my ulcer completely. Anyone who says I didn't create this drink is a dirty stinker."

Don the Beachcomber claimed he created the drink but circumstantial evidence favors the Trader, who, in a 1947 book, "The Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide (Revised)," told how he originated the Mai Tai in his Oakland restaurant:

"In 1944 after success with several exotic rum drinks, I felt a new drink was needed. I thought about all the really successful drinks- martinis, manhattans, daiquiris, all basically simple drinks. "I took down a bottle of 17-year old rum. It was J. Wray & Nephew from Jamaica-surprisingly golden in color, medium bodied, but with the rich pungent flavor particular to the Jamaican blends.

"The flavor of this great rum wasn't meant to be overpowered with heavy addition of fruit juices and flavorings.

"I took a fresh lime, added some orange curacao from Holland, a dash of rock candy syrup, and a dollop of French orgeat for its subtle almond flavor.

"I added a generous amount of shaved ice and shook it vigorously by hand to produce the marriage I was after. Half the lime shell went into each drink for color and I stuck in a branch of fresh mint.

"I gave the first two to Eastham and Carrie Guild, friends from Tahiti who were there that night. Carrie took one sip and said, 'Mai tai roa ae.'

"In Tahitian this means,'out of this world, the best.' Well, that was that. I named the drink 'Mai Tai.'"

The Mai Tai became popular at Trader Vic's restaurants in Oakland, San Francisco and Seattle. In 1953, Bergeron introduced the Mai Tai to Hawaii at the Royal Hawaiian and Moana Hotels whose well-heeled guests arrived by Matson Line steamships.

It was the right drink at the right place at the right time.

The Original Formula - 1944

• 2 ounces of 17-year old J. Wray & Nephew Rum over shaved ice.
• Add juice from one fresh lime.
• 1/2 ounce Holland DeKuyper Orange Curacao.
• 1/4 ounce Trader Vic's Rock Candy Syrup.
• 1/2 ounce French Garier Orgeat Syrup
• Shake vigorously.
• Add a sprig of fresh mint

"Old Way" Mai Tai Formula - 1997

• 1 ounce Fine Jamaican Rum (15 or 8 year old)
• 1 ounce Martinique Rum (St. James)
• 1/2 ounce Orange Curacao
• 1/2 ounce Orgeat Syrup
• Juice from one fresh lime (about 3/4 ounce)
• Mix and serve as in the Original Formula

so full and happy!

We had a gourmet beer pairing dinner at FUJIMAMAS tonight. it was YUM! I have a full write up over at the restaurant blog FujimamasFoodies.com

For now, here on the fancy glass I would like to wax poetic on the Fujizakura Weizen beer paired with our signature Thai Style Caesar Salad. What a delicious pairing and the the true spirit of marrying food and beverage the magic of this combo was that- though both are delicious on their own- together they were fantastic.

We had a nice crowd though it was smaller than I hoped for, we had just 12 folks. an intimate group. but I am hoping to start here and grow this in the future. It was a very nice group of folks and all of them but 1 had never been to our restaurant before, so this was an excellent intro for them.

The chef- Adi and our Staff especially Hideki san did a great job taking care of all the details. All in all a very successful evening and a nice start to building up our beer following the same way we have cultivated the wine folks.

hidden kitchens over at the Group news blog

Hubris Sonic, one of the founding members of "The Group News Blog" (a political blog started in honor of Steve Gilliard who we in the progressive community lost this year...) is not only a vet, and a political writer, he is also a FOODIE.

So today, after being inspired by a famous food blogger, the amazing writer of Chocolate and Zuchini - and after reading a Hidden Kitchens piece Hubris remembered and wrote about a fantastic Fall Feast he made 11 years ago.

I suggest you visit both stories and enjoy!

http://www.groupnewsblog.net/2007/07/hidden-kitchens.html

and

http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2007/06/hidden_kitchen.php

experimenting

There is a newish site called Writer's Cafe, where writers can post up work for feedback. I am playing around with it and getting some of my pieces uploaded to there. Take a look by following the link.
*Lauren

[untitled]
A Story by lauren shannon

Kinsai for dinner

We've wanted to go to Kinsai for ages. It is a new grill and japanese restaurant in our neighborhood and last night finally we gave it a try. It was excellent! lots of love and care gave to simply prepared items. The Amuse Bouche was a carrot soup and homemade tofu. Delicious. We then had maguro sashimi, with hand ground wasabi- we saw him make it right in front of us.

Then we tried the figs and parma ham, grilled chicken (this was served with a fantastic yuzu pepper sauce) We had a sweet grilled snapper, and finally grilled beef. All of the grilled items were prepared right in front of us where there was a tiny charcoal grill and a real "grill master." who gave so much attention to each thing.

The details were what make this place. great glassware, beautiful plates, simple atmosphere and kind, warm staff. They helped us a lot especially since we couldn't really read the menu. There was also a decent wine list and tons of Japanese sakes.

This will be a regular spot for sure! (Photos on top from left clockwise- soup and tofu, maguro, fig, chicken. ) (photo below. Beef, Snapper, Interior and gorgeous tea cup filled with green tea)

Food Politics and Fun

I had good news this week. I have long wanted to start something within Democrats Abroad Japan, focusing on food politics. I sent out a test balloon email and got 3 responses of interest. So It looks like we might start a little policy committee.

our goals are going to be simple to start;

1. arrange a book discussion maybe 3-4 titles a year, and then discuss them both on and offline, we would organize it and open the group up to all DAJ, and even other country committee interested folks as well.

2. formulate some text and ideas for resolutions about food related issues to send on up the line through DAJ to DA to the DNC

3. Create and sustain a letter writing campaign, meet to write letters sometimes, and do many letters from home specifically on food politics. Letters to congress-critters, letters to the media, and information posts to members here and in DA worldwide.

For now I am trying to decide some good titles to discuss together. I think I may recommend;

1. Food Politics

2. The Best Thing I Ever Tasted

3. Coming Home to Eat

4. The Twinkie Deconstructed

Not nec. in that order.

Should be an interesting group and I think it will grow as we start to get things going. I am hoping members will join in for specific actions; even if they don't want to serve full on in the committee.

PS more good news about the Pixar Film RATATOUILLE here...

interesting adventures in food

Tonight, I had one of those odd adventures you sometimes have a chance to have- being Gaijin (a foreigner) in Japan. I have been doing some freelance writing for Tokyo Journal, and Being A Broad magazines- that plus being manager of Fujimamas and writing on two food blogs- landed me in an interesting spot this week.

A few days ago, my editor from Tokyo Journal called me up. It seemed CNN was doing some food and culture pieces in japan and they wanted a food writer, or food person to meet with their reporter from Hong Kong, for dinner. The topic to be discussed (and eaten) was the Japanese interest in Sashimi- (which most folks assume means raw fish) But this interview and tasting session was not about the raw fish type- it was about enjoying raw meat. Specifically Chicken and Deer Sashimi.

Coming from the west with all the talk of salmonella and other poultry related stomach illness scares- I was more than a bit nervous. I said yes, with hopes that I could garner some good PR for Fujimamas. And so I headed out to Shinbashi to a little old restaurant with a little old chef...

The CNN folks were very nice, one local Japanese reporter helping to set everything up, a camera man who was excellent, and the lead in the story, Eunice Yoon from Hong Kong. (photo at right) Eunice was funny and kind, she put me at ease right away. We talked a bit about why Japanese like raw fish and meat. We learned how the chef prepared the chicken, and he vouched for the saftey. We fortified our selves with a bit of sake (Japanese rice wine) and then we tried the food. We had a lovely normal looking place of raw fish. Then the chicken and deer.

I liked the deer a lot. It was like a nice beef carpaccio. not as thin. but same kind of texture and feeling. It was not gamey as I expected. It was served with a garlic, sesame and soy dipping sauce. And we tried the chicken. I had kind of pschyed myself out. I don't know what I was expecting- ?? Some kind of bloody freshly killed chicken... slimey and unattractive. What came out was a lovely plate of very thinly sliced chicken. Slightly white skin (it is first prepared by having boiling water poured on the outside). And pink inside. It was the same texture as salmon sashimi. And guess what... "It tasted like Chicken!" he he. Light, fresh and tasty. I did not eat a lot cause I couldn't shake my western thinker salmonella fears. But I did have 3 pieces. Eunice was not a fan of the deer sashimi, but she seemed to like the chicken, she ate most of the serving.
It was more fun than I thought. Next week they will send me a dvd and tell me when I will be on TV> It is just going to be a short minute 30 sec. spot. But it was interesting.

This picture is not mine, i didn't get to take any shots, but it is what the sashimi chicken looked like. It was actually quite elegant. I don't think I will rush out to try it again. But I did enjoy it just fine. Glad I gave it a try.

the Restaurant was called Genpachi. tiny, nice place in Shinbashi 3 Chome district of Tokyo.
thanks to Tokyo Journal and Cnn for the opportunity.

special-TEA tuesday 7/3/07

ice tea, the new frontier...

so Coffee is king in the usa. always has been, ever since we dumped all those teabags into the boston harbor. Sad fate for us tea drinkers who are american. asked to reuse our tea bags at diners, if we can get tea at all. Most of us only have good tea at home. I live in Japan now so things are better for me here... but everytime I visit home I reminded that coffee reigns supreme.

But... dunkin donuts (famous for years for their coffee) is branching out... at least in the iced variety...

Coffee king is branching into a different kind of brew as it spreads across the country

By The Boston Globe

Coffee king Dunkin’ Donuts is concocting a new kind of brew: iced tea. The Canton, Mass., chain has begun offering freshly brewed peach and raspberry iced tea at its New England stores, and plans for national rollout are set for early next year.

The push is part of Dunkin’s broader quest to quench consumer tastes as it expands across the country and faces stiffer competition in the coffee market ranging from Starbucks to McDonald’s.

Iced tea is the new battleground (read it all here.)

will this translate into better treatment for hot tea drinkers as well. Pinkies are raised in anticipation...

what I am reading now

This week I am starting to read another foodie-food-politics book. Twinkie, Deconstructed: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated Into What America Eats (Hardcover) by Steve Ettlinger.

Needless to say, this looks to be an interesting and frightening read. Yesterday i read a piece in a newsletter from HONEST TEA company that says that we eat about 89lbs of high fructose corn syrup a year (up from 35 lbs before.) It is crazy to me that folks are so willing to eat something in a shiny package that has an ingredients list as long as my arm of incomprehensible unpronounceable items that are making us fat and unhealthy. I will be updating more as I read this one, but if you want to check it out yourself you can pick it up here.

Looking forward to this one...

I admit it, I love disney movies, and especially pixar movies. I have loved all of them, toystory, bug's life, especially the incredibles...

So as you might imagine, being a pixar fan and a foodie-- i am looking forward to their newest offering; Ratatouille is a not to miss for sure! I have seen the previews, and love the concept. But today this story on a Philly news culture site I go to, really made me smile.

Do ratatouille right- Disney film cooks up interest in classic eggplant-tomato stew
By CHRIS SHERMAN

PERHAPS THIS IS the year we credit an animated rat with teaching us how to spell ratatouille.

Remy, a foodie rat who would be a chef, and ratatouille, the famous French dish, star in the Disney animated adventure arriving on screens tomorrow.

Once you see "Ratatouille" with our hero rat-chef in a grand Parisian kitchen filled with copper pots and tall toques, you might want to cook some at home. read the full story here...

and see the preview and read more on the Homepage!

10 years!

One of the wonderful things on this trip here to the Big Island is that my husband and I are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. It has been a very nice trip, sadly, we leave tomorrow.

Our anniversary was Yesterday, and we made a full day of it. Morning breakfast, went to see a movie, did a little shopping relaxed and talked and napped... and then we got ready to go out to dinner. We chose a combo, the Lava Lounge for sunset drinks and the Hulalalai Alan Wong Grill for dinner, both at the Four Seasons resort.

It was a lovely evening. The sunset at the Lava Lounge was perfect, and we enjoyed their snacks and drinks, the service there was flawless. I had a Pineapple Cosmopolitan and he had a glass of Au Bon Climat Chardonnay. They serve these lovely spicy and sweet snacks. We had a lovely hour there before our reservation. I thought the presentation for the cocktails was especially nice.

Then we walked over to Alan Wong's. The food for dinner was great, completely perfect. We tried the chef's pairing/tasting menu. Hubby had it with the wine pairings, I was the Desig.Driver- so I had a Pineapple-Orange-Guava Juice, called a POG. It was nice. We had told them on the phone when we made the reservation that we would be celebrating our anniversary so it was very nice that they made some special arrangements, our menu was printed specially and said Happy Anniversary on top and was signed by the chef of the night. And when the dessert course came, they had it on a special plate that had congratulations on the top in chocolate! yum.

The first course was an appetizer combo
"Soup and Sandwich" Chilled red and yellow tomato soup with a Foie Gras Kaula Pig Grilled Cheese Sandwich.
served with
a Seafood Cake of Lobster, Shrimp and Dungeness Crab with Caper Mayonnaise

(we felt that the sandwich was perfect, the soup a little less exciting, and though the Seafood Cake was delicious we would have been happy with just the first part did not need the cake as well)

Second course was
Pan Seared Scallop with Pork Hash Risotto and Chinese Soy.

(this was totally YUMMY- Our seat was in a private corner out on the terrace with quite dark lightning so I was very photo challenged... no go shots of any of the main dishes. The pork hash was salty and spicy, and was a perfect compliment to the perfectly prepared scallop)

Next was the Ginger Crusted Onaga, which we were told by 3 different staff members- is the "Signature Alan Wong Dish" at the restaurant. It was lovely.

Finally A Soy braised short rib, with a gingered scallion shrimp
This was a nice small portion (husband thought too small on the rib) the meat was tender and the shrimp fantastic. The sauce was a bit too spicy for the dish, especially with the wine pairing which was a wonderful Turley Zinfandel. (I had a taste of this too)

And finally we had our dessert trio, cheesecake, chocolate crunch, and a tapioca with passion fruit Sorbet in a ginger tuile (kind of a cookie cup)

The only downside of the evening was from the bar, we had late wines, and one glass came with lipstick prints all over the top--- ick. and the port with dessert must have been the absolute bottom of the bottle as it was all dregs and particles. But our servers were nice and attentive, the food temps were perfect, and the food came a great pace. (though they pushed the check a bit at the end- we were still eating and I had just gotten my coffee when she dropped the check- but it was tues night and most other guests were already gone)

all in all a wonderful meal. I would love to go back there and I would recommend it to anyone visiting the island.

plus... the company was wonderful, as it has been these ten years.

Special-TEA Tuesday 6/19 THE GLOBO POT

New tea technology; we started using a new teapot this week. I actually purchased it a few months ago and forgot that we had it in storage in Hawaii. Dug it out and used it this week. It is a unique design. the tea strainer sits inside the pot, a bit hard to clean and refill, but effective. you can see it pointing leftwards in this picture. It is called the GLOBO.

to brew the tea you tilt the pot back and the handle and back two feet act as support. when tilted this way the tea strainer sits in the hot water. When you have strained the tea to your desired strength you tilt the pot forward on it's regular 3 feet. and pour.

I bought this teapot from Adagio teas back in January. The brew is even, works well, the one downside is the same as with any glass tea pots, glass becomes cold faster than ceramic so your tea will cool down faster. But this is a 3 -4 cup pot which is a good size and we usually drink it fast enough the cool down factor is not an issue.

I am a bit of a traditionalist, so I suppose I really like the stainless tea pot we have back in Tokyo, but this is certainly attractive and functional, so It gets a good rating. (I would give it a 4 out of 5) BUT we need to get it a tea cozy, to take care of the heat issue.

the good life

backyard delicious living... another night on the porch in Hawaii. The thing that has struck me this two weeks is that it is much easier, contrary to popular attitude, to live simply and eat well here. Americans, it is true, buy too much high fructose corn syrup, gm laden, sugar and chemical preprocessed foods, but it is also so easy NOT to do that.

This dinner was a simple affair. A rotisserie chicken from cost-co, left over tomatoes, olives and cheese, left over penne pasta from a few nights ago, and whole wheat bread with a lovely and inexpensive bottle of red wine. Easy, cheap, and good. The costco chickens are (according to label) hormone and steroid free, as well as humanely raised. We made the sauce for the pasta ourselves, and we bought olives and fresh yellow tomatoes from the safeway. easy.

Food politics are a complicated subject and one I am passionate about, but I think the first and most important step that each person can take is to just be more deliberate about your food choices, more conscious of what you consume. Think before you eat, as it were. There is still room for the occasional oreo, and other unhealthy but fun choices- but the key is to be aware of the decisions, be mindful.

My fear in recent years is that most people who eat poorly do it because they are not paying attention, not because they want to. Labels got more complicated, bad food is cheaper, and people are too busy to cook. But even given the above, the meal in this photo was cheap, fast and much better for me than anything that could come out of a box, jar, or package.

and the kona sunset didn't hurt either...

two new books on the To Be Read pile

We picked up two new books on the topic of SUSHI this week. They both look excellent. I am excited to read them. Great background info.

The Zen of Fish: The Story of Sushi, from Samurai to Supermarket by Trevor Corson
and

The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy by Sasha Issenberg

Full reviews later (have to read them first!!!) But both books look excellent!

and then last night because of the power of suggestion... we went out for sushi at Fujimamas in Kona.

We had
RAINBOW ROLL
CATERPILLAR ROLL
and A SPICY TUNA ROLL.

all were delicious.

more party shots

Happy B-day Party, fujifarms style. We went up to Waimea today for Zoe's birthday party. She turned 6 last week. Fun day on the farm, new puppies, miniture horses, mac and cheese, fried chicken and a really relaxing afternoon. Plus sugar-high inducing birthday cake. I had fun playing with the kids, and the dogs, and generally chilling out for the afternoon.

Then chris and I drove through a cute little mountain town Halualoa, but all the little gallery and coffee shops were already closed. So we later headed down to Kona, walk along the water front and a very tasy pizza at the Kona Brewery restaurant. taking it easy tonight, tomorrow morning we are hoping for a little time snorkeling.

More from our day in Hilo yesterday... We drove around the island yesterday (ended up at the Keei cafe as I wrote last night) it was a nice day. Did some research, had lots of time to chat and think and just consider options since this is where we want to move to after tokyo. One big point of the day was visiting Ken's House of Pancakes. a true diner in Hilo. Fits all my rules for what makes a real diner. Older auntie and grandma type waitresses, hot, fast and good food. And most important Open 24hrs a day (and serves breakfast dishes all day) They even have open-faced hot turkey sandwiches (which I have to try next time) breakfast dishes are between 5-8$ and our food was lightnin' fast. I had tea (of course) and one waitress who talked to us as been at kens the whole 30 yrs they have been open. She was 75 and still waitressing, talking to tables, and staying fit and active.

for food, I had pancakes (dollar size) and my other half had 2 eggs any style with homefries and bacon. and pancakes very tasty as evidenced by the speed with which he consumed them.

I loved Ken's but it was bitter sweet as well. Mostly because one of the businesses we have been considering opening in Hilo would be a breakfast/bakery and deli joint. Going head to head against Ken's 6$ breakfast....???? not so sure anymore. But still considering. we have lots of other good ideas cooking on the stove too right now. we will see what the next year and 1/2 brings.

anyway, loved Ken's it is a real institution and good diners are a dying breed so I am thrilled that there is one on the Big Island. YUM -

Tonight we went out instead of cooking on the porch. We tried a nice place I heard about, down in Capt. Cook called the Keei Cafe. It was pretty tasty stuff. for a starter we sharead a shrimp, brown rice, and coconut cakes. (think crab cake and risotto) it was quite delicious.

then for my main I had a brazilian Seafood chowder, and chris had the local ahi with veggies and a passionfruit ginger sauce. and for dessert (bottom right) we had a banana pineapple breadpudding with a passionfruit & strawberry sauce. The restaurant was clean and nice. I didn't like the art much... and we had seats on a terrace looking out over the mountain and down to the ocean 20 mins away. Nice staff, very professional. Our server was BOB, and he was very good.

I hear they do breakfast on the weekends, so we might want to check that out too, and captain hook seems like a nice little place to explore.

oh... and another sunset! we get one of these glories just about every night...

Computing and eating on the lanai... more back porch home cooked food. This time we had caesar salad and roast beef sandwiches. Casual fun dinner, no fuss. Using up left overs and having a nice evening.
My hubby has prepared some really nice meals while we've been here. It is a lovely thing. We have a hard time cooking in Tokyo- so we were really looking forward to the apartment and kitchen here to make some yummy stuff at home.