When the blossoms bloom
One Saturday we shove our homework into a corner and make a dash for San Francisco before another spring storm takes over the bay. Parking is as easy as hiking with a twisted ankle, but all that matters is we find a spot, then stroll a mile to the food bazaar on Webster street, Japan Town, arriving just a little bit before noon. Up from the steep sidewalk we see rows of white tents and white chairs, smoke rolling above the grills covered with beef and pork riblets, a line getting long on one side of the conglomeration. It is still early in the first morning of the Cherry Blossom Festival.
The carnivore instinct leads me right to the grill. It’s never too early to eat meat. The first booth whips out rice bowls with either ribs or unagi, braised eel cut into palm long chunks. We don’t feel like filling up with a rice bowl just yet, so we walk further down the row eying signs, then back track to the Nihonmachi Little Friends’ booth for three skewers of grilled beef at a mere five bucks.
Crispy-charred-edge marinated beef, though erring a little on the chewy side, delight my feet after that hike from our parking spot. The downright old school meatiness would have well enhanced the kiddie dollar snack omusubi, wedges of plain white rice mixed with nori bits, which Mudpie buys way after we finished the skewers. Waste not want not, the musubi will find its place in my lunch this week, after I wrap it up in nori sheets and maybe with a slice of fried spam. My idea sprouts from seeing at least three booths selling spam musubi and dozens of family walking around with golden brown sauce at the corner of their mouths. I, however, fall victim to the facile yakisoba, soft stir fry noodle with crunchy cabbage dressed only with soy sauce and seaweed sprinkles. The noodle tastes flatter than it looks, and certainly flatter than the wad of six dollar bills we pay for it, but it is a good pacifier for the empty stomach.
One block east of the food tents, the San Francisco Taiko Dojo artists are pounding their drums on stage. Their vigorous sincerity pumps rhythmic waves of festive air into the onwatchers’ lungs. To the hundreds of Japanese gathering there, I wonder if the drums have the same effect as the firecrackers we set off on Lunar New Year’s Eve, a simple string of sound that brings both excitement and quietude. The drums do halt my hungry thoughts for a moment, until I see some kids weaving about the crowd holding teriyaki burgers and shaved ice.
We’re back to Webster. The teriburger line wraps around one end of the food square, and Mudpie refuses to take one for the team. The fried fish ball line is no better, but I want to find out what the frenzy is all about, whether Mudpie does or not.
Just as we get in line, a lady asks us if we know the fish balls are any good. We don’t. So during the twenty-five minute wait the lady and Mudpie go over what is up with the LHC in Geneva, current status of the string theory job market, Berkeley Bowl, the beautiful harmony between Eastern religions and sciences, Francis Collins, and which patisserie is the best in San Fran. Meanwhile I can’t take my eyes off her unagi rice bowl, the eel skin shines gloriously in its rich brown sauce. Slowly but solidly we get to the tent where all the pouring, flipping, and toothpicking take place. The cast iron molds are just as busy as the deft hands hovering over them.
Although the man jokingly says it’s a secret recipe from Japan while he collects orders, this fish ball booth is the only booth with a crystal clear ingredient list on the banner. Although it is called takoyaki (“fried octopus”), it’s a simple ball of batter, fish stock, egg, and seasonings. (Still, it resembles an octopus head, intentionally or not.) Although it looks perfectly solid, it has an air pocket inside, resulting from the flipping of the hemisphere while the batter is still runny. Although it is fried, it is soft. Although the long line suggests that it is amazingly worth the wait, it is not. The seaweed sprinkles, red ginger and green onion do little more than cosmetics, the okonomiyaki sauce is rather too tart. Its goodness lies solely in the warmth to battle those crisp wind blows. In hindsight we probably should have stood in the teriburger line.
As the tongue craves for some sweets, we walk around to the grilled beef and yakisoba side, this time to stand in line for a red bean pancake, imagawa yaki.
The fluffy dough is just like any pancake our mothers make for breakfast on special days. The making process, like those fish balls, is fun to watch. They pour the batter into rows of circular iron molds, wait a few minutes for the batter to semi-solidify, then comes this semi-circular trough, looking like a cracked-open bone filled with marrow, from which they spoon some red bean paste onto half of the cooking pancakes. The other half are flipped over to make the pancake tops. The batter turns solid, the division between two halves is sealed, three bucks are handed over for exchange of two blowing hot cakes. Mudpie loves the bean stuff. So much that he insists on looking for more inside the Kintetsu mall. I feel more inclined to sitting down, and those benches near the Kinokuniya bookstore and Izumiya have never sounded better. So into the mall we go.
But boy am I a fool. On days like this benches are a luxury, and it’s just rude to fight over a seat with the petite ladies in colorful kimonos and huge wooden zōri, or families with babies. The mall is packed. The human flow is like a school of salmon. My tiny stature serves me well in whizzing through elbows and shoulders, but I would have missed the best catch of the day had Mudpie not spotted the nameless but busy tables in front of Cafe Hana.
Ten bite sized cubes of cold mochi, five different flavors. From right to left: 1. yomogi (mugwort) – tastes as grassy as its alternate name kusa mochi – “grass mochi”, 2. mango – tastes more like jackfruit or longan, 3. kinako – actually this is warabimochi (jelly-like sweet made of bracken starch instead of sticky rice), covered in soybean flour (kinako) which tastes like peanut butter, 4. lychee – the second tastiest, and 5. strawberry – the tastiest. Chewy, refreshing, gently sweet like a rose petal, I would eat these all day. The best part: it is assembled upon request. The confectionery magistrates, who may be part of Cafe Hana’s team, cut and roll these slabs of sweets in powder and into the plastic boxes, each containing only one flavor. But if you kindly ask, they’ll throw together a mixed box for you at the same price. Top it off with a three dollar scoop of lychee ice cream, as we do, and you’ll feel ten or fifteen years younger. You know, those days of hustling about the school cafeteria, eating cheap treats, feeling fresh and complete. If there’s anything I don’t regret buying at this fair, it’s the lychee ice cream and the mochi at those tables in front of Cafe Hana.
If there’s anything Mudpie doesn’t regret buying at this fair, I think it’s the daifuku, also from those tables in front of Cafe Hana. That red bean addiction is strong.
Pink or green, smooth or sesame coated, the daifukus are good companions for chrysanthemum tea. The plain, chewy sticky rice outer layer damps the sweetness of inner red bean paste. The cold confection enhances the warm drink.
On our way out of the mall, we sidestep in line for one last treat at the flowery booth Kissako Tea. They have the little mochi balls in pink, green, and white with red bean paste filling, and they also have the mitarashi dango, which I’ve always been curious about since I read Sugar Bar Diva’s toothsome post. Four simple sticky rice balls on a skewer sounds like a boring snack, but the chewiness dressed in a rich syrup of soy sauce, sugar, and starch is everything but plain. Its taste and texture amazingly resemble malt sugar. It marks a triumphant incorporation of savory condiments into the sweet realm.
At four something in the afternoon, the food bazaar is still going strong. All booths, not just the fish ball and the teriburger, now have a long line. The kids are still with wide open eyes, Hello Kitty headbands, spam musubi and cups of shaved ice. The dogs are still obediently looking at their humans eating beef skewers. The girls in black and white kimonos are still taking pictures between giggles.
And so we march our full tummies a mile back to the parking spot. The sky is blue. The streets are quiet. The wind has ceased its dry cold swirls. The car stands there, with a ticket.
경기도 김포출장마사지 셀럽의 코스와 가격, 자택·호텔 방문 상담, 선입금 없는 예약 및 현장 결제 기준을 확인하세요. 방문 가능 여부와 예상 도착 시간은 주소와
1경기도 김포출장마사지 셀럽의 코스와 가격, 자택·호텔 방문 상담, 선입금 없는 예약 및 현장 결제 기준을 확인하세요. 방문 가능 여부와 예상 도착 시간은 주소와
2hello!,I like your writing very much! share we communicate more about your article on AOL? I require an expert on this area to solve my problem. Maybe that’s you! Looking forward to see you.
3경기도 구리출장마사지 셀럽의 코스와 가격, 자택·호텔 방문 상담, 선입금 없는 예약 및 현장 결제 기준을 확인하세요. 방문 가능 여부와 예상 도착 시간은 주소와
4경기도 구리출장마사지 셀럽의 코스와 가격, 자택·호텔 방문 상담, 선입금 없는 예약 및 현장 결제 기준을 확인하세요. 방문 가능 여부와 예상 도착 시간은 주소와
5부산출장마사지 셀럽의 코스별 가격과 예약 방법을 확인하세요. 해운대·서면·광안리·동래 등 지역별 방문 가능 여부, 예상 도착 시간, 선입금 없는 현장 결제와 자택
6부산출장마사지 셀럽의 코스별 가격과 예약 방법을 확인하세요. 해운대·서면·광안리·동래 등 지역별 방문 가능 여부, 예상 도착 시간, 선입금 없는 현장 결제와 자택
7It is actually a great and helpful piece of information. I am happy that you just shared this useful information with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.
8As I site possessor I believe the content matter here is rattling great , appreciate it for your efforts. You should keep it up forever! Best of luck.
9Very interesting subject, thanks for putting up. “I am not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the world.” by Socrates.
10I think other web-site proprietors should take this website as an model, very clean and great user genial style and design, let alone the content. You’re an expert in this topic!
11Great post. I am facing a couple of these problems.
12Good day! Do you know if they make any plugins to assist with SEO? I’m trying to get my blog to rank for some targeted keywords but I’m not seeing very good success. If you know of any please share. Thank you!
13Yay google is my king assisted me to find this great site! .
14Hi, i think that i saw you visited my website thus i came to “return the favor”.I am trying to find things to enhance my web site!I suppose its ok to use some of your ideas!!
15Thank you for the sensible critique. Me & my neighbor were just preparing to do some research about this. We got a grab a book from our local library but I think I learned more clear from this post. I’m very glad to see such fantastic info being shared freely out there.
16What’s Happening i am new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It positively helpful and it has helped me out loads. I hope to contribute & aid other users like its aided me. Great job.
17magnificent post, very informative. I wonder why the other experts of this sector do not notice this. You should continue your writing. I’m confident, you have a great readers’ base already!
18A formidable share, I just given this onto a colleague who was doing somewhat analysis on this. And he actually bought me breakfast as a result of I found it for him.. smile. So let me reword that: Thnx for the treat! However yeah Thnkx for spending the time to debate this, I really feel strongly about it and love studying extra on this topic. If possible, as you turn into experience, would you mind updating your weblog with extra details? It’s extremely helpful for me. Massive thumb up for this weblog post!
19I enjoy your work, regards for all the good posts.
20익숙한 일상에 새로운 취향을 더하는 여기여. 감각적인 공간과 다채로운 이야기, 오래 기억할 발견을 만나보세요. 나만의 속도로 머물며 당신에게 어울리는 특별한 순간을 찾아갑니다.
21I believe this is one of the so much significant information for me. And i am glad studying your article. However should observation on some normal issues, The web site taste is wonderful, the articles is in point of fact great :D. Good process, cheers
22Spot on with this write-up, I actually suppose this website wants much more consideration. I’ll most likely be again to learn far more, thanks for that info.
23Thank you for another informative site. Where else could I get that kind of information written in such an ideal way? I’ve a project that I’m just now working on, and I’ve been on the look out for such information.
24Some truly choice content on this website , saved to my bookmarks.
25주소콘에서 필요한 사이트를 분야별로 살펴보세요. 뉴스, 커뮤니티, 영상, 웹툰, 쇼핑, 생활 정보와 온라인 도구를 찾는 방법부터 주소 확인, 즐겨찾기 관리, 접속 오류 해결까지 안내합니다. 목적에 맞는 링크를 고르고 더 편리하게 이용하세요.
26I’ve read a few just right stuff here. Certainly price bookmarking for revisiting. I surprise how much attempt you place to create this type of fantastic informative web site.
27주소콘에서 필요한 웹사이트 주소를 쉽고 빠르게 찾아보세요. 분야별 주소모음과 링크모음, 주소찾기 방법부터 변경된 주소 확인, 안전한 링크 확인 방법까지 한눈에 살펴볼 수 있습니다.
28very good put up, i definitely love this web site, carry on it
29Normally I don’t learn article on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very pressured me to try and do it! Your writing taste has been amazed me. Thank you, quite great article.
30Normally I don’t learn post on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very forced me to take a look at and do it! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thank you, very nice post.
31I believe this web site holds very great written articles blog posts.
32I know this if off topic but I’m looking into starting my own blog and was wondering what all is required to get setup? I’m assuming having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny? I’m not very web smart so I’m not 100 positive. Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers
33주소콘은 자주 찾는 사이트의 최신주소와 변경된 주소를 카테고리별로 정리한 주소모음·링크모음 플랫폼입니다. 실시간으로 업데이트되는 바로가기 링크로 원하는 사이트에 빠르게 접속하세요.
34I got good info from your blog
35Hello my friend! I want to say that this post is awesome, nice written and include approximately all vital infos. I would like to see more posts like this.
36Thanks – Enjoyed this update, how can I make is so that I receive an alert email every time you write a fresh post?
37Your style is so unique compared to many other people. Thank you for publishing when you have the opportunity,Guess I will just make this bookmarked.
38I saw a lot of website but I think this one holds something special in it in it
39I used to be suggested this blog by my cousin. I am not certain whether this put up is written by him as nobody else recognise such exact about my trouble. You’re wonderful! Thank you!
40Hello there! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be ok. I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
41Nice post. I was checking continuously this blog and I am impressed! Very helpful info specially the last part 🙂 I care for such info a lot. I was seeking this particular information for a long time. Thank you and best of luck.
42fantastic points altogether, you simply gained a brand new reader. What would you recommend in regards to your post that you made a few days ago? Any positive?
43Great post. I am facing a couple of these problems.
44Hey There. I found your blog using msn. This is a very well written article. I’ll be sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your useful information. Thanks for the post. I will certainly return.
45Hello! I’ve been reading your website for some time now and finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Houston Tx! Just wanted to mention keep up the great work!
46This is a very good tips especially to those new to blogosphere, brief and accurate information… Thanks for sharing this one. A must read article.
47Utterly composed written content, appreciate it for information. “The earth was made round so we would not see too far down the road.” by Karen Blixen.
48Hey there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in your content seem to be running off the screen in Ie. I’m not sure if this is a formatting issue or something to do with internet browser compatibility but I thought I’d post to let you know. The design look great though! Hope you get the problem fixed soon. Many thanks
49I will immediately grab your rss as I can’t find your email subscription link or newsletter service. Do you have any? Kindly let me know so that I could subscribe. Thanks.
50