Korean sweet potato cake

is crazy!

Truly unlike anything I had ever eaten. I got it at Cafe Mak in Koreatown, LA, one of many serious and styled cafes in Koreatown open late. I remembered reading something about the sweet potato cake, and ordered it. The waitress said they were out of it but then was able to find a slice. 

I read later that it is made from japanese sweet potatoes, which are purple on the outside and white on the inside. There are actual chunks of potato in the main part of the cake, which feel like a curious dense firm pudding when you are chewing it. And since they are white, you can’t tell if there is a potato chunk in your bite until you put it in your mouth. It is kind of like eating sweet mashed potatoes. It is uncontestably sweet, like a dessert, which is what it is, but it is not overly sweet. My friend who is Taiwanese once told me that Americans are much less sensitive to levels of sweetness than the Taiwanese, and that Asian desserts are sweetened carefully and usually less than American ones. This was like that. Just sweet enough. To be honest, I found it kind of gross, but I also really liked it. I will definitely try it again, as you should!

     

 

San Francisco 

My aunt was visting from Portland and took a photo of this sign. I like that she liked it. It does all look like old hippy food, except the kale…😼 “Beer on tap!”

My sweet mom on her sweet birthday. She is so cute and sweet. My dad got their wedding cake for her birthday cake. From a bakery in north beach. It was very light cake, with a very light frosting. Pretty good. I was three or so when they got married, so maybe I ate this 25 years ago.

       

Italian chopped salad, sycamore kitchen, La brea 

This is a phenomenal salad. When you go to this restaurant, it always seems like at least 60% of the customers are eating it. I got it the first time I went, and upon returning have only not gotten it once, when I wasn’t hungry, and I regretted it. Go, eat it! Chicken, slivered almonds, beets, lettuce, parmesan, lots of oil and salt, and lemon. Fuck.