Cuis-Zine Quizzing

Anuhea is Hawaiian for "cool, soft fragrance, as of upland forests." Isn't that a beautiful image? It's also the name of a fellow food blogger here in Hawaii, writing about the food and places she encounters. Equally cool.

Several weeks ago Anuhea presented me with five questions as part of an interview meme. Here are my long overdue answers...

What is your favorite restaurant and what are your favorite dishes there?

One restaurant stands above all others: The French Laundry. There aren't enough superlatives to describe that meal, nor how it changed how I experience food. (Considering we spent more on a single meal than we pay for a month's rent, it had better be good!)

The experience was unlike any other, from lounging in the garden, to peeking into the immaculate kitchen, to the mind-blowing flavor combinations, to having Thomas Keller discretely come out to observe the crazy dreadlocked couple with the endless questions.

If you love food, save up. It's worth it.

What do you do for a living, and if you could do anything else, what would your career change be to?

[This was the hardest question for me to answer. Until now, I've kept my work life and my food life separate, careful not to reveal threads between the two. That's a farce though. A few minutes of diligent research would have told someone all they needed to know.]

By day I'm a partner in a web consulting firm, Agathon Group, making this site the old cliche, "the cobbler's children have no shoes." I'm busy enough developing web sites for other organizations, that my own is just a stock Movable Type template with the colors changed. I'm going to fix that some day. Really, I am. I've been saying that for two and a half years now.

My alter ego dream job has always been to be a bike messenger in a major metropolitan area. Those guys (and gals) are hard core, in peak shape and have a kind of reckless freedom that appeals to me. A good bike makes all the difference. I sold mine a few years ago rather than pay for it to be shipped to Hawaii and have been mourning it ever since.

I also fantasize about working in a kitchen, but realistically know that I'd hate the long hours and lifestyle of a chef. Give me a kitchen with weekends and holidays off and then we can talk.

Where did you learn how to create such cakes and have you ever had any professional culinary training?

My cakes look okay but belie my complete lack of training. On the inside, they are as conventional as any Betty Crocker mix and that's an area where I need to work and grow. The one exception of which I'm most proud is my Chocolate Curry Cupcakes with Lemongrass Infused Coconut Buttercream Frosting.

You have lived a lot of places, do they influence your cooking and where was your favorite place to live?

Favorite place to live? Hawaii of course! The runner up was Vancouver, for many of the same reasons I love it here: natural beauty all around, many international influences, great food and a laidback vibe. We've accumulated cooking techniques and ingredients from every location we've lived. When you live somewhere, really live there and not as a vagabond passing through, aspects of that place are internalized and become a part of you forever. Food is tied up in that.

The biggest shift in cooking came from our stays in Vietnam, where I discovered that bún bộ hué makes the most satisyfing early morning breakfast ever. This sweet vendor ran her parents stand right outside my friend's apartment. We would wake to her sing-song calls to passing cyclos, seven thousand dong (less than a buck) for a bowl.

If you could have a last meal -cooked by yourself- what would you make and why? (including drinks, dessert, and side dishes)

There is no single last meal. It depends on the tidal tugs of my location and the season, pulling my tastes to favor the flavors around me. As I type, I'm in Hawaii nearing the end of summer. None of the items require elaborate prep or tinkering; a menu rises or falls on the strength of the ingredients.

ʻO Ke Kai
    assorted ʻopihi and kupeʻe, hopefully pried from the reef by yours truly
    ahi poke, with fresh ogo, again gathered personally
    ʻōʻio poke
    two finger poi, to accompany

ʻO Ka ʻAina
    A thick North Shore Cattle Co. steak, grilled hot and medium rare over open flame
    Asparagus, grilled with olive oil and sea salt
    fresh sourdough bread from the starter in my fridge

Hua ʻAi
    fresh lychee, mango and papaya, maybe with a nice sorbet

To drink with all of this, a good porter. That has nothing to do with Hawaii, but I like beer. I also know the menu doesn't flow logically. It's my last meal and I'm the cook.

Thank you Anuhea for great questions.

DIRECTIONS FOR THE INTERVIEW MEME
1. Leave a comment (or email) saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. Beware, I'm not shy of asking personal questions! Please make sure I have your email address.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Aloha and mahalo.