EVENTS

Asian Food Beyond Borders

Friday – Sunday, October 10 – 12, 2008


To celebrate our 2008 theme, “Asian Food Beyond Borders,”, the Asian Culinary Forum is presenting an entire weekend of exciting classes, tours, workshops and panel discussions for your enjoyment. Choose your heart’s desire from our extensive a la carte menu of educational events.


To attend any of the Friday and Saturday classes below, register online securely and conveniently. Learn more about our guest instructors, speakers, and presenters on their bio page.


[register online]




SCHEDULE


  1. Friday, October 10

  2. The Six Asian Flavors  *** SOLD OUT ***
    5:30 – 7:30 pm,  SF Ferry Building

  3. Saturday, October 11

  4. Morning

  5. Chinatown Culinary Walk  *** SOLD OUT ***
    9:30 am – 1:30 pm, Chinatown

  6. Chutneys, Kimchi, and Sambal
    10:30 am – 1:00 pm, Sur La Table, Maiden Lane

  7. The Politics and Practicalities of Rice
    10:00 am – 12:00 pm, SF Ferry Building

  8. Afternoon

  9. Master Wine and Food Pairing  *** SOLD OUT ***
    1:30 – 3:30 pm, Le Colonial

  10. Meals, Meaning, and Memory in Asian Diasporas
    1:30 – 3:30 pm, SF Ferry Building

  11. “What is This?” - Ask the Experts
    2:00 – 4:00 pm, SF Ferry Building

  12. Delights of South India
    3:00 – 5:30 pm, Sur La Table, Maiden Lane


  1. Sunday, October 12   *** SOLD OUT ***

  2. Asian Culinary Forum 2008 Symposium: Asian Food Beyond Borders

  3. 8:30 am – 5:30 pm, Ferry Building





FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10


The Six Asian Flavors  *** SOLD OUT ***

Walk-Around Tasting

Time: 5:30 - 7:30 pm

Location: Ferry Building, North Arcade

     Explore and experience the six taste elements of Asian cuisines: hot, sour, salty, bitter, sweet, and umami. How do they function alone and how do they work together? You'll taste artisanal palm sugar, learn why bitter isn't bad, tease out the difference between salty and umami, savor an array of chile sauces, and find out how fish sauce is made and used. Tastings include Vietnamese grilled fish rice paper rolls, brightly flavored Filipino sinigang soup, chili-salt with crispy pork belly, mushroom-infused rice, and Malay onde onde sweet rice dumplings.

     Expert presenters include author/instructor Robert Danhi, nutritionist Karen Diggs of Be Nourished SF, food writer Robyn Eckhardt of Eating Asia, food writer Nancy Freeman, chef/owner Terrence Khuu of Bayside Bistro, and author and culinary instructor Farina Wong Kingsley. Golden Star Tea Co. will be offering tastings of their elegant sparkling white jasmine tea as a special accompaniment!

Capacity: 200

Registration fee: $20 per person




SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11


MORNING


Chinatown Culinary Walk

Neighborhood Food Tour

Time: 9:30 am - 1:30 pm

Location: Chinatown, San Francisco

     Many people visit Chinatown but few have the opportunity to know it well. Join Joyce Jue, renowned Bay Area cooking teacher and award-winning author, on an intimate walking tour of San Francisco’s Chinatown, her birthplace. She will discuss the changes in the neighborhood over the years and share her favorite neighborhood spots. The tour culminates with a dim sum lunch at the Garden View Restaurant. Lunch is included in the registration fee.

Capacity: 12

Registration fee: $75 per person *** SOLD OUT ***

Chutneys, Kimchi, and Sambal: 3 Experts on 3 Cuisines

Demonstration Cooking Class

Time: 10:30 am - 1:00 pm

Location: Sur la Table, Maiden Lane

     The beauty of Asian cuisines is that you can vary every bite with a scintillating relish, condiment, and/or pickled vegetable. Such accompaniments have crucial roles in Asian cuisines and can be prepared quite easily for everyday use. Get in-depth knowledge on how to prepare and enjoy Indian chutneys, Korean kimchi, and Southeast Asian sambals from three local experts: Niloufer King, James Beard Award recipient and author of My Bombay Kitchen; Hyunjoo Albrecht, Korean food expert; and Daniel Sudar, executive chef of Red Lantern in Redwood City. Experience avocado green chutney, Asian pear chutney, seared ginger raita, traditional napa cabbage kimchi (bae chu kimchi), summer cucumber kimchi (oi sobagi), tomato chili sauce (sambal tomat), and shrimp paste chili sauce (sambal trasi/sambal belacan). 

Capacity: 32

Registration fee: $60 per person

The Politics and Practicalities of Rice

Panel Discussion and Tasting

Time: 10:00 am - 12 pm

Location: Ferry Building, 2nd Floor

     The “thirstiest plant on the planet,” rice is what nearly half of the world’s population depends on for survival. And yet many farmers are being forced out of rice cultivation due to poor returns or increasing costs of water and agronomy. Our understanding of this ancient grain and the issues it raises—from culinary nuances to genetic modification—affects our choices. Gain insights into the meaning of rice and exchange ideas on farming, global food policies, and leading-edge research on sustainable rice production. Then taste half a dozen varieties, from short-grain sweet to Bhutanese red, to explore the richness of rice. Panelists include Ross Koda of Koda Farms; Kenneth Lee, president of Lotus Foods; Kent McKenzie, director of the California Rice Experiment Station; and Raj Patel, author of Stuffed and Starved. Esteemed author Jeannette Ferrary moderates.

Capacity: 110

Registration fee: $20 general and $12 students/seniors



AFTERNOON


Master Wine and Food Pairing  *** SOLD OUT ***

Tasting Class

Time: 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Location: Le Colonial Restaurant

     Explore the new frontiers of Asian food expertly paired with the proper wines. Singapore-based oenologist Edwin Soon, author of Wine with Asian Food will share his strategies and knowledge about which varietals marry best with the complex flavors of Asian cuisines. At this exclusive master class held in the beautiful dining room of Le Colonial Restaurant, you will taste numerous wines with delicious, inventive pairings. You will walk away from this class with greater confidence for the next time you peruse the wine list at your favorite Chinese, Indian or Vietnamese restaurant. Each attendee also will receive a copy of Wine with Asian Food, a $25 value.

Capacity: 50

Registration fee: $85 per person

Meals, Meaning and Memory in Asian Diasporas

Panel discussion

Time: 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Location: Ferry Building, 2nd Floor

As Asians migrate to and settle in new continents, what kinds of culinary changes and continuities do they experience? Whether as cooks, writers, farmers, consumers, or all of the above, Asian Americans have balanced pragmatism and pleasure, nutrition and nostalgia, taste and tradition, to emerge with a diversity of diets and discursive delights. This panel of scholars will open up a discussion of how food practices influence Asian and Asian-American memories of the past and dreams for the future. Participants include Professors Martin Manalansan, IV, of the University of Illinois, Wendy Ho and Parama Roy of UC Davis, and Ashwini Wagle of San Jose State.

Capacity: 110

Registration fee: $20 general and $12 students/seniors

“What is This?” - Ask the Experts

Food Clinic

Time: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Location: Ferry Building, North Wing

     Preparing and enjoying Asian cuisines is a lot more fun when you understand the many ingredients that appear in recipes both traditional and modern. You're invited to bring cookbooks, family recipes, unfamiliar foods, and unusual tools (actual items or even photos) to this clinic and ask our food experts all the questions you have about cooking and eating your favorite Asian dishes. We'll also provide an array of Asian vegetables, herbs, condiments, and other staples on hand for you to sniff, taste, and ponder.

Capacity: unlimited

Registration fee: FREE!

Delights of South India

Demonstration cooking class

Time: 3:00 pm to 5:30 pm

Location: Sur La Table, Maiden Lane

     Rising star chef Shiyam Sundar, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, has trained and worked at world-class restaurants and hotels. He has mastered contemporary cooking in the West while retaining a passion for the traditional foods of his southern home state of Tamil Nadu, source of some of India's most popular foods. Join us for a wonderful afternoon of exploration as Shiyam demonstrates his favorite dishes while sharing professional cooking tips and insights on Indian food culture. Reflecting our abundance of quality ingredients, his menu of southern specialties includes lentil puffed dumplings with coconut chutney (kuzhi panniyaram), fried spicy potato dumplings with sambhar (bondas), semolina and buttermilk crepe with onions and cashew (rava dosa), curry leaf-scented prawns with fresh tomato chutney (karuvepillai era), and banana and raisin crepe with cardamon (banana dosa).

Capacity: 32

Registration fee: $60 per person



SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12


Asian Culinary Forum 2008 Symposium: Asian Food Beyond Borders

Time: 8:30 am to 5:00 pm                                                      *** SOLD OUT ***

Location: Ferry Building

     The capstone to our weekend-long celebration, this intimate, full-day symposium brings together notable authors, artists, scholars, and chefs to explore how Asian communities have created dynamic cuisines around the world.

     For schedue and more information, please visit our symposium page.

Registration fee: $185 per person

 

Asian Culinary Forum 2008 LOCATIONS

With San Francisco as our backdrop, ACF is pleased to present these Saturday events at three prime locations in the downtown area: the landmark Ferry Building, Sur La Table’s in-store kitchen on Maiden Lane, and the elegant dining room of Le Colonial. Attendees to Sunday’s symposium will receive a special discount rated at Hotel Tomo in the heart of Japantown.

TRANSPORTATION & PARKING

We highly encourage attendees to use public transport to arrive at our events. 


Conveniently located in downtown San Francisco, all three Saturday venues are easily accessible by BART and MUNI. If you are driving to the Ferry Building, please review parking options before arriving.


FERRY BUILDING

North Arcade: Front arches north of clock tower

Port Commission Room: 2nd Floor, main stairs under clock tower

One Ferry Building

San Francisco, CA 94111

(415) 693-0996


Public transport

Embarcadero Station from downtown SF BART and all Muni Trains.

Muni Buses F, 1, 2, 7, 9, 14, 21, 31, 38, 71.


Parking

Washington Street Lot (enter on Embarcadero).

Golden Gate Garage (enter on Clay).

Embarcadero Garages (enter on Drumm or Davis).

Howard Lot (enter on Howard).



SUR LA TABLE

Lower Level Kitchen

77 Maiden Lane

San Francisco, CA 94108

(415) 732-7900


Public transport

Powell Street Station from BART and Muni Trains.

Muni Buses 2, 3, 4, 15, 30, 38, 45, 76.


Parking

Sutter-Stockton Garage (enter on Stockton or Bush).

Union Square Garage (enter on Geary).



LE COLONIAL

20 Cosmo Place

San Francisco, CA 94109

(415) 931-3600


Public transport

Powell Street Station from BART and Muni Trains.

Muni Buses 1, 2, 3, 7, 27, 30, 38, 45, 76.


Parking

Le Colonial valet parking (enter on Cosmo).

Sutter-Stockton Garage (enter on Stockton or Bush).

Union Square Garage (enter on Geary).











Asian Culinary Forum reserves the right to substitute speakers and instructors of comparable expertise for individuals listed above.