Garden of Eatin’ Nacho Cheese Corn Tortilla Chips: Garden of Eatin’ is a rare snack brand: tastefully seasoned and consistently unique in its interpretations of classic flavors. This nacho cheese chip is tangier than most, opting for a milder, creamier flavor than the bold edge of Doritos. It’s also much more lightly seasoned. Favorable for those who are satisfied with a serving size of 9 chips (I know of none). 4.0/5.0
recommended berkeleybowl gardenofeatin nacho cheese corn tortilla chips 4.0
Icelandic Provisions Peach cloudberry skyr: Used in jams, which in turn is a topping for desserts like ice cream and waffles, cloudberry is a type of berry popular in Nordic countries. This cloudberry peach yogurt was the first time I tried it, though the yogurt tasted mostly of peach with a slight tanginess (presumably from the cloudberries). Icelandic Provisions skyr is thick (but not as thick as Siggi’s) and less sweet than normal yogurt (though more sweet than Siggi’s). The tub-shaped container makes it seem more substantial than ... (read more) 3.5/5.0
yogurt icelandicprovisions peach cloudberry skyr 3.5
b. patisserie milk tea tart: At the corner of Divisadero and California in Lower Pacific Heights (San Francisco) is popular bakery b. patisserie, led by a former pastry chef at fine-dining establishments like Gary Danko and Manresa. The sizable shop feels like a luxury in San Francisco, with only a handful of bakeries able to afford real estate to seat multiple families and smaller parties; the line out of the door, with about a 15 minute wait to the counter, signified they're doing just fine. For Chinese New Year, b.... (read more) 2.5/5.0
desserts pastry sf chinese milktea bpatisserie milk tea tart 2.5
Reem’s Hibiscus Rose Cooler: Finally made it to Reem’s, the middle eastern cafe in Fruitvale (Oakland) specializing in housemade flatbread. To accompany the robust za’atar-spiced flatbread, I got a cup of refreshing and sharp hibiscus rose cooler, a purple-maroon colored drink that tasted of an amped-up floral pomegranate juice. Well balanced and perfectly complementary, it rounded out a complete, delicious meal at Reem’s. 4.0/5.0
recommended drinks oakland reems hibiscus rose cooler 4.0
Golden Gate Bakery Egg Cupcake: No surprise that lines at famed San Francisco bakery Golden Gate Bakery were long for Chinese New Year, but I still didn’t expect it to take 80 minutes to get egg tarts. At around 6pm, the owner started rationing; no single person could order more than 2, for fear she would run out. The eggtarts were as good as ever, but waiting this long necessitated making another purchase, this time for an egg “cupcake,” seemingly made just of egg, flour, sugar, and oil. It was very lightly sweetened, sof... (read more) 3.5/5.0
recommended sf goldengatebakery egg cupcake 3.5
Noosa Pumpkin Yogurt: I’ve recently been getting back into Noosa yogurt since they continue to release new flavors I haven’t seen from other brands. This pumpkin one is especially good, with a creamy spiced pumpkin-pie-like filling swirled into rich smooth whole milk yogurt. It’s perfect for those who like the silky consistency of non-Greek yogurt but still prefer a denser texture. My only criticism is that it’s on the sweet side, but flavor wise, this is definitely worth a try. 4.0/5.0
recommended noosa pumpkin yogurt 4.0