Jay Eats Worldwide

At least for now... I'm not sure if you've heard, the maker of Sriracha WILL continue to produce this magical sauce, at least for now.  Some may know it as rooster sauce, the hot sauce with the green top, Asian hot sauce (funny, I've seen Sriracha in many non-Asian places too), etc.  Whatever name you know it by, many were caught off guard by the halt on production.   The back story in a nut shell, Huy Fong Foods (the maker of this Sriracha) has received complaints from their Irwindale neighbors about the strong odors coming from the factory.  With these complaints came an injunction to halt production that could cause the odors from the chills used in their famous sauce.   Huy Fong Foods' Sriracha As of the week of January 6, 2014, a spokesperson for Huy Fong Foods' stated that they "plan to resume shipments at the end of the month."   I'm not choosing sides and I haven't experienced what the neighbors were experienci...

Whether it's Korean barbecue, Soondobu Jigae (spicy tofu stew) or even kim chee, there's something addicting to Korean food.  I love Korean food and want to learn more. With this in mind, I was honored to be invited to the Bibimbap Backpacker's Table, along with food writers, bloggers, a few restaurant industry folks, and the media. As a restaurant and food marketing consultant, I'm always asked about Asian food, Korean is always at the top of the list. I've always said that Korean food could be the next big thing, it just needs someone to explain it to the masses.  Well, I think this is the group to do it. Today's focus is on bibimbap, a dish I've had many many times, but don't really know much about  the background or tradition. Other than I like it... Among the K-POP and fashion displays, our group was assembling for this bibimbap experience at the Korean Cultural Center of Los Angeles. Kim Chee Dip ...

I often ask myself, why do most Asian restaurants FAIL? As mentioned in past postings, I've had discussions with many Asian food service companies wanting to come to the US and/or sell to Americans. Americans want Asian products and Asian compaines want to sell to Americans. The problem is that Asian companies don't know how to sell to this target audience and Americans don't know what and who to buy from. A consumer goes home with something they don't understand and Asian companies wondering why Americans don't buy, it's "Lost in Translation." What these companies don't get is that they need a bridge to gap between the seller and the buyer.These companies all want to serve Asian food to Americans and grow their distribution here. With a large Asian community and Americans hungry for Asian food, how hard can it be? They all think that it's just that easy. What they don't "GET" is who they're selling to and how to get the i...