Hawker Fare

James Syhabout{u2019}s hugely popular Hawker Fare restaurant in San Francisco is the product of his unique family histor... (more)

James Syhabout{u2019}s hugely popular Hawker Fare restaurant in San Francisco is the product of his unique family history and diverse career experience. Born into two distinct but related Asian cultures{u2014}from his mother{u2019}s ancestral village in Isan, Thailand{u2019}s northeast region, and his father{u2019}s home in Pakse, Laos{u2014}he and his family landed in Oakland in 1981 in a community of other refugees from the Vietnam War. Syhabout at first turned away from the food of his heritage to work in Europe and become a classically trained chef. After the success of Commis, his fine dining restaurant and the only Michelin-starred eatery in Oakland, Syhabout realized something was missing{u2014}and that something was Hawker Fare, and cooking the food of his childhood. The Hawker Fare cookbook immortalizes these widely beloved dishes, which are inspired by the open-air g2shawkerg3s markets of Thailand and Laos as well as the fine-dining sensibilities of James{u2019}s career beginnings. Each chapter opens with stories from Syhabout{u2019}s roving career, starting with his mother{u2019}s work as a line cook in Oakland, and moving into the turning point of his culinary life, including his travels as an adult in his parents{u2019} homelands. From building a pantry with sauces and oils, to making staples like sticky rice and padaek, to Syhabout{u2019}s recipe for instant ramen noodles with poached egg, Hawker Fare explores the many dimensions of this singular chef{u2019}s cooking and ethos on ingredients, family, and eating well. This cookbook offers a new definition of what it means to be making food in America, in the full and vibrant colors of Thailand, Laos, and California. (less)

"From chef James Syhabout of two-Michelin-star restaurant Commis, an Asian-American cookbook like no other--simple recip... (more)

"From chef James Syhabout of two-Michelin-star restaurant Commis, an Asian-American cookbook like no other--simple recipes for cooking home-style Thai and Lao dishes"-- (less)