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FoodFood

KQED Food is your home for stories about all of the Bay Area’s vibrant food cultures: the taco truck, omakase counter, grocery co-op and driveway pupusa stand. Our news stories, essays, shows and features document the food scene’s latest trends and changemakers—and help guide you to your next delicious meal.

Latest StoriesLatest Stories
Meat kebabs on long, metal skewers cooking over a grill.

The East Bay’s Most Famous Indian Barbecue Spot Has Closed — For Now

A grey brick building with large windows trimmed in pink. The front door to the restaurant is propped open.

We Just Figured Out Why 598 Guerrero Is the Most Cursed Restaurant Location in SF

Two hands picking an apple from a fruit-laden tree.

Meet the Scrappy Volunteers Rescuing Fruit From Your Backyard

A hand pouring espresso into a blended avocado drink.

Showing Soon at BAMPFA: Avocado Iced Coffee and Art-Inspired Cakes

A spread of Chinese food, including meat-stuffed flatbreads, a noodle soup, and slabs of grilled ribs.

Where Chinese Hamburgers Meet ‘Texas’ Barbecue

California Grocery Prices Could Rise if This Self-Checkout Bill Passes, Grocers Argue

Beef shawarma and pickled red onion, serve on a blue corn tostada.

At This San Jose Fusion Restaurant, Mexican and Jordanian Flavors Collide

Illustration: two men devour fried chicken and waffles inside a restaurant.

Keith’s Chicken N Waffles Slings Some of the Bay’s Crunchiest Fried Chicken

The words "Hyphy Burger" are written in blue lettering on a white background of a restaurant.

West Oakland’s Hyphy Burger Celebrates Its Grand Opening

Beyond The MenuBeyond The Menu
Host of Beyond the Menu, Cecilia Philips is holding a giant paper mache pretzel pretending to eat it. The text on the image reads 'Who Invented Pretzels?'

How Pretzels Went From Human Sacrifice To Beer Gardens

A young light-skinned black woman stands in the foreground holding a bottle of chamoy. In the background, a large bottle of chamoy sauce is squeezed onto half an orange.

It’s Mexican, Asian, a Candy, a Sauce…It’s Chamoy

A young light-skinned black woman with long hair holds chile peppers in two outstretched hands. There is a bowl of spicy chile paste behind her.

This Fiery Hot Sauce Uses a Pepper Lost To History

A plate with a piece of fried chicken sitting on top of a waffle next to the show's host, Cecilia Phillips

Chicken and Waffles: from Amish Country to Harlem

A close-up of a metal serving dish with rocky road ice cream scoops topped with marshmallow fluff next to a woman holding a jar of mini marshmallows and almonds in each hand.

The Chilling History of Ice Cream

A close-up of a bag with store-bought corn tortillas next to a woman tearing up a tortilla with her hands.

Your Corn Tortilla Sucks…Science Can Fix It

A smiling woman holding a samosa is positioned against a backdrop that is a closeup of a bowl filled with crispy triangular samosas

Samosas aren’t from India…Wait, what?

A close-up of a birria taco with cheese next to the show's host, Cecilia Phillips.

Your Birria Taco Is Ancient History—Here’s Why

A smiling woman is standing in the kitchen in front of four different sweet buns that each have a flag from their country of origin next to them.

Hong Kong’s Most Popular Treat Has A Surprising Backstory

Check, Please! Bay AreaCheck, Please! Bay Area

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Brezo, Minnie Bell’s Soul Movement, Rise Woodfire Pizza & Rotisserie

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Woody’s at the Airport, Lucy’s on Lighthouse, Home

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: El Bistro By The Sea, Julia’s Vegetarian, Sampa Brazilian Kitchen

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: The Meatery, Hanloh Thai Food, Schooners Monterey

Take a Summer Road Trip as Check, Please! Bay Area Returns to Monterey and Santa Cruz!

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Kahnfections, Twelvemonth, Pucquio

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Got Plate Lunch, Via del Corso, Curry Leaves Bistro

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Skillet'z Cafe, Peony Seafood, Le Papillon

Check, Please! Bay Area reviews: Ethel's Fancy, Cato's Ale House, Kiku Sushi

RecipesRecipes
An array of Rancho Gordo's bagged dry white beans line the background. A silver bowl with cooked shrimp and beans with parsley are in the foreground next to Josh Decolongon, a young bald Filipino man with facial hair and glasses

We Take on Rancho Gordo's Fussiest Heirloom Bean (with Apologies to Kelly Clarkson)

A variety of lemon meringue pies are collaged alongside images of Josh Decolongon, a young bald Filipino man with glasses. Maya Angelou's cookbook is in the lower right corner of the image.

We Recreate Maya Angelou's Magic Lemon Meringue Pie

Young bearded Filipino man wears a green Super Mario Brothers hat. On the left is a plastic skull covered in deli meat slices. Molinari Delicatessen sign in the background.

Creep Out Your Halloween Party Guests With These "Horrors d'oeuvres"

A smiling woman is standing in the kitchen in front of four different sweet buns that each have a flag from their country of origin next to them.

Hong Kong’s Most Popular Treat Has A Surprising Backstory

A big bowl of green pea soup with chives in the background. Jacques pepin stands in the foreground in a blue plaid shirt

Get Cozy with Jacques Pépin's Pea Pod Soup Recipe

A triptych image with a close up of rocky road ice cream on the left, a tray of oatmeal cookies on the right, and a young bald Filipino man with glasses standing over a chocolate ice cream sandwich in the middle

We Recreated an It's-It Ice Cream Sandwich at Home — With an Oakland Twist.

One poached egg, one hard boiled egg, one oueff mollet with brilliant yellow yolks on a plate. Jacques Pepin in foreground looking at the camera.

Jacques Pépin's Tips for Perfectly Cooked Eggs

A baked apple cake with spatula removing a slice

Spiced Apple Upside Down Cake is a Gorgeous and Delicious Holiday Recipe

Slice of savory tart with sweet potato, chard, and a jar of hot honey

This Sweet Potato Galette with Hot Honey is a Cozy Fall Treat

Golden State PlateGolden State Plate

Bay Area Foodie Culture Goes Way Further Back Than California Cuisine

How Rice-A-Roni Became The San Francisco Treat

Golden State Plate: Sriracha’s Journey From Southeast Asia to Southern California

Golden State Plate: Rocky Road Ice Cream's Bumpy History

Golden State Plate – The Backstory Behind California-Born Food and Drinks

Yes, Your 'Tropical' Mai Tai Was Invented Here in Oakland

An Island Drink With California Roots: The Mai Tai Turns 75

Unwrapping the California Origins of the Fortune Cookie

Golden State Plate: Santa Maria Barbecue, It's Not Just Tri-Tip

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