More Evidence of S.F.'s Fusion Renaissance

By John Birdsall, SFoodie Editor Mon., Jun. 14 2010 at 5:55 PM

Categories: Doggy Bag

Jun Belen

Sisig from Hapa SF: Subtle fusion, maybe, but fusion all the same.

Our favorite morsel from the blogs.

Jonathan Kauffman's response to Michael Bauer's Friday lament re: the death of fusion cuisine had a predecessor. In April, Urban Stomach blogger Alex Hochman echoed (um, pre-echoed?) Kauffman's point that, far from being dead in San Francisco, fusion cooking has never been more evident, or more accessible. Hochman:

Sometime during the late '90s, my tastes, along with the tastes of many San Franciscans, began to change. Don't get me wrong. Despite my teasing, fusion could be delicious.... It just got tired. So as boththe food glitterati and my friends simultaneously started talking up Asian taco trucks and carts, I was hesitant to jump in line. I'm glad that I finally did.

Kauffman made the point Friday that the mashup of California and other cuisines happening at Nopalito, Aziza, Namu, and Hapa SF "represent[s] some of the most vital cooking happening in San Francisco. It's food like this that might finally bust through the French-Italian blockade that stalls creativity at too many traditional California cuisine restaurants." Hochman, too, IDs Namu. Kung Fu Tacos, as well. Point well taken.

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