5 incredible SF Bay Area restaurants from La Cocina kitchen incubator - East Bay Times

That favorite Bay Area noodle shop or taco truck? It may have started at La Cocina, the San Francisco Mission District kitchen incubator that helps female immigrants launch food businesses. Today, La Cocina’s footprint stretches far and wide, with 40-plus successful and even critically acclaimed restaurants from Walnut Creek to Larkspur. Here are five of our favorites.

Nyum Bai’s Machoo Manor is a sweet and sour soup made with fried tofu, pineapples and tamarind. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) 

Nyum Bai, Oakland

Nite Yun joined La Cocina in 2014, and her Cambodian pop-up-turned-brick-and-mortar has been garnering accolades ever since. Yun was a 2019 James Beard Award semifinalist for Best New Restaurant, and when you experience her boldly flavored, modern take on Khmer cuisine, you’ll know why. Try the Prahok Ktiss, stir-fried minced pork simmered in coconut milk and prahok, a fermented fish paste, and wash it down with a biodynamic rosé or local brew inside the stylish Fruitvale eatery. Details: Open Wednesday-Sundays at 3340 East 12th St., Suite 11,Oakland; www.nyumbai.com

Veronica Salazar is the brains behind La Cocina-born El Huarache Loco, a popular Mexico City style taqueria in Larkspur. (Photo: Eric Wolfinger) 

El Huarache Loco, Larkspur

You can’t miss chef-owner Veronica Salazar’s bright and colorful taqueria located at the bustling Larkspur Landing. A La Cocina member since 2005, Salazar has created a menu inspired by the street food of Mexico City, like Pambazo, a French roll filled with chorizo and potatoes soaked in guajillo chile sauce then grilled; and her signature huarache, a sandal-shaped corn tortilla filled with beans, topped with salsa, cilantro, onions, cheese and sour cream. Try Pulque, a milky Aztec tipple made from fermented maguey sap. Details: Open daily at 1803 Larkspur Landing Circle, Larkspur; www.huaracheloco.com

Beef empanadas are among the most popular eats at Sabores del Sur near Pleasant Hill Bart in Walnut Creek. (Susan Tripp Pollard/Bay Area News Group) 

Sabores del Sur, Walnut Creek

Located on the outskirts of the Pleasant Hill BART station, this South American gem is known for its buttery, wickedly delicious alfajores. Chef-owner Guisell Harith Osorio joined La Cocina and opened the cafe-style eatery in 2006, and East Bay residents have been flocking there for those cookies and her handmade empanadas ever since. In addition to beef, chicken and veggie empanadas, Osorio offers hard-to-find specialties, like Pastel de Papas, a Chilean-style shepherd’s pie. Details: Open Monday-Saturday at 3003 Oak Road, Suite 105, Walnut Creek; www.saboresdelsursf.com

Onigilly, Palo Alto

Koji Kanematsu’s modern spin on Japanese onigiri — the sushi version of a sandwich — has exploded in the Bay Area since he joined La Cocina in 2009 and opened his first fast-casual eatery in 2012. La Cocina’s first male entrepreneur, Kanematsu stuffs his triangular seawood and California-grown organic brown rice sammies with all the fixings, from spicy shrimp and miso eggplant to salted salmon. Look for an array of offerings at the newest location in Palo Alto, including rice and salad bowls, miso soup and chicken karaage. Details: Open daily at 164 University Ave., Palo Alto, and at four locations in San Francisco; www.onigilly.com

Azalina’s has been a popuar stall inside The Market at 10th and Market in San Francisco since it opened in 2015. (Dan Honda/Bay Area News Group) 

Azalina’s, San Francisco

Fifth-generation street food vendor Azalina Eusope joined La Cocina in 2009 and has been serving her aromatic, crazy-delicious Malaysian dishes, like hokkien mee (turmeric noodles with veggies and charred shrimp) and laksa (a lemongrass coconut milk noodle soup) at the gourmet food hall The Market since 2015.

This past June, Eusope opened Mahila, a fine dining restaurant in Noe Valley. She’s cooked for Barack Obama, the late Anthony Bourdain and Lin Manuel-Miranda, who came to eat at her stall repeatedly during the first “Hamilton” tour. Like singular La Cocina trailblazers Reem Assil and Nite Yun, Eusope is one to watch. Details: Open Monday-Saturday inside The Market, 1355 Market St. Suite 100, San Francisco; Mahila is open Monday-Saturday at 1320 Castro St., San Francisco.

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https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2019/08/24/5-incredible-sf-bay-area-restaurants-from-la-cocina-kitchen-incubator/

2019-08-24 13:55:00Z
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