Sunrise Mart

Thank you Sunrise Mart, for the endless inspiration, weirdness, and MSG. And tasty handsome cans of milk coffee.



Looks straight out of a late 50's school book, no?

Mention in EAT Magazine

A little while back, Sharon Mah emailed me a few questions about vintage kitchenware for an article in EAT Magazine out of British Columbia. It is quite a nice article, I especially like the part where another vintage collector equates vintage kitchenware with the "comfort food" of kitchen tools. Full article here.

I Am Not A Paper Cup

I just got one of these and am pretty happy with it. The folks at Naidre's all seem to like it too. I Am Not A Paper Cups are for sale in lots of online stores, but I found it cheapest at the mother of all internet markets, eBay. It's double walled like a thermos to stay extra warm, and the silicone lid is an extra nice touch. And side by side with a real cup--no diff!

My Crush on Francis Lam

If a man sporting a tatoo of chopstick diagrams weren't enough to make a girl swoon...


From his bio on MediaBistro.com:

Francis Lam is a contributing editor at Gourmet magazine and writes a weekly column for gourmet.com. He is also a regular contributor to the Financial Times. His work has appeared in Wine and Spirits, New York Newsday, nymag.com, and in the 2006, 2007, and 2008 editions of Best Food Writing. He has also worked with several nonprofit organizations. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan, where he went on to teach writing and literature. He is also a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and makes the meanest ratatouille. Francis' three tattoos represent each of the things most important in the world to him: food, art, and love.

Check out his online articles on Gourmet.com. All of them are great, I'd especially recommend reading the recipe for Koshary, which made me really fall for him hard...its like he's right there coaching you in the kitchen. Anywho, break out your favorite vintage enamel cast pots and go for it! I photoed mine here, because since aquiring it, its become one of my favorite objects and always brightens me up when I see it.


Its virtually cookware porn, no? Just reads "Made in Denmark" on the bottom. Search "Denmark" and "enamel" on ebay for similar results, or "Dansk" which makes lots of similar stuffs.

Pyrex Love

I love it when the internet has answers! I've poked around eBay for the names of different Pyrex pieces, seeing whats out there, drooling over the classic "primary colors" set, which my mother has as it belonged to her mother:


for sale on eBay here.

But lo and behold when I wondered about how there must be a better way to identify my Pyrex in store, like duh, ask the internet! A quick search of "guide to vintage Pyrex" landed me on the great Pyrex Love website, with a great photo guide to patterns, FAQ section, and tons of other info. I learned a lot about the pieces I've got in store, and what I want to keep an eye out for. I'd highly recommend checking out their website with its cool articles about how to clean Pyrex, commonly mistaken Pyrex pieces, and other fun stuff. Some of my favorite patterns are "dandelion duet", this unnamed"floral", "spring blossom" (I [personally] have a set!), "starburst"--really there are just so many that are eye catching and covet worthy its hard to pick favorites, just go to the site and browse for yourself!

Here's what I've got in the store right now that's strictly Pyrex--I've also got lots of Fire King, Federal, Inland Glass, and GlasBake.

Large Cinderella "Butterprint" bowl, in need of some cleaning still, $15.

Covered casserole in "Floral Bubbles". Apparently on the website there is some confusion about the printing on the lid. With a specimen in hand here, I can confirm that yes, the flowers are printed on both sides of the glass! $16

"Daisy" oval divided serving dish, $14.

Two "Butterfly Gold" bowls, 1 pt and 1/2 qt, $8 and $12.

"Golden Grapes" Cinderella bowl, 4 qts. This design is special because there is color both on the outside and the inside of the bowl. $18

"Town and Country" Cinderella mixing bowl, 2 qt., $9

"Snowflake" casserole, $10.

"Spring Blossom" Cinderella mixing bowl, 2 qt., $12.

THANK GOD!

Little did I know, until it was saved, that Mother's Cookies filed for bankruptcy in October. Hooray for Kellogg (begrudgingly) for saving this childhood culinary institution of mine. Circus animals here I come! But maybe this is a West Coast thing? I can't remember the last time I saw these in a grocery store in NYC...


I'm having trouble finding any 1st hand news source on this (AP, where you at?) but all the other sites say so, so collective internets info must be true, right? I can has circus animals? Please say I can enjoy delicious cookie coated pastel dipped goodness?

Coming Tomorrow...

So I'm back from Colorado! Shame on me, not one picture of my grandmother's vintage white tree decorated in homemade felt ornaments or one shot of the amazing food. Among the festive highlights, were not one, but TWO different baked brie, broccli coleslaw, and a absolutely decadent chocolate cake by my brothers pastry chef girlfriend. Needless to say, I'm going to be eating pretty light for the next few days.

On another note, here is the tiniest teeniest weeniest sneak peak at our pictures for the new website...

I can hardly wait--I just know they are going to be amazing. Once they download from the FOUR DVDs on which they are.

Check out Brooklyn Kitchen

At 3rd Ward's Handmade Holiday event Sunday (full post to come tomorrow), I got to see tons of amazing crafters and artists and creative people. One of the booths that really caught my eye was from Brooklyn Kitchen of Williamsburg. I got to chat with Harry a minute and admired their great selection of vintage kitchenware.

After checking out their site, Brooklyn Kitchen seems like such a great place for community, with classes like pig butchering (read a great blog post here by Cathy of NotEatingOutinNewYork about it) and knife sharpening, free recipes (with an entire category of ramen!), new kitchenware, and I think its completely brilliant that they also sell vintage/heirloom kitchenware (why don't more businesses have even small selections of vintage merchandise?). I don't get out to the 'burg often, but Brooklyn Kitchen is on my list of places to go!

With so many large retail chains and corporations on shakey ground, it seems like a paradigm shift HAS to take place. Businesses can't be soley driven by monetary profits, but by community building, investment in education, and in bringing joy to people's lives. With the downturn of the economy, my hope is that people broaden their thinking of modern econmics to beyond numbers in a bank accout, but to ways that money can used as a tool to build a happier life. You don't need to buy five DVDs--you should take a class on hoiday pie baking, getting in touch with the alchemy of cooking, and sharing the labors of your love with friends and family.

So here's to Brooklyn Kitchen, a great example of a wonderful small business that's making the world a better place!

PS Their blog is great too!