Japanese Koji Kitchen & Market To Open In SF

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Aedan Koji Kitchen, the first market location for Aedan Fermented Foods' owner and Japanese koji food master, Mariko Grady, will open Thursday on York Street in San Francisco.

“For the last 10 years, I’ve been working towards the goal of opening my own brick-and-mortar storefront to not only sell my traditional fermented foods, but to share my Japanese culture” said Grady, a Japanese native, who came to the Bay Area as a singer-dancer in a Tokyo theater troupe.

“The name Aedan comes from two Kanji characters, meaning to hand down wisdom from generation to generation," she said.

Aedan Koji Kitchen will sell such traditional Japanese fermented products as miso paste, shio koji (an all-purpose marinade), plus warm barley and hojicha teas and takeout bento boxes ($15-$20), featuring tofu, chicken, fish or mushrooms marinated in shio koji, miso soup, sagohachi cucumber pickles, and tamagoyaki (a Japanese-style omelet).

In 2011, armed with recipes from her grandfather’s miso-making business and her mother’s at-home dishes, Grady launched a fundraiser selling her fermented products to aid victims of the devastating tsunami that struck Japan. The effort led to her joining La Cocina, a Bay Area non-profit kitchen incubator program, providing her access to commercial kitchen space, local farmers markets and such restaurant opportunities as Lazy Bear, Atelier Crenn and Slanted Door.

"The popularity of Mariko’s delicious and authentic fermented foods spread quickly, and, after the fundraiser, came more requests for her products," the company said.

As for her upcoming storefront opening, Grady said: "I’m overjoyed to have a permanent space of my own to continue to pass down the traditions of making and using Japanese fermented foods.”

Aedan Koji Kitchen, at 613 York St., will be open Tuesdays through Fridays 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. offering lunch-time bento boxes, plus market shopping for miso pastes, shio koji, amazake, sagohachi and more. Monthly miso-making and cooking with koji classes will be offered the first Sundays of each month, operators said.

For more about Aedan Koji Kitchen, its classes and offerings, follow this link.

----

IN OTHER AREA DINING & RECIPE NEWS ON PATCH:

• Bold, New Pizza Joint In SF Has A No-Food-Waste Mission
• SF Chef Shares His Mom's 'Zurcher Geschnetzeltes' Swiss Family Recipe
• Souvla To Open Dogpatch Restaurant With Extended Greek Menu