Martha Cheng

“Could be dangerous, but the waves look good.” - Dave @alaiamentawai A broken nose and too many reef cuts, but the waves and the people (the people! ❤️) are excellent and totally worth it.

A little bit obsessed with Padang, with its grilled seafood (including uhu!), chilies, rooftops shaped like buffalo horns, and not least, the breakfast buffet at Santika. 1) Grilled fish and prawns and Indonesian banchan at Fuja: jengkol (dogfruit), cassava leaves, bittermelon, chilies and eggplant, and of course, sambal 2, 3, 4) chilies, chilies, chilies 🌶️ 5) sunset vibes 6, 7) Grand Mosque of West Sumatra 8) Market 9) Bakso, meatball noodle soup 10) Duck and gado gado at Bebek Sawah 11) Cendol with durian 12) More jengkol 13, 14) too many bags of papaya and seagrass 15) bustling beachfront 16) Pandan buns at Santika

From a few years ago: Guy Tamashiro, with a sampler of poke, from “da real kine” with real crab and scallop, and my favorite, ginger marlin. The crab in front is actually a mechanical one that used to wave its legs and flash its eyes. But Tamashiro turned it off decades ago, worried about the rust damage, “and then you get crab legs all over the parking lot,” he says. What will happen to the crab now?

Spring semester

I thought I knew Turin from Terra Madre visits and adventures with @victoriacorkhill , but these insiders—Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, Sarah Cosulich, Fulvio Ferrari, Gaia Repossi, and Eugenio Signoroni—let me in on so many captivating spots…as well as Turin’s occult side 🌕 Read about them here: /2026/02/06/t-magazine/turin-italy-guide-hotels-restaurants.html There’s so much more that didn’t make it in, like when Carolyn went to 9 historic cafes for her birthday, or the palazzo she was calling me from, with 18th century books strewn about, and vitello tonnato, which I’ve grown to appreciate, and the strangeness of Casa Mollino, with its Egyptian symbols and stories of Carlo Mollino, “between legend and reality.” And Porta Palazzo! From my recent visit: - Pinacoteca Agnelli repurposing the ramp and former Fiat rooftop car test track (also seen in the 1969 The Italian Job 🚗 ) - Museo Schneiberg’s collection of Chinese imperial carpets, woven with silk and metal - Caffè Mulassano’s bicerin

‘Ulu blueberry animal crackers 🐘 🐪 🦛 being made at @diamondbakeryhawaii , which celebrates 104 years today 🎉 (I feel like I’ve waited my entire life to watch animal crackers being made.)

Fruits of others’ labor. Summer harvests and parking lot handoffs. Thank you for sharing with this fruit fiend 💚

Tomomi Nakashima first looked for work in the library when she was a student at the University of Utah because “I like libraries, they’re cool in the summer, warm in the winter,” and she hoped by shelving books “I don’t have to talk to people.” But the position had been filled so she was offered a job in the preservation department. Now, she and Joyce Tuia restore and preserve books: They have cleaned and rescued a scrapbook of invitations issued during King Kalākaua’s reign; restored a hundred-year-old songbook, reinforcing its pages with Mino washi, a traditional type of paper made in the Gifu prefecture, where Nakashima is from; and mended many childhood books and family Bibles.  I guess I have to thank @griffin_shepherdmix for destroying a rare book, leading me to search for local book printers and restorers and to Kuro’s Workshop. When Tomomi repaired my book, she returned it to me with a “patient record,” a list of repairs and materials used. Since that first library job “I have always worked with books,” she said. “I cannot think about my life without books.”

Have been so honored to serve on the @beardfoundation Restaurant and Chef committee the past four years to celebrate some of the most hardworking chefs, bartenders, and restaurateurs in the business. I’ve been proudest of our committee’s work in highlighting regions and voices that had often been overlooked, from Hawai‘i to Alaska to the Rio Grande Valley, and in the midst of utter turmoil in recent years. Restaurants will not solve our problems, but I keep hoping they will give a face to them and the solace and sustenance for tackling them. Congratulations to all the semifinalists, nominees and winners, past and present and those to come.

Rice 🌾 and kalo 💚

Interstitial @alaiamentawai including desserts by @natsukoshibata every night 💕

Surf trip of a lifetime. We’d spend hours watching and riding these waves and every night I’d close my eyes and see them unfurl again on repeat. Thanks Kelly for making the dream surf trip happen when I had given up on surf trips. @fysiohi for putting me back together (more or less) so I could go. And Nat and Dave and Riku at @alaiamentawai for all the warmth and beauty in the details…and the photos.