Luke Tsai

SF’s Most Legendary Chicken Phở Is Now Available Until 3 a.m. | KQED Turtle Tower does the Marina.

Turtle Tower opened a brand new location on Fillmore — and it's dishing out hot phở until 3 a.m. on weekends. Read the latest from KQED's Midnight Diners 🍜 ⬇️

SF’s Most Legendary Chicken Phở Is Now Available Until 3 a.m. | KQED Turtle Tower does the Marina.

Pleased to report that the chicken pho at the new Turtle Tower in the Marina is still good—and available until 3 a.m. on weekends! (Whether that's worth braving the Marina late at night on a weekend is your call...😅) www.kqed.org/arts/1398694...

SF’s Most Legendary Chicken Phở Is Now Available Until 3 a.m. | KQED Turtle Tower does the Marina.

Pleased to report that the chicken pho at the new Turtle Tower in the Marina is still good—and available until 3 a.m. on weekends! (Whether that's worth braving the Marina late at night on a weekend is your call...😅) www.kqed.org/arts/1398694...

But wait...I'm all for immigrant businesses getting paid, but $20 banh mi is *wild*, even in this economy.

How Dzui’s Became San José’s Favorite Durian Dessert Shop | KQED The bakery’s bánh pía pastries are a Chinese-Vietnamese family’s 40-year legacy.

Just in time for the New Year, I wrote about my new favorite pastry: the super-flaky, *durian*-filled bánh pía from Dzui's in San Jose. www.kqed.org/arts/1398680...

How Dzui’s Became San José’s Favorite Durian Dessert Shop | KQED The bakery’s bánh pía pastries are a Chinese-Vietnamese family’s 40-year legacy.

Just in time for the New Year, I wrote about my new favorite pastry: the super-flaky, *durian*-filled bánh pía from Dzui's in San Jose. www.kqed.org/arts/1398680...

Spread of home-cooked Chinese dishes: red-cooked pork belly and eggs, a whole steamed fish, greens, steamed egg.

Happy New Year to all who celebrate! 🐴🧧🎊

It’s a Golden Age for Asian-Style Afternoon Tea in the Bay Area | KQED Scones and clotted cream come with a side of pandan and curry.

Wrote about the rise of *Asian-style* afternoon tea in the Bay Area. www.kqed.org/arts/1398660...

It’s a Golden Age for Asian-Style Afternoon Tea in the Bay Area | KQED Scones and clotted cream come with a side of pandan and curry.

Love to go out for (Asian) high tea. www.kqed.org/arts/1398660...

Like 75% of the US Olympic curlers are from Minnesota. A lot of them curl out of two clubs in Saint Paul, one club is in Frogtown, a neighborhood that has been very heavily targeted by ICE. These curlers are good neighbors.

the bushes were people 😂

OK "god bless america" and then naming every country in the americas from south to north is absolute king shit

Free Images and Open Access | National Gallery of Art Free open access image downloads are now available directly from the object pages located on this website. Close to 60,000 images are available for download, and we will continue to add more images fo...

Regarding the Discourse, lemme just say that if you can't draw, yes you can.

Everyone can draw, and folks will almost certainly respond more positively to your stick figures than some generic "A.i." slop.

Also, there are LOADS of resources for free images. Like this! 🧵

www.nga.gov/artworks/fre...

A New South Bay Restaurant Specializes in Decadent Japanese Seafood Bowls Yaichi brings kaisendon and fresh-made udon to a Milpitas shopping plaza.

If you feel like treating yourself this weekend, these seafood bowls are really, really great. www.kqed.org/arts/1398636...

Comic community responds to ICE detention with art for Liam Comic artists across the U.S. and beyond have launched the #Comics4Liam campaign, creating artwork inspired by 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos’s Spider-Man backpack to protest his detention by ICE and hi...

“I don't know Liam... but if he's wearing that Spider-Man backpack, I feel like we told him stories about heroes and about heroes protecting people,” comic artist Greg Pak says. ”In that moment, those stories were a lie, and that makes me sick to my stomach, because he was not protected.”

This Hong Kong Cafe Might Be the Most Affordable New Restaurant in the East Bay Richmond’s Grand Cafe is known for its claypot rice bowls and budget-friendly prices.

In praise of the (increasingly rare) $10 lunch. www.kqed.org/arts/1398625...

For Liam.

Sunday, February 1 is the LAST day for the DeYoung Museum's "Art of Manga" exhibit -- if you're planning on going this weekend, be sure to buy tickets in advance, as it'll likely be crowded.

www.famsf.org/exhibitions/...

Best gas masks “How did these people go out and get gas masks?” AG Bondi asked.

me, emotionally writing an essay on the use of force by federal agents: ok but what if i packaged this in the most insane way possible www.theverge.com/policy/86857...

This San José Food Truck Is One of the Only Dominican Food Spots in the Bay El Fogon d’Geny is repping the Dominican Republic with its mofongo, pica pollo and assortment of hearty stews.

You can now get Dominican food in San Jose! @tavos-kitchen.bsky.social with the report. www.kqed.org/arts/1398593...

ICE are alllll over Harlem right now, 116 & Frederick Douglass, checking IDs and targeting the area’s African community. Multiple people have been detained.

Community members are advising folks to carry citizenship documents - or stay away if they are at risk

What We Will Lose When California College of the Arts Closes After the closures of the San Francisco Art Institute and Mills College, the announced end of CCA hits triply hard.

Wrote this for all my art school friends, teachers and nemeses; for CCA's patient and helpful staff; for my library coworkers; my media services pals; for all the baby artists who won't get to go this art school:

www.kqed.org/arts/1398541...

What the ‘Asian Market Boom’ Is Missing: An Ode to Pacific East Mall As shiny, new Asian grocery stores are hailed as retail "saviors," the decades-old Pacific East Mall in Richmond shows how immigrant cultural spaces matter beyond their economic benefits.

Love, love, love this @coyotemedia.org essay about Pacific East Mall from my colleague (and fellow Albany kid) @cecilialei.bsky.social.

Also it's Ranch 99. I did not realize this was up for debate www.coyotemedia.org/asian-market...

KQED Radio - Tune in Live Radio | KQED Stay connected and informed by tuning into KQED's radio for engaging news, captivating stories, and thought-provoking conversations.

🎙️ON AIR:

We're talking to @kqedfood.bsky.social's Luke Tsai and Octavio Peña, and @laurensaria.bsky.social about their picks for what you should nosh on in 2026.

❓What's a restaurant or dish you recommend trying in 2026?

📻 Listen:

Mama Go’s Serves the Best Late-Night Airport Food at SFO The home-style Filipino meals — including breakfast at 3:30 a.m. — are a surprising find in Terminal 1.

My one travel tip, if you’re flying out of SFO this holiday season. www.kqed.org/arts/1397835...

This Gas Station Food Truck Serves Amazing Kyrgyz Street Food in Santa Clara Vostok is dishing out piping-hot shawarma and plov until 11 p.m. every night.

Located in the parking lot of a Santa Clara gas station, Vostok’s Kyrgyz-style shawarma wraps and wok-fried noodles are served piping hot, from noon to 11 p.m. daily. Latest from KQED's Midnight Diners:

Your One Beautiful Thing from 2025 | KQED This year’s picks include handwriting letters, supporting a struggling artist and taking a solo trip to follow a band on tour. And, we want to hear from you, what was the One Beautiful Thing in your l...

Catch me, @ogpenn.bsky.social and @theluketsai.bsky.social on Forum this morning, from 9–10am.

(Wish I could say we'll have dogs in the studio!)

88.5 FM / kqed.org

I'll be on this episode, talking about how bad I am at crossword puzzles! 😅