Eugene Weekly

Once unheard of, boba tea, or bubble tea, features chewy tapioca, or “boba” balls that patrons slurp down with a wide straw, along with a milky iced tea.  “It started in Taiwan in the 1980s,” says D.I.Y. Tea & Beyond owner Richard Zheng. “Now it’s all over the world.”  Zheng says his shop’s boba tea is a standout because of its brewing process, using a tea espresso machine, and the way they prepare the addictive little boba balls themselves:  Continue reading →

Padma Prakash worked as a prep cook at the Oregon Electric Station for more than three decades, she says. It was a hard pill to swallow when management changed in 2014 and slashed her pay. Unsure what else to do, Padma Prakash— with help from her youngest son, Jayant Prakash — opened Crazy Curry, the bright yellow Indo-Fijian food cart on the lonely corner of River Road & Thomas Lane. “I’ve eaten a lot of Indian and Fijian food,” Jayant Prakash says. “Nothing compares to my mom’s cooking.” Continue reading →

There’s nothing else quite like Kun Fusion Grill in Eugene, and that’s the point, says owner Shawn Werner.  Take Kun Fusion’s rice bowl, for example, resplendent with savory chicken, crunchy veggies and mounds of rice topped with a fried egg. It’s fusion food at its very best, combining Korean and Mexican cuisines to delicious effect.  Imagine hefty burritos filled with sumptuous Korean barbecue meat, rice and vegetables, and you’re getting close to picturing just how delightful this cultural combination can be. Continue reading →

Thirty years ago, Abdul-Waheed Wahed was sitting in the Frankfurt airport, waiting for his flight from Germany to Eugene. Wahed, a Kabul native who’d earlier fled the Soviet conflict in Afghanistan, had some time to kill. So, perched at the airport bar in 1986, he had a few drinks. A woman he knew sat down beside him. They shared a whiskey, then a few more. Wahed missed his flight. Continue reading →

Chef Josh Welton’s hairy right forearm has a big tattoo of fried eggs and a side of bacon.  “I really love breakfast. I’m not kidding,” he laughs, patting flour off his black chef coat.  Welton opened Tres Mil Border Cafe a year ago inside 5th Street Market’s food court. On a Sunday morning, he is busy behind the counter, serving up huevos rancheros with thick, house-made corn tortillas and generous spoonsful of sour cream. A reasonable trickle of people stand in line to order breakfast. Continue reading →

According to Jorge Navarro, everyone should go to New Orleans at least once. He traveled to the Louisiana hot spot when he turned 40, and soon after, started Café Navarro, which served New Orleans-inspired dishes in Eugene until 2001. “I consider New Orleans-style food to be the real American culinary tradition,” Navarro says, explaining how the city’s famed Creole cuisine incorporates European, African, Native American and other influences, turning them into something new.   Continue reading →