Having survived a particularly nasty form of cancer myself, I try to support the cure whenever I can. When Umami has partnered with @franzborghardt to donate 100% of proceeds to the Susan G Komen Foundation, it’s a no brainer to go check out the special roll and support researching better treatments and results for breast cancer. The surgery for my esophageal cancer was brutal, but the follow up chemo and radiation did not have me puking and losing my hair. The fact that I survived at all was pure dumb luck (a colonoscopy that I had continually put off led to the discovery of a very aggressive form of cancer in an incredibly small window for survival) coupled with the efforts of doctors and researchers across the globe working to improve treatment and survivability of all forms of cancer. I was always tired during treatment, and I had to scramble to find dishes I still wanted to cook and eat. For example, the cheese omelets I had been eating for breakfast were too dry, so I had to resort to sunny side up fried eggs chopped up in a sort of instant grits or oatmeal soup to get by. I lived, when people with my disease always used to die, and my treatment wasn’t nearly as horrible as it could have been and would have been without the extensive research that is ongoing all over the world. The only bright side of ever having cancer is that you know what others face, and it makes you want to help.
Of course, being at Umami I couldn’t just eat the donation roll and go. Chef Cong had fresh sardine on the menu that I had to try. A bit sweeter and drier than mackerel, I liked it a lot and would pick it over mackerel. I still had a bit of room left so I finished with this beautiful sashimi sampler.
