🕵️‍♀️ Sinto Gourmet Kimchi: Fermentation for People Who Want to Feel Alive Again 🕵️‍♀️

Let’s be honest—some days you just want your food to fight back a little. To punch you lovingly in the mouth and whisper, “Wake up, pal.” That’s where Sinto Gourmet Kimchi comes in. Small-batch, hand-crafted, and fermented with the kind of passion usually reserved for reality show confessions, Sinto delivers all the spicy funk, crunch, and probiotic goodness your gut has been secretly texting about.

​

Founder Min Kim started Sinto in San Francisco with a goal: make real-deal Korean kimchi the way her grandmother did—by hand, with heart, and with zero weird preservatives. It's also vegan! This stuff is alive. Like, legally considered sentient in three states alive.

​

• 🌶 Spicy Red Napa Cabbage Kimchi
  ​This one’s the extrovert. A classic, fiery mix of napa cabbage, Korean chili flakes, daikon radish, garlic, ginger, and a whole lot of confidence. It’s bold. It’s brash. It says, “I dare you to put me on eggs, rice, pizza, whatever—I’ll make it better.” This kimchi will haunt your dreams in the best possible way. Bring milk.
  ​
• 🥬 Mild White Napa Cabbage Kimchi
  ​Don’t be fooled by the polite exterior—this one’s a North Korean-style white kimchi that skips the chili but keeps the attitude. It’s got napa cabbage, radish, carrot, scallions, garlic, and a splash of organic apple juice that gives it a refreshing, slightly sweet finish. Think of it as the introvert with a complex backstory and surprisingly wild party stories if you stick around long enough. It’s mild the way an undercover agent is mild.

​

Fun Fact Time! Did you know that kimchi hasn’t always been spicy? Chili peppers didn’t arrive in Korea until the 17th century, courtesy of Portuguese traders. Before that, kimchi was more of a mild-mannered side dish, like Clark Kent before the cape .

​

So next time you’re wandering Ava’s aisles wondering what your sandwich, rice bowl, or boring Tuesday dinner is missing—grab a pack of Sinto. The red one will shout encouragement at you. The white one will make eye contact and say something mysterious. Both will rock your world. 🤘🌎

🍜 Upgrade Your Ramen Game: Because You’re an Adult Now (Legally, at Least) 🍜

Once upon a time, you ate instant ramen that came in a plastic block, with seasoning dust that tasted like salt had a panic attack. It was fine in college. It was fuel. It was… beige. But now? You deserve better. Not “Michelin-starred-chef-wearing-white-gloves” better—just actual flavor better.

​

That’s where Snapdragon comes in. These glorious little noodle bowls are still stupidly easy to make (boil water, don’t burn yourself, done), but they taste like you actually know what you’re doing in life. Even if you absolutely don’t.

​

• 🐔 Chicken Ramen
  ​Real Tokyo-style ramen with a flavorful chicken broth and noodles that don’t taste like packing material. This is what ramen tastes like when it has goals. Bonus: no mystery meat or neon powder packet. Just savory, slurpy, adulting.
  ​
• 🥢 Chicken Pho
  ​This isn’t just soup, it’s Vietnamese-style Chicken Pho, complete with rice noodles, herbs, and a broth that smells like a weekend getaway from your responsibilities. It’s gluten-free, microwaveable, and blessedly MSG-free. It’s like if your lazy Tuesday lunch suddenly got its life together.
  ​
• 🌶 Miso Ramen
  ​Deep Sapporo-style miso broth, classic ramen noodles, and a chili-ginger oil packet that says, “Hey, wanna feel something?” This one brings the heat and the soul. It’s warm, bold, and just unhinged enough to keep things interesting.

​

Fun Fact: Instant ramen was invented in 1958 by Momofuku Ando, who developed it in a literal backyard shed using a glorified popcorn machine. Why? Because post-war Japan needed cheap food that didn’t suck. It later became the first food eaten in space by a Japanese astronaut (talk about "out-of-this world" flavor)!
​

So ditch the dusty noodle bricks of your youth and grab some Snapdragon from Ava’s: bold flavors, easy prep, and zero regret (unless you forget to buy more).

🍜 Recipe: Ava's Super-Lazy Easy Asian Noodle Dish 🍜

Tired? Hungry? Emotionally unavailable for meal prep? Say no more. We present to you: Ava’s Super Easy Asian Noodle Dish, a “recipe” so easy it barely qualifies as an activity.

​

Ingredients:

• 1 bowl of Snapdragon ramen (Chicken, Pho, or Miso—follow your heart)
• Boiling water
• Optional: self-respect

​

Instructions:

1. Boil some water. (We believe in you. You’ve got this.)
2. Open your Snapdragon noodle bowl like you’re unsealing ancient treasure.
3. Remove all the little packets. Add them to the bowl. Pretend you’re a scientist performing extremely tasty lab work.
4. Pour in the boiling water. Be careful! This can be tricky when you're especially tired or distracted.
5. Cover it and wait 3-4 minutes. Use this time to reflect on your life choices, or doomscroll on your favorite billionaire's social network.
6. Stir, slurp, and ascend.
   ​

Pro tip: For extra flair, add a soft-boiled egg, some scallions, or whatever’s wilting in your fridge. Or if you haven't cleaned your kitchen counters in a while, brush them off into the ramen bowl for some extra crunch. (Eww though.)

​

✨ That’s it. That’s the dish. ✨ No chopping. No pans. No existential crises about whether that vegetable is still good. Just warm, savory, grown-up ramen in minutes.

🎉 Ava's Customer Spotlight: Maureen! 🙌

This week we have something new (and special!)… we're sending a huge shout-out to Maureen, a true Ava’s OG who’s been shopping with us since the very beginning. Her loyalty, local pride, and excellent taste (in snacks and soup hacks) make her an absolute gem. Thank you, Maureen, for being part of what makes Ava’s feel like home! 💚

​

1. What keeps you coming back to Ava’s?​
   ​I’ve been shopping at Ava’s weekly since it opened. I believe in having a local market — and to have one, we’ve got to support it regularly. Juan makes it easy by stocking what locals ask for. I like saying hi to the staff — it’s part of the community.
   ​
2. What’s your favorite item we carry?​
   ​Marianne’s Ice Cream, made in Santa Cruz — look for the white quart containers in the freezer. They’ve got great seasonal flavors. Also, check the front freezer for ice cream bars.
   On a very different note, I love the kimchi selection, especially Wildbrine Korean Style (spicy!) and Sinto (a great mild option).
   ​
3. Got a weird snack combo, secret recipe, or food quirk?​
   ​I like Lundberg mini rice cakes topped with CB’s Nuts peanut butter or La Terra Fina’s Cheesy Artichoke & Parmesan spread (back fridge). That cheesy spread is perfect for entertaining — just serve on crackers with white wine or another light drink.
   ​
4. What’s your go-to meal when you’re tired, hungry, and just want something easy?​
   ​Ducktrap Smoke Roasted Salmon makes a salad or omelet into a meal. For the easiest possible dinner: Amy’s Golden Lentil Indian Dal soup. I heat it up and add salted pistachios, a drizzle of olive oil, and a few splashes of Tapatio.
   ​
5. What’s a shopping tip that everyone should know?​
   ​I shop Saturday mornings when parking is easy. Also, Ava’s carries beers you don’t see everywhere, and they’re all refrigerated!

​

Want to be featured next? Got tips, snack secrets, or the world’s easiest dinner recipe? We’d love to hear from you. Just reach out to us at: newsletter@avasmkt.com​

🏆 Best of Mountain View 2025 ✅

The Mountain View Voice's "Best of" voting poll is open! We'd appreciate your support; it really helps! Vote here.​