Top Shot Chris Cheng
  • Social
  • Book
  • Blog
  • About
    • Gear- Pistol
    • Gear- Rifle
    • Gear- Shotgun
    • Other Gear
  • Contact

Fishing and Food, Namu Gaji style

9/30/2013

Comments

 
Picture
When I was a kid, I only went fishing a handful of times, mostly in Lake Mission Viejo, California where I grew up. Lake Mission Viejo is a man-made lake that is stocked with fish each year. I was never able to really catch anything, partially since my Dad and I only fished from the dock:


Picture
This was in the late 80s, and I'm rocking some tube socks with a stylish one-up, one-down look. Anyway, if you didn't notice, yes, there is an actual fish on the end. This was my first fish I ever caught. I have terrible memories of using cheese marshmallows and some sort of weird cheese paste that we'd roll up on the hook. While it was fun spending time with my Dad, it would have been more fun if we had actually caught something substantial.

Fast forward to now, and I've been fishing a bit more than I ever thought I would. I've been fly fishing in Bend, Oregon twice now for rainbows, and once in Astoria, Oregon for salmon fishing. I soon realized that the San Francisco Bay has some pretty awesome fishing, so I decided to Google a local fishing charter and go at it in my own backyard. 

Fishing Game Charters came up and I got connected with Captain Brian Collier. We rolled out at 6AM on a Thursday morning and about an hour later I was catching a bunch of rockfish. 
Early AM rollout.
A beautiful morning.
A bunch of rockfish!
We tried a bit of salmon fishing but they just weren't biting. So our guides recommended that we go fish for leopard sharks. I had no idea that fishing for sharks in the San Francisco Bay was even a thing, and I've never eaten leopard shark so I was intrigued. Before we knew it, the sharks were biting and I caught myself a few. Here's one:
Picture
Before my outing, I had been coordinating with brothers Dennis, Dan, and Dave Lee, co-owners of an awesome restaurant called Namu Gaji here in San Francisco. At Dolores and 18th Street, this New Korean American kitchen cranks out some tasty eats, and is one of my favorite restaurants. I was planning to bring them some fish I caught, and in exchange they would cook it up and let me try some of it. The rest would go to a staff meal and/or snack. 

Chef Dave Lee was telling me about how leopard shark has more "energy" or "qi" (pronounced "chee" in Chinese) and so the fish actually needs to rest about two days before getting filleted. Most fish are best eaten right after death, but leopard shark meat will apparently remain tough unless rested. It's so interesting to learn from chefs who are knowledgeable professionals!

Chef Dennis Lee is skilled with his knife, and when he was harvesting the leopard shark meat, he had to sharpen his knife multiple times through the process. Apparently, leopard shark meat is really tough and dulls a knife faster than other fish and meat. 
Two days after the catch, I went to Namu Gaji with some friends to try the end result. I was anxious to see what Dennis had done with the shark. I decided to let myself be surprised and so I didn't ask Dennis or Dave what to expect ahead of time.

The first dish here is fried shark fillets with a red and yellow pepper sauce and pickled red onions. Quite tasty, and the texture was somewhere in between calamari and chicken. 
Picture
Now the next dish was simple, but very tasty. Chef Dennis made a leopard shark ceviche with fried wonton skins, which we used as chips for the ceviche. Quite an innovative combo, the crunch and light, greasy oil from the chips was a nice complement to the tangy, tender shark meat. 
Picture
There is something very satisfying about eating something you caught yourself. Not only did I have a fun time fishing, but I had a fantastic time eating my catch, prepared by a well known chef. The arrangement has been extended to my future fishing and hunting trips, so I'll definitely plan on posting more stories as they happen.

Duck? Hog? Tuna? Who knows what's next, but I know I can't wait!

Thanks again to Captain Brian Collier and his brother Dan of Fishing Game Charters, as well as brothers Dennis, Dan, and Dave of Namu Gaji! 
Comments

Chris answers fan questions from the Leupold Facebook page

9/27/2013

Comments

 
Picture
Chris was invited to Leupold HQ in Beaverton, Oregon to answer some questions posted to Leupold's Facebook page.

Here are the questions he answered:

- Do they limit your scope choices for long range rifle competitions?

- Do you prefer piston or direct impingement on your gas guns, and why?
- In case of multiple targets at different altitudes, and changing wind, do you prefer crosshair and fine duplex reticles with the use of turrets, or a mil-dot reticle using the dots to compensate for faster drift and drop?
- What is the max range of a 3-gun scope that you would recommend?
- What has proven to be the best training for 3-gun shooting?

Check out Leupold's YouTube Channel for the rest of the videos as they get published (only three of six are currently up). 



And a special shoutout to Jim Morris and his awesome book on how to get 3-gun matches started at your local club!

Picture
Comments

Chris Cheng interview: NRA's Shooting Sports magazine

9/24/2013

Comments

 
Picture
Chris recently sat down with the folks at the National Rifle Association where they were interested in learning more about how Chris got on Top Shot, about his job at Google, and about his guns and gear. 

Q: How did you connect with History's Top Shot?

A: During the very first season of Top Shot, I became more interested in shooting and I started going to my local club regularly. In fact, the AR-15 episode caused me to purchase my first rifle (a Noveske N4 AR-15). I began shooting IDPA matches in 2011 while I was auditioning for Top Shot. For the next five months after auditioning, I was at the range for 25 hours a week, in addition to my work at Google.

Q: Can you summarize the skills needed during Top Shot?

A: Adaptability. Top Shot transcended marksmanship in a couple of ways. We were each given an unfamiliar firearm, told to learn the skills quickly, and then competed at a high level. It was important to be open-minded and comfortable with the unknown, which was exactly the environment I had come from at Google. I had held several positions at Google, where the expectation is to inventory new ideas, form a plan of action and produce a winning solution quickly. Even though I have no law enforcement or military experience, the culture at Google turned out to be excellent preparation for Top Shot, along with my shooting experiences. 


Read the full interview at http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nra/ssusa_201309/#/40.

Comments

A Shot and a Beer

9/24/2013

Comments

 
PicturePhoto by Patricia Chang
One thing that I love as much as guns, is food. Seeing as guns are used by many hunters as a way to harvest meat from the land, there is a natural connection between the guns and food. Having grown up in Orange County, California where many kids think meat comes from the grocery store in styrofoam containers, over the past year I've enjoyed gaining a greater appreciation for where real food comes from. 

A group of restaurant chefs and friends formed a supper club called The Stag Dining Group that holds clandestine 'pop-up' dinners throughout San Francisco, which is home for me. One of their dinners is called "A Shot and a Beer" where diners got to take five shots on a skeet field. Hosted by The Pacific Rod & Gun Club in San Francisco, the setting is picturesque where shooters bust clays over Lake Merced. Only steel shot with biodegradable wads are permitted to ensure a minimal impact on the environment. After the shooting is over, the guns get put away, and diners are treated to a multi-course meal that is paired with some fantastic local beer. 

Picture
I was a shotgun instructor for the Shot and a Beer event, and I had just completed my NRA Instructor Certification course a few days prior. One of the challenges of this particular event is to quickly give a shooter instructions so we could move through the sixty or so attendees. My main focus was of course safety, and the second, I wanted to ensure each shooter hit at least one of their five clays. For skeet shooters in the know, we were shooting at Station Seven on an American Skeet field. 

We were using my Benelli Vinci autoloader 12 gauge. I was impressed with how many brand new shooters were busting clays, and I had to resist my urge to give more comprehensive training, due to the small amount of training time allotted. Regardless, the sun was shining bright and the weather was perfect for some shotgunning. 

After about an hour and a half of shooting, the group transitioned into the dining area where we were treated with Almanac brewery beers. Chef Jordan Grosser and crew put together a really nice menu for the evening (menu link).


Here are some great pictures of the food. 
Between each course, the chef and brewer would talk about the food and why the beer complemented that particular dish. As for Almanac beer, I hadn't had much of it before but will now keep an eye out for it when I'm shopping for beer or at a restaurant. In particular, the sour beer was perfectly paired with the 5 spice grilled quail. 

During the meal, I had an opportunity to speak to many of the diners who were first time shooters. Their main attraction to the event was the food, and many of them had always wanted to shoot a gun but didn't know where to start. I really enjoyed bringing a first time shooting experience to attendees. 

Toward the end, I was given a few minutes to talk about where my background and interest in food came from. When I was growing up, my mother cooked homemade meals for almost every dinner. My family is always talking about food, even when we're eating a meal, we're often talking about meals of the past, and meals to come. Enjoying the Stag Dining Group meal reminded me of where I came from, and that appreciating locally sourced, responsibly grown, and freshly cooked food made for a fantastic dining experience. 

I look forward to introducing skeet shooting to future Stag Dining attendees. Pairing together a positive shooting experience with a stellar dining experience is a winning combination!

www.StagDining.com. 

Picture
Stag Dining co-founder Matthew Homyak takes skeet instruction from Chris Cheng. Photo by Chelsea Larsson.
Comments

Top Shot Dustin Ellermann's Ultimate Zombie Rifle

9/9/2013

Comments

 
The title should say it all.

Enjoy!
Comments

More behind the scenes Top Shot All-Stars Pics

9/5/2013

Comments

 
Picture
Exclusive behind the scenes pictures from Top Shot Season 5: All-Stars are now available!


The control room, the Top Shot Tahoe Q5i speed boat, and the final dinner are just a few of the cool pics to be seen.

Check them out here: http://www.topshotchris.com/top-shot-season-5-all-stars-part-ii.html

Comments

    About this SITE

    Chris shares his experiences and perspectives on the fun he's having shooting guns all over the country.

    Subscribe to Email Updates:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Archives

    July 2017
    October 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013

    Categories

    All
    2nd Amendment
    3-Gun Nation
    Chris Cheng
    Culture
    Gun Control
    Guns
    Hunting
    #ImUnloading
    Interview
    Legal
    LGBT
    Musical Targets
    NOIR
    NRA
    NRA Commentators
    NRA Freestyle
    NRA News
    Policy
    Politics
    Second Scoop
    Shoot To Win
    Tech
    The Firearm Blog
    Top Shot
    World

    RSS Feed

Subscribe to Email Updates:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Top Shot Chris Cheng

Blog
Book

Social Media
Schedule
Contact