I am an actual adult woman (debatably mature for 40 years old) and yet I still feel genuinely giddy when I see the light, crispy, gooey, marshmallowy treats on a snack table at a party or bake sale. They’re a treat for all ages, and Katarina Su knows it. She even launched a business around it—Kaisu Bakehouse.
Su previously ran a dumpling pop-up in Atlanta, Georgia, but when it had run its course, she decided to try her hand at something a little sweeter. And who doesn’t like Rice Krispies treats?
“I just thought it was something that was pretty unique,” she explains. In Atlanta, there isn’t as much Asian food or even as many Asian-inspired offerings out there. (Remember we are blessed with Convoy District’s abundance, lest we take it for granted.) So she decided to showcase some of her favorite Taiwanese flavors from her own childhood, plus a few others, onto a familiar canvas—like black sesame, White Rabbit (a chewy milk-based candy popular in China), strawberry Pocky (Japanese snack sticks), and mango sticky rice.
“Matcha strawberry definitely is probably one of my best sellers. Just visually-wise, it’s very pretty,” she says. “Then my s’mores as well—it’s actually one of my favorites too—but it’s kind of just an ode to childhood treats.”
Courtesy of Kaisu Bakehouse
When Su moved to San Diego at the end of 2025, she brought Kaisu with her. Various flavors are available for consumers to order on her website (she says check out her Instagram or TikTok for the latest flavor drops), but she is also getting plugged in with some local businesses and coffee shops to re-launch her pop-ups and get to know the San Diego crowd. Her next pop-up is on Valentine’s Day at Kendra Scott at Fashion Valley, followed by another sometime in March at Easy Does It coffee shop.
As Su settles into San Diego, she says she just wants to bring a little brightness into the world, one treat at a time. “I love seeing people’s reactions to the Rice Krispies treats and putting a smile on their face,” she says. “It’s really just about bringing some sort of happiness, little treat yourself moments and nostalgia back into people’s lives.”
Courtesy of Jaybird Superette
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Jaybird Superette Brings a New England–Style Bodega to La Jolla
When a Per Se alum and a top-tier cheesemonger come together to launch a cheese-and-wine shop meets coffee-and-pastry café meets dry goods store, the setup sounds like it’ll be pretty solid.
Peter Kobulnicky and Hannah Kinney are behind Jaybird Superette, “the New England and Quebecois equivalent of a bodega,” explains Kinney. It’s a hat tip to its hometowns and Kinney’s Canadian heritage, and while both of them sport impressive hospitality resumes—Kobulnicky baked at chef Thomas Keller’s three Michelin-starred Per Se in New York City while Kinney placed 11th in the United States at the 2025 Cheesemonger Invitational Masters, and they both helped open the French-inspired specialty store Nouvelle Maison in Massachusetts—it’s their first foray into partnering up as owners.
Kinney says they’ll offer coffee and pastries in the morning, salads and sandwiches for lunch, plus snacks like cheese and charcuterie boards and tinned fish through the evening. The retail side will focus on small producers, especially from her contacts in the cheese world, plus plenty of low-intervention and biodynamic wine, local beer—really, anything they think is hard-to-find and new to most people. They could have opened anywhere, Kinney says, but settled on San Diego “because it’s the nicest, most beautiful and laid-back city in America with a great, diverse population and food culture,” she explains. Couldn’t have put it better myself.
Jaybird Superette soft opens at 6435 Caminito Blythefield on February 1 with a grand opening over Valentine’s Day weekend. Initial hours will be 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.
After a three-month facelift, George’s at the Cove is back. Well, just about—the Ocean Terrace rooftop dining room and bar will re-open on Friday, February 6, sporting a new look, with new heaters, new tables, and a half-off wine special for the first month for select bottles of Hill Family Estate wines. And while some things have changed, partner/chef Trey Foshee promises the million-dollar view is still the same.
Valentine’s Day sneaks up faster than you’d think, so if you’re ready to start putting together some ideas, a few places around town are already planning lovey-dovey offerings. Mastro’s Ocean Club, the upscale Embarcadero steakhouse, added a chocolate cheesecake special to its menu all February, alongside its deluxe steak and seafood offerings. Hudson & Nash at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront is offering a special menu on February 13 and 14 with options like a rose-poached pear and burrata appetizer and surf-and-turf petite duo with a filet mignon and lobster with a side of truffle mashed potatoes. Special events are just starting to roll out, so keep your eyes open for the right one for you and that special someone.
Taqueria Tijuanazo, Hillcrest hardly knew ye. The Tijuana-based taco shop lasted about a year at 406 University Avenue, but a new family-owned concept opened earlier this month to take its place. Los Cardonas Mexican Restaurant sports a pretty lengthy menu of burritos, tacos, combo plates, and American and Mexican breakfast dishes to satisfy whatever your desire may be seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. I haven’t made it over there yet, but if you have, I’m interested to hear your report. Hit me up at [email protected] with your thoughts.
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Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
