One thing that I missed the most after coming to US was sourdough bread. I couldn't stand this sweet, sponge-like "bread" that was available here. I didn't have to use fermentation starter in Poland, because there you can get all kinds of fermented foods straight from the store. The explosion of taste I had after I tried my own-made sour bread is beyond means of expression available to human race.

If someone in bay area would like to try baking their own bread, but they don't want to grow the fermentation starter from scratch, let me know, I can share mine. it's based on whole-grain flour, and it's pretty stable (6 months old now!).