History of Acaí

The açaí bowl. Beloved by surfers everywhere, the purple-hued dish was invented by Brazilians, adopted by Hawaiians, and—after a dizzying rise and moderate fall—is now all the rage in San Francisco, too. This made me curious. Where did this bowl of superfuel come from, and how did it go from unknown fruit to 90s buzzword to quasi-mainstream (at least here on the West Coast) breakfast staple?

Turns out, the presence of that pureed berry—imagine a shinier, darker blueberry amped up on antioxidants—is due in part to a mix of martial arts, Amazonian migration, and the willpower of a pair of California surfers.