Posts Tagged ‘Kalihi’
Kalihi Eats: Palace Saimin
We continue here with part 2 of 3 in our “saimin series”, hot off the heals of the last stop at The Old Saimin House, where now we’re here at Palace Saimin, which is literally right across the street. King Street that is, in the heart of historic and scenic Kalihi, or as we like to say here at The Tasty Island, “The Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe”, a.k.a. “God’s Country”.
Reading over the numerous positive Yelp reviews, the bottom line appears to be unanimous that if you’re looking for truly “Old School Saimin” done the way it should be, Palace Saimin is where it’s at. Shoots. Hook. Me. Up.
Palace Saimin is located at 1256 North King Street on the mauka side, not far down the street Daimond Head-bound of the Kapalama (Kalihi) Post Office (if you don’t understand those Oahu-kine directions, Google it). It’s on the ground floor of a walk-up nondescript apartment building, making it truly a hidden gem that you could easily pass by if you weren’t looking for it.
There’s very limited parking in the front of the building, and this place tends to pack a lunch hour crowd, so if you plan to eat here, it’s highly recommended to arrive early, lest you there not be parking (there’s also very limited parking along King Street during the work week). Arrive in the heat of the noon-time lunch hour rush, and chances are you’ll also have to wait in line outside, where notice they have stools in front, which indicates just how busy they get! Seriously.
Once inside, Like The Old Saimin House — or any hole-in-the-wall gem for that matter — you’ll find a very small dining room that can seat I’d estimate no more than 30 people at a time…
Kinda’ like Hamura’s on Kauai, Palace Saimin has at least one communal table in the center that you share with anyone and everyone who’s there, which I think is great, as you get to meet the Palace Saimin “regulars” (and really nice local folks) as I did on my visit.
You notice whenever I review restaurants, along with the food, I also I like to showcase the artwork they decorate with, which truly reflects the owners’ background and interests that they want to share with their customers, family and friends…
Speaking of owners, the history of Palace Saimin goes like this…
THE PALACE SAIMIN STORY
Palace Saimin was the vision of Kame Ige, who immigrated from Okinawa in 1924. Mrs. Ige named the restaurant “Palace Saimin” after the Palace Theater on Beretania Street. The shop was opened in 1946 near the theater and the Palace Saimin experience began.
In 1950 Palace Saimin moved next to Tamashiro Market on King Street and again in 1960 to the existing location. In 1975 Mrs. Ige decided to offer the stand to one of her trusted waitresses Felice “Setsuko” Arakaki (“Mama”).
Mrs. Arakaki has been working hard with Mrs. Yoshiko “Aunty Yoshi” Takahashi, (waitress for over 40 years) and the rest of the friendly staff to serve the customers and keep the tradition alive. In 2010 Mrs. Arakaki’s son-in-law agreed to support the business and put forth his best effort to keep the tradition alive. We look forward to keeping Palace Saimin around for the generations of the past to enjoy, and the future generations to experience.
Keeping the tradition alive for generations to come, indeed. In fact, “Aunty Bobo”, a Palace Saimin regular who I met and sat next to on that communal table on one recent visit, told me she’s been coming here regularly for over 47 years (her whole life), and pointed out the baby chair they have there, is the same chair her daughter sat in when she was just a baby…
Her daughter is now 30 years old, and now HER daughter (Aunty Bobo’s grandaughter) sits in this same baby chair at Palace Saimin. Is THAT AWESOME and heartwarming or what?!!! Generation to generation to generation of saimin tradition, fo’ real ‘kine!
Oh, do you enjoy central air conditioning? Of course you do. Well, Palace Saimin has that, albeit done the old school way…
Classic! Cool, too, as it almost feels like there’s this tradewind effect swirling around in what would otherwise be a very arid and muggy, closed room environment (no A/C).
Now that we have the history and place covered, let’s check out Palace Saimin’s menu…
That’s pretty darned GREAT prices. Most of which are much cheaper than The Old Saimin House which was already very good, save for the BBQ Stick, which is 35 cents more here at .25 each vs. The Old Saimin House which are .90 each. BUT, at least here they really GRILL it! More on that later.
Now you might be asking yourself , “What the heck is “Saidon”?” Well, it’s pretty easy to figure out: SAI(min)+(u)DON=SAIDON. Then what’s the mathematical formula for the “Combination” you may ask? Easy: SAI(min)+(u)DON+WONTON=COMBINATION. In other words, EVERYTHING they have to offer, all in one bowl, sans the BBQ Stick. Shoots, they should just throw that in there too! lol
And that’s pretty much it. No plate lunches, nor burgers, nor candies ‘n snack ‘n shave ice on the side, and God forbit, no “fru fru” stuffs. This is a Saimin Stand through and through and to the core. Hardcore. All you’ll find on the other half of the menu are their business hours, phone number and customer appreciation message…
You have to love this place already without even haven eaten yet.
Before we get da’ grindz, let’s see what have for table condiments here at Palace…
Same as The Old Saimin House, where I must note here they use my favorite shoyu brand, Yamasa, as I find Y amasa strikes a good balance between the more milder taste of Aloha and the salty, bold flavor of Kikkoman.
But does Palace Saimin’s broth NEED condiments to kick it up? Or is it fine just the way it is, OEM? We shall soon find out!
Hai, itadakimasu (let’s eat)!
First to arrive at the table are the standard saimin stand “tools of the trade”, a set of hashi (chopsticks), renge (soup spoon) and (Coleman’s) mustard, which you of course add shoyu and stir thoroughly for use to dip your noodles, charsiu garnish and/or wontons into.
And here it is in all its glory, my Palace Saimin’ Saimin (small order) and (Teri’ Beef) BBQ Stick…
Palace Saimin – small Saimin and BBQ Stick (with Coleman’s mustard and shoyu dipping sauce)
Tell me you wouldn’t want to be sitting where I’m sitting at this moment in time, with this staring at you, just seconds away from devouring it? Good LORD, there is a heaven.
Let’s zoom in…
Palace Saimin – small Saimin, .75
I immediately notice the broth here at Palace has a richer, more colorful tone than the light-looking broth at The Old Saimin House. Come to find out from 47-year regular “Aunty Bobo”, they use shrimp AND pork in the broth here. Ex. Cel. Lent! Surely there’s other secret “ingrediments”, but if that’s the gist of it, I’m already a happy camper.
As for garnish, there seems to be a trend that Kamaboko and sliced egg omelet is out of the picture at both Old Saimin House and here at Palace. That’s the only thing I scratch my head at, as I think those two are important ingredients that truly complete the dish. What’s even more perplexing about that is the fact that Okuhara Kamaboko factory is right down the street! Wassup’ wit’ ‘dat?!!! Next time I going come here da’ kine “BYOK” (bring your own Kamaboko). I bet da’ waitress and guests would trip out. lol!
Oh, before I continue, here’s Aunty Bobo’s Wonton Min…
Palace Saimin – large Wonton Min, .25
Getting back to my Saimin, note I took this shot after already having eaten the saimin, but can surely attest, based on broth alone, I have definitely found THE BENCHMARK OLD SCHOOL SAIMIN right here at Palace!…
There’s certainly a background hint of shrimp, while the pork bones “umamifies” it, or in other words, gives it an added dimension of “meaty-ness”. Yet it’s all still subtle and not as much a predominant element like it is in Japanese Ramen, where the broth is the central focus. Here, the broth more like gently carries the noodles and garnish than it does take it along for the ride, if you know where I’m getting at. It definitely DOES NOT need any of those table condiments unless you’re really starved for more salt and spices. It’s pretty much perfect just the way it straight outta’ the kitchen. I’m not saying you shouldn’t add anything else, just that you really don’t need to. Broth=”CHERRY”. lol
Rewind back now, and let’s slurp some saimin noodles done “Palace style”…
Like The Old Saimin House, Palace Saimin also sources their noodles from Eagle Noodle Factory. And the noodles here are indeed cooked a little more (softer) than the more firm doneness at OSH. It’s still acceptable, but if I had a choice, I’d take I’d prefer it cooked like OSH does it. Flavor-wise, Also like OSH, Palace’ noodles are somewhat neutral in flavor, without any of that egg-like undertone from the potassium and sodium carbonate (Kansui) that Sun Noodle uses.
Oh well, no egg, as mentioned earlier, since there’s no kamaboko or sliced egg to be had here, all’s left to try is the sliced Charsiu pork and green onions…
Spot on in flavor, moist ‘n tender Charsiu. She go. I must note they also are a little more generous in portion compared to OSH in that regard.
Summing up Palace Saimin’s Saimin, solid 4 SPAM Musubi, with a broth that taste just how “old school” Hawaii saimin broth should taste. If it had Kamaboko and slice egg omelet, I’d give it a 5.
I enjoyed it so much that I “polished’ the bowl….
Moving along, let’s try the BBQ Stick…
Palace Saimin – (teriyaki beef) BBQ Stick, .25
Of course I didn’t eat the BBQ Stick AFTER the saimin, but along with it, as you should.
Come to find out from Palace Saimin regular Aunty Bobo, you can request to have your BBQ Stick “Koge” or burnt on the edges, a.k.a. “Papa’a”…
Palace Saimin – BBQ Stick done “Koge” style (seared edges, free service upon request)
What I also found out is that the way they “Koge” their Teri Beef BBQ Sticks is by searing it with a handheld propane torch, an old trick chefs use to make Crème brûlée. Hey, whatever works! All I know is next time I’m gettin’ mine BBQ Stick “Koge’d” like Aunty’s are.
Let’s have a bite…
Oishii (delicious). It’s not heavily marinaded in Teriyaki sauce, which I like, as I want to taste the beef. The medium-cooked beef itself is a little tough, but tolerable. While I didn’t ask, my guess is this is cut is no better than your average top round choice. Huge thumbs-up for serving it on a plate in a puddle of the (thin) Teriyaki sauce, which also has little bits of burnt beef in it, as that helps to add moisture to the medium-cooked beef, so every bite is tasty, moist ‘n juicy from start to finish. Nice.
3 SPAM Musubi for Palace Saimin’s BBQ Stick.
I enjoyed my lunch so much at Palace Saimin, that I returned a week later with Diner A and C to join me! This time around, Diner A ordered the Large Saimin and BBQ Stick, where both he and I requested some “Koge action” for our “sticks”…
Palace Saimin – “Koge” BBQ Sticks and large Saimin
A closer look at his large Saimin…
Palace Saimin – large Saimin, .50
Deciding to try something a little different, Diner E ordered Wonton Udon…
Palace Saimin – small Wonton Udon, .00
And yours truly went for the Combination (Saimin, Udon and Wonton)…
Palace Saimin – large Combination (Saimin, Udon & Wonton), .25
Zoom in on my Combo’…
Here I dug up all the three different types of noodles so you can see it better…
Talk about carbo’ load. Makes you wanna’ run the 26k just looking it. lol
This time around I added some black pepper, as that’s what I usually add to my saimin when not in taste-testing mode…
Very, very consistent. The broth tasted EXACTLY the same as on my previous visit, save for my personalized addition of black pepper.
Let’s try the Wonton (notice the spelling, where as OSH spells it “Wun Tun”)…
Like the softer-cooked saimin noodles, the wonton are also cooked on the soft side. Which one diner who was waiting outside told me he prefers The Old Saimin House’s Wun Tun better because it’s firmer and has a better filling. Although he prefers the broth here at Palace. Sounds about right. The pork filling was kinda’ “manini” (skimpy), but I suppose adequate enough to validate it. It was also pretty basic, tasting simply like ground pork and that’s it. No green onions, onions or other veggies in it. Good though. I have no complaints. I definitely need to try OSH’s Wun Tun Min so I can compare the two, but that’s a different story for another day.
Let’s go for the dunk in the hot mustard shoyu…
Oh yeah, ‘das da’ winnah’ right deah’ ( that’s the winner there lol)! So funny how no matter what, once the food hits that Coleman’s Mustard and Shoyu, you get immediately transported to a Chinese restaurant.
Let’s try the Udon now (this next shot is actually shot Diner E’s bowl, but I had Udon in mine too)…
Diner E agrees with me that the Udon, while good in and of its fat, fat noodle self, doesn’t quite work as a substitute for traditional Saimin noodles. I think because the mild nature of Saimin broth doesn’t quite cling or absorb well into the fat, slick Udon noodles. So when you eat the Udon, that’s all you taste is noodle, as the broth just slips on back into the bowl, barely clinging any of its flavor on the Udon. That’s pretty much the best way I can describe it.
The finer, more absorbent nature of traditional Saimin noodles holds onto the broth like glue in comparison when you slurp it up.
You can hear “SLURP, SLURP, SLURP” just looking at that.
Overall, the combination of textures between the thin Saimin noodles, fat Udon noodles and slippery-soft wontons made for unique “noodle soup” eating experience and certainly an option other saimin stands should follow.
Let’s try some Saimin noodles and Charsiu in the Coleman’s…
Winnahz. Dig that “clear-your-sinuses” effect that hits you first, then you taste the noodles and Charsiu soaked in Shoyu that immediately follow and it’s like POW!
Moving along to our “Koge” BBQ Sticks, you see how much more seared they are then on my previous visit…
Here you can see on this visit they’re also cooked to medium doneness…
Personally I would have liked it even more “koge” then that,, where it looked more like the ones Aunty Bobo had on my previous visit. So if you like REALLY “koge”, tell them so. I know I will. Still, those seared edges added a whole lot more flavor and but the BOLD in BBQ. Winnahz.
Summing it up, I give my Combination Saimin/Udon/Wonton Min at Palace Saimin a very solid 4 SPAM Musubi, and once again would give it a 5 if had Kamaboko and sliced egg omelet. Diner E gave his Udon 2 SPAM Musubi, while I must note, he and I ate here a few weeks prior where he ordered the saimin, to which he gives a very solid 3, which to you and I would be either a 4 or 5.
Diner E gave his Saimin a 4, and surprisingly, the BBQ Stick a 3, which I think is because both and Diner A prefer their Teri Beef SOAKED DEEP with Teriyaki marinade, which I’m opposite in that regard.
As for service, very, very friendly and quick, where on all three recent visits, my/our order landed on the table within a 4 to 10 minute window.
So the benchmark of what old school Hawaii saimin should taste like has been found right here in beautiful downtown Kalihi at Palace Saimin!
Now with my taste buds educated on “Saimin 101″, next up, a review on Sun Noodle’s new S&S “Old Time Island Style” Saimin featuring “traditional shrimp soup base”.
Palace Saimin
1256 North King Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
Tel. (808) 841-9983
The Tasty Island rating:
(4) Excellent. Worth another visit or purchase. (Winnahz!)
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Kalihi Eats: The Old Saimin House
We’re back again at the “Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe” in and historic and scenic Kalihi, this time sampling some truly “old school” saimin at The Old Saimin House.
This is actually part 1 of a 3 part series, leading up to a review on S&S Saimin’s new “Old Time Island Style Saimin”, which makes it seem even more apparent that just like cars, retro is the new cool in the food industry as well.
Reason this is a series, is that I needed to refresh my palate on the benchmark representation of Hawaii’s truly classic saimin taste in order to compare with S&S’s (under parent company Sun Noodle) latest attempt to replicate that. Therefore I chose two old school saimin stands as my benchmark source: The Old Saimin House and Palace Saimin, both almost within a stone’s throw of each other in Kalihi.
How “old school” is The Old Saimin House? Well, they were established by Okinawan nisei (second generation) in 1962. Whereas Palace Saimin right across the street on King was also established by Okinawans in 1946.
Not to forgot the many other classic saimin stands around the island, including Forty Niner Restaurant out in Aiea, who was established around the late 40′s. Then there’s Boulevard Saimin, which has since changed to “Dillingham Saimin”, who got their start in 1955, while over on the Garden Isle of Kauai, Hamura Saimin set up shop in 1952. Not to leave out a few more places still in business that feature saimin as their signature dish, including Shiro’s, Shige’s and Zippy’s.
So we’re here today at The Old Saimin House, which is located at 1311 North King Street (nearby the Kalihi Post Office), in a tiny strip mall next to New Diner’s Drive Drive-In, with another notable neighbor being Kiawe Grill.
Without further ado, let’s check out The Old Saimin House tableside menu…
The Old Saimin House menu (current as of June 2011)
As is “standard” on the menu at most old school Hawaii saimin stands, The Old Saimin House has the requisite basic option of either Saimin or Wun Tun Min (the latter often spelled in various ways), along with a (teriyaki beef) BBQ Stick to go along with it. Think of the BBQ Stick to Saimin as what Gyoza is to Japanese Ramen. From there, the menu can vary quite a bit at each place.
The table condiments often say a lot about what type of cuisine is being offered. Where like most local style food restaurants in Hawaii, The Old School has the usual Shoyu, Tobasco, Salt ‘n Pepper. While indicating their Japanese/Okinawan influence, there’s also a shaker bottle of Shichimi Togarashi, which is a ground mixture of chili pepper and several other unique ingredients that make its spicy flavor unique…
One thing you hardly see anymore at local eateries on Oahu is Hawaiian Chili Pepper Water, whom Hamura Saimin on Kauai still includes on the tables in their condiments set.
The Old Saimin House was founded by Okinawan nisei Tomizo and Mitsue Ikei in 1962, where today you see their “Uchinanchu Pride” up in the form of a painting of what I’m assuming is their family’s home town of Henza Island in Okinawa…
As for the restaurant space, like most saimin stands, The Old Saimin is rather small, while being very clean, with a rather newly renovated look to it…
There’s a decent amount of designated free parking in the front of this tiny strip mall, although of course it does become tight during peak dining hours.
Getting to my order, on this solo mission, I stuck with the bare bones basic Saimin, this one being the large…
A closer look…
Now this truly is your bare bones basic Saimin, with just sliced Charsiu pork and green onions garnish, and that’s it. Not even Kamaboko nor sliced egg omelet is to be had here, making this a far cry from the “everything, including the kitchen sink” approach at Shiro’s Saimin Haven.
The reason I didn’t order the more popular Wun Tun Min, which is essentially the same dish with the addition of ground pork-filled wun tuns in it, is because I didn’t want the wun tun to muddle or change the flavor of the basic broth.
As for not ordering the usual BBQ (Teriyaki Beef) Stick as an accompaniment, upon asking how they were cooked, my server told they were griddled on a flat top, so I passed. No probs, as this large bowl of saimin by itself was plenty enough to fill me up on this lunch hour visit.
Hai, itadakimasu. Let’s begin with a taste of what appears to be rather clear-toned, mild looking broth…
And? Definitely yet another shrimp shell based broth, albeit not particular “shrimpy”, along with salt, and that’s about it. I don’t think there’s any katsuoboshi stock enhancement or dashinomoto in it, nor pork or chicken bones in the stock-making process.
As long as you arrive with your palate in a neutral state (like you didn’t just get done snacking on some chips or anything salty), the broth should be acceptably seasoned without any further enhancements. Yet it is still on the very low key end as far as saimin broths are concerned, leaving the broth door wide open to add that shoyu and/or tobasco and/or Togarashi and/or Salt ‘n Pepper condiments provided on the table to suite your personal taste.
Let’s slurp some saimin noodles…
As others on Yelp have mentioned, the noodles here are on the firmer side of al dente doneness, which I actually prefer over softer-cooked noodles, whether it be for saimin, ramen or pasta. Come to find out, unlike many other noodle houses around the island who source their noodles from Sun Noodle Factory, The Old Saimin House sources theirs from Eagle Noodle Factory. The latter of which I’ve been told doesn’t use chemicals in their noodles. With that, they’re somewhat neutral in flavor, without any of that egg-like undertone from the potassium and sodium carbonate (Kansui) that Sun Noodle uses.
Only thing left to try here is the rather sparse sliced Charsiu pork and green onion garnish…
The Charsiu was spot-on in sweetness and overall authentic flavor profile, while being very moist and tender. Thumbs-up, except for all that saimin noodles in the large bowl, they need more charsiu to accompany it. I suppose at .25 for the large, an additional 50 cents is worth the additional garnish needed to fully complete the dish in and of itself. Or of course order the BBQ Stick to offset the carbo load.
But yeah, this broth is certainly on the low-key side, and it had room for some shoyu to kick it up…
Ah, perfect! The (Aloha) shoyu really enhanced and “umami-fied” the subtle shellfish base of the broth’s flavor profile.
I also tried dipping the noodles and charsiu in the included (Coleman’s) mustard (and shoyu) sauce, which totally makes it taste Chinese.
The large saimin by itself was the perfect portion to sate my lunchtime hunger, while the addition of just a drizzle of shoyu was all it needed to make The Old Saimin House a good choice at the right price. So much so, that I had no problem polishing my bowl…
This was a good refresher start to get a benchmark taste of what true “old school” saimin should taste like. Next stop, right across the street over at Palace Saimin!
The Old Saimin House
1311 North King Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
Tel. (808) 842-7697
www.TheOldSaiminHouse.com
Business hours:
Lunch: 11:00 am – 2:00 pm
Tuesday to Saturday
Dinner: 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Dinner: 6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Friday, Saturday
Closed:
Sunday & Monday
The Tasty Island rating:
(2) Good. I’m glad I tried it. (Ono)
Kalihi Kai Eats: Monarch Seafoods
For today’s review we’re back in Kalihi, where it’s repeatedly and affectionately designated here on this blog as “The Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe”, a.k.a. “God’s Country”. This time around at yet another hole-in-the-wall gem over at Monarch Seafoods, located next door mauka (towards the Koolau mountain range) of Chun Wah Kam Noodle Factory on Kalihi Street, with Bank of Hawaii’s Dillingham Boulevard branch also adjacent to them if that will help you find them.
Monarch Seafoods is a fish distributor that also offers catering services, as well as what we’re sampling here in this review from their daily takeout operation. And the place is strictly takeout with no dine-in seating.
Without further ado, here’s their most current menu as of this writing…
Upon entering, you’ll find the customer service area is rather small, where as little as 10 people waiting in line for their order can already make it feel crowded. Yet that’s how it is at most hole-in-the-wall gems. Here’s the front end service counter, made up mostly of a refrigerated display case filled with a goldmine of ono kine grindz…
Being a seafood purveyor — with nearby Honolulu’s fish auction block right down the street, mind you — naturally there’s no shortage of fresh fish and prepared Poke to be had here…
Of course they also have prepared bento lunches ready to go…
Next time I visit here, I definitely need to try “Pop’s Homemade Banana Cream Pie”, as that’s one of my favorite kinds of pie…
So on this first-time visit, Diner A decided to go “Surf ‘n Turf” and chose a mixed plate of Monarch’s Deep Fried Poke and Hamburger Steak with Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions…
Mixed Plate of Monarch’s Deep Fried Poke and Hamburger Steak with Sauteed Mushrooms ‘n Onions and House Nalo (as in Waimanalo) Greens. .45
A closer look…
OMG, Monarch’s Deep Fried Poke is da bomb!…
Seemingly simple, yet easy to mess up if done the wrong way. Yet Monarch NAILS this, as the thoroughly cooked-through Ahi cube is seasoned with just the right amount of what tastes like a shoyu-based marinade (because you know, it’s Poke), while the Panko crust is offers a wonderful “GBD” taste and texture contrast to the delightfully tender and moist Ahi meat. Superb indeed. In fact, , just drop a bunch of these absolutely scrumptiously onolicious Deep Fried Poke bites in a big bowl along with a case or two of ice cold Heinekens amongst a bunch of you and your best friends, and you’ve got one heck of a great paina (party)!
They provide a chili Aioli sauce for the Deep Fried Poke, but both Diner A and I agree what REALLY makes this OUTRAGEOUSLY OFF THE CHARTS is their AMAZING House Salad Dressing…
Chili Aioli Sauce (left) and Monarch’s signature House Salad Dressing (right)
I swear, you could dip your car bumper in Monarch’s salad dressing and it’d taste awesome. Seriously, if you ever visit this place, ASK FOR EXTRA DRESSING. Trust me, you’ll thank me (and them for giving you an extra cup) for that tip. It goes great with, well, EVERYTHING.
To explain it, it’s got a sweet ‘n sour-meets-creamy flavor profile goin’ on, with a subtle hint of garlic. It sort of reminds me of Costco’s Parisian Dressing that comes with that salad kit they sell. But this one BLOWS that and is by far one of the BEST salad dressings I’ve ever tasted in recent memory.
As for the Hamburger Steak, the gravy is solid (tasting that is), also sporting garlic undertones, with plenty of depth and “beefy-ness”, while having perfect thickness and body. The single hamburger patty was on the small side, yet according to Diner A it was seasoned nicely and had all the right fillers that make a hamburger steak taste like it should.
Overall, Diner A gives Monarch’s Deep Fried Poke and Hamburger Steak mixed plate a super solid 4 SPAM Musubi.
Next up is yours truly, where I just had to go with what everyone on Yelp raves about, which is Monarch’s ever-popular Nori-wrapped Crab-stuffed Ahi…
Monarch Seafoods – Nori-wrapped Crab-stuffed Ahi with Nalo Greens and Brown Rice. .95
A closer look…
What nobody on Yelp mentions nor probably haven’t tried experimenting with, is dipping the Nori-wrapped Crab-stuffed Ahi roll in their AMAZING House Dressing!…
Oh man, I tell ya’, that dressing takes what is already an awesome dish to levels unknown to mankind. Bam! You can see they drizzle the Nori-Wrapped Crab-stuffed Ahi with Wasabi, which is great. Then you add the creamy, sort of garlic-ee, sweet ‘n sour element from the dressing and, I swear, it just makes you wanna’ roll your eyeballs backwards in your noggin. lol Seriously, so ono!
Construction-wise, it appears they take a thinly-sliced slab of ahi and top it with minced imitation crab that’s mixed with other ingredients I couldn’t quite pinpoint, although I’m sure there’s at least some mayonnaise in it. They take that and roll it up all wrapped up in several multiple layers of nori maki, then it gets a quick dredge in tempura batter then deep fried. You know, the kinda’ thing Kahai Street Kitchen right down the street would probably do.
The end result is Ahi that’s super moist and imparted with plenty of “Umami” thanks to the Nori and (imitation) crab meat surrounding both sides of it, while you get that “decadent crunch” factor from the lightly crispy tempura coating it’s encased in. Genius.
As for the Nalo Greens, they were super fresh ‘n crispy, and incredibly packed into the left corner pocket of my plate. Where after I finished the Ahi, I was able to fill the entire main entree section with my salad!…
I tell ya’, it was like having a refreshing appetizer salad after the main dish!
Summing it up, 4 SPAM Musubi for Monarch’s Nori-Wrapped Crab-stuffed Ahi. Use real crab meat and I’d give it 5. Trade out the crab for lobster and I’d probably give it a TEN! Bu-Ya!
We enjoyed our lunch from Monarch Seafoods so much, that we made a hana hou (encore) visit just a week later! This time around with Diner EY (different guy than Diner E) in tow, where he decided to give their Garlic Roast Pork plate a spin…
Monarch Seafoods – Roast Pork with Gravy. .95
I got a taste of the gravy, and can cofirm it’s certainly “garlic-ee”, yet not obnoxiously so. In words of Rap Replinger’s “Aunty Marialani”, it’s “jussssssss right”. Go check ‘em now, check ‘em now, go. lol Diner EY also gave a thumbs-up of approval for the roast pork, saying it was fork tender and packed with flavor. 4 SPAM Musubi.
This time around, Diner A decided to try Monarch’s Crab Cake, Mochiko Chicken and Fried Poke Bento…
Monarch Seafoods – Bento: Crab Cake, Mochiko Chicken and Fried Poke. .95
The crab cake…
How was it? 3 SPAM Musubi.
Finally, yours truly laid it down this time with Monarch’s Garlic Butter Sauteed Tiger Prawns with Zucchini and Mushrooms over Linguine pasta…
Monarch Seafoods – Garlic Butter Sauteed Tiger Prawns with Zucchini and Mushrooms over Linguine. .95
A closer look…
How was it? Eh, it’s OK but nothing really worth writing home or here about. It wasn’t drenched in garlic butter as much as I would have liked, while the tails were on the verge of being overcooked and rubbery. They also weren’t as sweet as I was expecting it to be. As for the pasta, the linguine was cooked perfectly al dente, but the “cream” sauce just did not work. It literally tasted like somewhat thickened canned cream, while having barely any seasoning or flavor, whatsoever. Someone please pass me some butter and fresh grated parm’ please. I gotta say though, there were generous slices of zucchini and sauteed white mushrooms in it, yet even then, the really lame, plain Jane cream sauce didn’t lend them a helping hand in flavor ‘tat all.
Summing it up, I give Monarch’s Garlic Butter Tiger Prawns 1 SPAM Musubi, which I’m being generous at even that. Thankfully, again, I had their awesome House Salad Dressing to save the day and make a lame plate at least decent enough to eat.
Regardless,
Leave it use to take advantage of a scale when we see one, where here we weighed my Nori Wrapped, Crab-stuffed Ahi plate on our first visit, which clocked in at 1.065 pounds…
So if they charged us .95 per pound (the average price of their fresh raw ahi), this plate would have totaled out at .73. Thankfully that plate is just .95, which is truly a bargain for a truly inspirational and creative seafood dish you’d easily pay 3 or more times that in a finer dining restaurant. Gotta’ love Kalihi for that.
Monarch Seafoods
515 Kalihi St
Honolulu, Hawaii 96819
Tel. (808) 841-7877
Monarch Seafoods & Catering menu (71k 2-page PDF document download; current as of 1.11)
The Tasty Island rating:
(3) Very Good. Considerable of another visit or purchase. (Supah’ Ono!
Kalihi Eats: Arirang Bar-B-Q Korean Cuisine
Hidden gems in Kalihi, a.k.a. “God’s Country”, a.k.a. “The Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe” are still and always have been plentiful. Where Arirang Bar-B-Q Korean Cuisine restaurant not surprisingly, really — based on said trends in this charming old school Palama area of this district of Honolulu — is certainly no exception.
Arirang is tucked away at the back end of a strip mall on the corner of Dillingham Boulevard and Kokea Street, across the street from Honolulu Community College. If that isn’t descriptive enough where to find the place, just look for the towering radio antenna in the palama area of Kalihi that’s based right next door to them.
Diner E and his wife really enjoyed their dining experience on previous visits to Arirang, and he highly recommended we try it. Where on this recent Friday visit, we arrived just before the lunch hour rush, and the place was empty, save for the 2-person band made up of the very friendly owner and her cook (both of whom originally from South Korea) hustling to get out a HUGE takeout phone order that looked like about 20 plates.
Hustlin’ ‘n bustin’ okole aside, of course they were more than happy to accommodate us, where upon seating ourselves in the nicely decorated, clean and cozy Korean-themed dining room, the owner quickly brought the menu and ice water to our table. Here’s a look at Arirang’s menu…
Here’s a look around the restaurant….
Check out this carved wood model of a vintage Korean Warship, which has striking similarity to Viking ship design…
They also have this live Ginseng Root that was on display in a tall glass jar in the corner where we sat…
After placing our order, the owner brought our utensils to the table, where like every true Korean restaurant does, they provide a stainless steel spoon to eat your rice and soup with…
I suppose if we were Korean, she would have provided us the more challenging-to-use Korean style Stainless Steel Chopsticks, but we’re not, so we get the easier-to-grip disposable wooden chopsticks.
Out next on our table we’re given a trio of their house Banchan dishes, including Kim Chee, Korean Style Shoyu Potatoes and Japchae…
Soon following our Banchan, we were brought a bowl each of this pipin’ hot Korean style Seaweed Soup…
In a timely basis, upon finishing our Seaweed Soup starter, our dishes arrived at the table, where we begin with Arirang veteran Diner E’s Meat Jun and Kalbi Combo’ plate…
Next we have Diner P’s dish, Arirang’s Meat Jun and BBQ Chicken…
The meat jun dishes are accompanied with Arirang’s house Gochujang dipping sauce…
…which this sauce was so delicious, next time I’d like to get a bottle of it to-go for home use if they offer it.
Last but never least, for me, whenever I try a new Korean Restaurant, first and foremost, I always must try the most iconic dish of Korean cuisine (or at least it’s ingrained as such here in Hawaii), where here I have Arirang’s take on Kalbi in all its char-grilled shoyu, sugar, sesame, chili and garlic marinaded-beef glory…
Same dish at a “profile” angle…
Adding yet more variety to the Banchan sides Arirang offers, each entree dish also includes a serving of Mul Kim Chee (watery Kim Chee), Sigeumchi namul (parboiled marinaded spinach) and Kong Namul (seasoned bean sprouts)…
Well, everythign looks deeee-lish! Now let’s dig in!…
How is it? Yumm-erz! Straight off the top, 4 SPAM Musubi for Arirang’s Kalbi! The marinade flavor profile is spot-on and tastes great, while having good penetration in the fibers of the beef, which was very tender. I won’t say prime-grade beef tender, but good enough where it didn’t require much effort to chew into it. Most importantly, like every Kalbi should be cooked, Arirang lives up to the “B-B-Q” part of their name (and don’t get all technical on me about the difference between “BBQ” and “Grilling”, because I do know the difference!), putting them all-important “Kogi” flame grilled sear marks on the shortribs all along its flanks. Very nice. And very tasty!
I got to try some of the meat jun from Diner E’s plate, which I must say was also 4-SPAM Musubi EXCELLENT!…
The flour and egg batter had great flavor, body and texture and not greasy at all, while the marinaded beef was absolutely delicious and tender as can be.
Adding to the excellent meat jun is their also-excellent house Gochujang sauce, that had the perfect balance of heat, acidity, salty and sweet, and really brought out the “Umami” factor in the Meat Jun. Perfect 5 SPAM Musubi on that sauce!
That said, on my next visit I’ve got my sight set on Arirang’s Mahi Mahi Fish Jun!
As for the Korean style Seaweed Soup we were started off with, that was equally satisfying, with the broth having a Kombu-like flavor to it that was fairly simple-tasting and light, yet very delicious…
Rounding out this “tasty town” party is their excellent Banchan side dishes, which were all as good as it gets as far my experiences eating at various Korean restaurants around the island. The Kimchi had this sort of Umami factor to it just like the Gochujang sauce…
My favorite Banchan of all is the Korean style shoyu potatoes, where Arirang’s were by far some of the best I’ve had, thanks in part due to them being made with red potatoes, which have a more ideal texture for this type of preparation, while the skin added an extra dimension to its overall appeal…
Arirang’s Japchae Korean style Long Rice Noodle banchan could have just as well been my main entree, as it was also that delicious and a satisfying dish in itself…
The owner was so kind to bring us refills of our banchan along the course of the meal, which made our experience dining here that much better!…
This time around she added Ggakdugi Kim Chee(Daikon) to the spread (shown front-center in photo above), which I liked even better than the cabbage kimchi!
Towards the end of our meal a pot of Korean style green tea was brought to the table, which is always appreciated to help break down the fats from the meat and help settle the stomach…
Americans as a whole would be that much healthier and live longer if the practice of drinking hot green tea after each meal were incorporated into our dietary culture, but that’s probably not going to happen anytime soon.
All that said, our lunch at Arirang was so onolicious, broke da’ mout’ winnahz, all three of us polished our plates!…
I was going to chime in with “Burp”, but the hot green tea eliminated any feeling of indigestion. Ha-ha!
Summing it up, Arirang Bar B-B-Q Korean Cuisine restaurant is definitely highly recommended. The owner truly takes pride in every EXCELLENT dish that comes out of her kitchen from start to finish, and she’s very, very nice! The portions and prices are family-friendly, the dining room is very clean and casual, yet nicely decorated and not “divey” at all, and there’s plenty of parking, where even if the mall lot fills up, there’s ample street parking along Kokea street.
Arirang Bar-B-Q Korean Cuisine
1111 Dillingham Boulevard
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
Tel. (808) 848-0803
The Tasty Island rating:
(4) Excellent. Worth another visit or purchase. (Winnahz!)
For today’s Tasty Island Bonus Content, we stop by for dessert right up the street off Alakawa at the Iwilei Costco food court to sample their new Fresh Made Gelato!…
This, actually on a different day, as I was with Diner AA and Diner C on this “mission”. Because, you know, going to Costco is always a “mission”, or can even sometimes become an absolute SPIRITUAL experience! It can!
With Diner AA buying (big mahalo!), as is their famous buck-fitty gigantic Hot Dog & Drink Combo’, you’d be hard-pressed to find a deal in town better than Costco’s new Fresh Made Gelato, which includes 3 scoops of your choice of Pistachio, Mixed Berry and/or Stracciatella (Vanilla with Chocolate Shavings) in a HUGE sugar waffle cone for a buck-fitty as well. Deal!
Here’s the waffle cones in a specially made holder made for high volume, quick turnaround service…
Here you see they pre-scoop the gelato in balls for speedier service to the masses…
Here Diner AA holds up her combo Gelato Cone…
Angle 2…
And here’s my Stracciatella cone…
Costco Food Court’s all-new Stracciatella Fresh Made Gelato in sugar waffle cone, angle B…
How is it? Smooth, rich ‘n creamy, dense-yet-soft like every good Italian Gelato should be, and bursting with a high quality vanilla and crunchy milk chocolate flakes flavor. Encapsulating them three scoops of goodness is a very crispy ‘n crunchy, sugar-ee, almost toffee-like waffle cone that makes it all taste that much better.
Diner AA said the Pistachio flavor was pretty good, while her favorite was the Mixed Berry flavor, which she says tasted predominantly like strawberry. So getting the combo of all three is kinda’ like a Spumoni cone if you will.
At just .50 for this giant 3-scoop Gelato Cone in a Waffle Cone is a tough value to beat, and the “fresh made” gelato itself was pretty darned delicious for a mass-production, for the masses product, where we give it 3-SPAM Musubi.
Kalihi Kai Eats: Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza
Last Wednesday on my way to pick up lunch at Kahai Street Kitchen, I couldn’t help but notice the crowds gathered in front of the new Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza tent right up the street. When I told the gang at work about it, everyone got excited, so the very next day we decided to give them a try and make a small pizza party out of it.
Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza, is located on the corner of Kalihi Street and Nimitz Highway, across from Lex Brodies in the parking lot of the Hawaii Hale Design Center…
I suppose you can call them a “Pizza Wagon” or “Pizza Truck” due to their portable set-up on wheels, although they currently stick with this one location throughout the work week from 10am to 2pm.
According to co-owner Kyle Okumoto, they’ve been in business for just over 5 weeks now. Yet based on the crowds and raving online reviews, the word about them is indeed out and spreading, well, like wild fire!
There’s ample parking in the lot, yet it can get full fast when they’re busy, which most of the cars seemed to be arriving there for the pizza, not the design center.
On this Thursday pre-lunch hour visit, there was already a steady flow of customers…
As for “dining in”, there’s just one folding table and some chairs to sit at under a canopy set-up next to the oven trailer…
Condiments on the table include Red Pepper Flakes, Parmesan Cheese and Hot Sauce. While dining here, you can take hold of the lovely scenic view of this very industrial part of Kalihi. lol
Inferno’s used to accept phone orders, but lately aren’t due to the high volume of walk-in customers. That said, when we arrived, we were immediately told before making our order that it would be a 30 minute wait. Ouch. Regardless, determined to try the place and feeling da’ “onos” for some good pizza, we accepted the wait.
This the most current menu and telephone information…
One of my favorite toppings that’s missing here is Bell Peppers. Kalua Pig also wouldn’t be a bad idea to add onto the menu, along with more cheese options.
As for the ordering and pick-up system, they weren’t issuing numbers or taking down names, but going just by customer recognition.
The reason for the long wait is that they currently only have one oven which can only cook up to four pizzas at a time, and each pie takes approximately 5 minutes to bake. Doing the math, that means they can crank out approximately 48 pizzas per hour, which is probably a lot less than their ever-increasing demand.
Thankfully Jonathan Wong, co-owner of Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza, told me that they’re in the works of building a bigger oven to add to the operation to keep up with demand. That’s good to hear, as at this point, they NEED IT!
Here’s what their roving wood-fired pizza oven looks like…
The fellah on the right in white with his back turned is Kyle Okumoto, one of the owners of Inferno’s. On this day he was the ‘Pizza Chef’ making all the pie orders.
When shaping the pie from pre-portioned balls, Kyle didn’t twirl and spin the dough in the air, but kept it down on the heavily-floured prep counter and flattened it, pulling into an approximately 11″ circle.
Then the usual next step goes in adding the Marinara sauce, slices of fresh Mozzarella Cheese and the various toppings for each order. What I also noticed for the last step is he would give a quick drizzle of (EV?) Olive Oil on each pizza before sending it off on the peel to the oven.
The flaming-hot wood fire is stoked on the left side of the 8000F oven, and the pizzas occupy the oven’s cooking surface towards the center and right side.
Here they remove a pizza that’s just finished baking with a long-handle metal peel…
Here’s a few uncooked pies ready to get blasted in the 8000F oven…
Inferno’s Pepperoni Pizza – uncooked (and I think not done garnishing yet)
Inferno’s Margherita Pizza – uncooked
Inferno’s BBQ Chicken Pizza – uncooked
And here’s a few pipin’ hot pies that just got done baking, where they’re placed on a service table on metal pans and sliced into eight pieces each…
Inferno’s Italian Sausage & Pepperoni Wood Fire Pizza (build your own).
Inferno’s Pepperoni, Italian Sausage & Mushrooms Wood Fire Pizza.
Inferno’s All Meat Wood Fire Pizza – Pepperoni, Sopressata (Italian dry-cured Salami) & Italian Sausage.
Inferno’s Margherita Wood Fire Pizza – Basil, Tomato and Mozzarella.
Inferno’s Veggie Fire Wood Pizza – Mushrooms, Red Onion, Olives & Tomatoes.
Inferno’s BBQ Chicken Wood Fire Pizza – Spicy BBQ Sauce, Roasted Chicken, Red Onion, Green Onion.
After getting sliced, it’s straight to the box and to the waiting the customer…
Inferno’s Pepperoni Wood Fire Pizza.
Inferno’s Pepperoni, Italian Sausage & Mushrooms Wood FIre Pizza.
Each pizza purchase includes a soft drink, which is always appreciated….
Yes Diner A, a complimentary soft drink certainly deserves a big “shaka”. lol Note that, further adding to the value is that tax is included in the price. So if you buy 1 pizza it’s even, as it would be for 4 pizzas, no spare change necessary. It’s also CASH ONLY.
Upon request, they also gives you the usual Red Pepper Flakes and Grated Parmesan Cheese condiment packets…
So after the estimated 30 minute wait, which is pretty much how long it took, we quickly headed back to the office with our fresh-baked pies and set them up for our little 5-person Pizza Party…
As you see at the beginning of the spread, there’s a tray of Chicken Wings, which the girls picked up from Costco while we were out getting the pizza.
Pizza ‘n wings sounds like a plan. I must note before getting to the pizzas, these Costco wings were pretty darned ono! Really moist and tender and the sauce tasted great! All that was missing was Bleu Cheese and/or Ranch Dressing and some Celery Sticks. Was just for that big tray.
Now let’s go down the line and check out the pizzas we ordered for our little party here…
Inferno’s Pepperoni, Italian Sausage & Mushrooms Wood Fire Pizza.
Inferno’s Spinach, Garlic & Tomatoes Wood Fire Pizza.
Inferno’s Margherita Wood Fire Pizza.
Inferno’s Veggie Wood Fire Pizza – Mushrooms, Red Onion, Olives & Tomatoes.
Included with those 4 pizzas were 4 drinks…
We also grabbed some Red Chili Flakes and Grated Parmesan Cheese condiment packets…
Well, everything looks and smells good. Time to eat some pie!
That was Diner E and Diner A’s plates, where they had the freedom to just “pig out” (because you know, that’s what eating pizza is all about lol). Since I’m the food blogger in the group, I had to carefully dissect and taste each pizza at a time so I could make a mental note of every nuance.
So let’s start with Diner A’s choice, a slice of Inferno’s Pepperoni, Italian Sausage & Mushrooms Wood Fire Pizza…
Let’s flip it over and check out the crust…
Looks toasty and fairly thin for all you thin crust lovers (I’m more a pan and deep-dish kinda’ guy).
Let’s have a bite (or two or three or four)…
How is it? First of all the crust has great flavor, being nicely salted, and of course those slightly burnt edges bring lots of toasty love to the party. I also like the sort of gritty texture underneath the crust that seems to be the flour the pizza dough was prepared on getting singed onto the bottom surface. On the down side, most of us felt the crust was a bit too much on the chewy side. Enough where both Diner AC and myself felt like our jaw muscles had just gone through a rigorous workout after we were done eating.
Sitting on that, the combination of Pepperoni, Italian Sausage & Mushrooms packed on lots of delicious, meaty flavor, while the on down side, the mozzarella cheese and especially the San Marzano brand marinara sauce underneath tasted fairly bland.
Now let’s try Diner E’s choice, the Spinach, Garlic and Tomatoes (ala Boston’s)…
Crust check…
Notice the olive oil coating the edges.
Sample some, cuz…
Normally I’m not one for garlic on pizza, but on this one I liked it, mainly because the minced garlic is just what the bland marinara sauce needed in order to get kicked up a notch. Bam! The tomatoes and spinach didn’t really do much, with the tomatoes lacking any sweetness or depth. The crust here still suffered the same chewyness, yet its good flavor shined through, making up some points for what fell behind in the toppings department.
Now let’s try Inferno’s take on my favorite pizza style, the Margherita…
I didn’t ask where they get their basil from, but the leaves they were using on this day were huge.
Crust check…
Margherita is one of the ultimate minimalist pizzas, where it’s crucial that every ingredient be their best, but in this case the marinara sauce and tomatoes just weren’t up to snuff. There also wasn’t enough melted mozzarella, where I felt like it was “cheeseless” in some spots. The toasted basil helped a little, and overall it wasn’t bad, but this example of Margherita Pizza certainly has room for improvement.
Finally, let’s try the Veggie…
One final crust check…
Knowing by now that the Marinara and (lack of) Mozzarella were its weakness, I was hoping the salty olives would liven things up, but it wasn’t the case. Again, not a bad pizza, but not great.
What must be noted is that I tried all four variety of pizzas here first WITHOUT adding any Red Pepper Flakes and/or Parmesan Cheese condiments so that I could taste the “essence” of their pizzas the way they intend them to taste. Now let’s try the same Veggie Pizza with the addition of those condiments on it…
Ah, now that’s MUCH better! The salt and fat in the Parmesan Cheese and heat from the red pepper flakes really brought the life out of the marinara and mozzarella (whatever there was of it), along with everything else on each pizza.
Still, like any other dish, a pizza should taste great in as is right out the kitchen and not need doctoring at the table to make it taste right.
Summing up Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizzas on this first time experience, I’d say stick with the meat varieties for the most flavor, as was the case here with the Pepperoni, Italian Sausage and Mushrooms choice we made. That was by far my favorite of the four in this spread, and it’s not because I’m a meat lover, because I’m not. I prefer balance in my meals and I LOVE all-veggie pizzas when they’ve got their groove on.
We all, with the exception Diner A (who gives them 3 SPAM Musubi!), pretty much unanimously thought the San Marzano Marinara Sauce was bland, there wasn’t enough cheese and the crust was too chewy. To illustrate that point, here’s Diner AC’s crust leftovers on her plate…
Diner AC pointed out that normally she eats all the pizza crust with no leftovers, but just couldn’t here because of the chewyness.
That besides, would we come back again for more? Sure. We all thought so, especially Diner A. On my next visit I’d probably do a “Build Your Own”, going for the Sopressata Italian Dry-cured Salami, along with Mushrooms and Olives. If they offer ” the works” for a couple bucks more, I’d also add Prociutto Di Parma, tomatoes and basil.
And while the overall opinion of the five of us didn’t turn out to be screaming “thumbs-up all the way”, the majority of Inferno’s reviews on Yelp are highly favorable 4 and 5 stars, so we’re certainly in the minority here. I gave them 3 Yelp stars, which is “A-ok” or “average”. Here with the Tasty Island’s SPAM Musubi rating system, since there’s a broader spectrum between “average” and “superb”, on this first time visit, Inferno’s Wood Fire gets a still-respectable 2 SPAM Musubi (good).
Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza
306 Kalihi Street (on the corner of Nimitz highway, in the parking lot of the Hawaii Hale Design Center, across the street from Lex Brodies)
Honolulu, HI 96819
Tel. (808) 375-1200
Business hours:
Monday through Friday 10am to 2pm
The Tasty Island rating:
(2) Good. I’m glad I tried it.
Related links:
• North Shore Farms Neapolitan Grilled Pizza (still has my vote for Oahu’s BEST Pizza!) – The Tasty Island
• Inferno’s Wood Fire Pizza (Honolulu) – Yelp User Reviews
Kalihi Eats: Gulick Delicatessen
Gulick Delicatessen is one of the most recognized and well established Okazuya on Oahu, having been in business on Gulick Avenue in the heart of Kalihi, a.k.a. “God’s Country”,, a.k.a. “The Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe” for over 30 years.
Founded by the Takara family, the new generation has since remodeled the original location, as well as opened a second Gulick Delicatessen on King Street at the former King’s Bakery location recently in 2007 under the ownership of son’s Cory Makishi and Lee Takara, along with Lee’s wife, Denise. This new location also sports a hip new local Japanese restaurant named Kochi by Gulick Deli.
As mentioned earlier, they’ve done a nice remodel to their shop on Gulick Avenue, with contemporary ceramic-tiled walls and new stainless steel warmers and refrigerator display cases in front…
Like Masa & Joyce, Marujyu and a few others, along with the prepared Okazu selections on display to pick and choose, there’s also a menu board where you can order plate lunches in set form, breakfast plates and other specialties they have to offer…
Yet, I don’t know about you, but when it comes to an Okazuya, the Okazu line where you get to pick and choose is what it’s all about for me. LOVE that. Plus, I don’t have to wait for anything to be cooked. It’s in and out in a snap.
With that, let’s check out what was on the Okazu line at the original Gulick Deli on this lunch hour visit, which specifically was yesterday, Friday, September 10th…
Wow, what a spread! All the usual Okazuya suspects are there. The only things missing that I would have liked is Kabocha (pumpkin) and specialty fishcakes, which Nuuanu Okazuya is known for.
What’s nice about Gulick is they put a SIGN in front of each item with the description, and more importantly the PRICE, so you know exactly what you’re plate is going to cost. Some Okazuya shops don’t do this, and I’ve been sticker shocked a couple times when the counter person rang up my bill. Not here. Mind you, even here it will add up if you’re not careful — especially if you choose with your eyes only, and not your stomach or wallet in mind.
That said, on this visit I walked out with this plate from Gulick…
Gulick Delicatessen (original location) – Okazu plate (clockwise from top left): Ume Musubi, Furikake Musubi, Vegetable Tempura, Maki Kombu and Nishime. .55
Diner E put the pedal to the metal, coming out with this V-8 of a plate…
Gulick Delicatessen (original location) – Okazu plate (clockwise from top left): Vegetable Tempura, Tofu Patty (hidden underneath) Shoyu Chicken, Inari (Cone) Sushi, Gobo Kinpira, Nishime, Kombu Maki and Chow Fun noodles. .50
Whoah! Here’s that same plate taken apart so we can itemize it better…
Back to my plate, here’s where I was kinda bummed: the “gravy” from the Nishime had spilled over the plate divider and all but demolished and ruined my Ume Musubi on the bottom left…
Look at it… it’s a mess! Whah! Whah! I’m so sad! Whah!
As it turned out, both Musubi had “rice issues”. You regular readers of this blog may recall my last post on Musubi-ya Iyasume, who I raved about as being EXPERTS in making a GREAT Musubi. Well, in contrast, the musubi at Gulick simply paled in comparison. The musubi rice here didn’t taste seasoned at all with salt, while being on the dry side (yet still acceptable), and most importantly, was WAY TOO LOOSE. Even the Furikake Musubi that didn’t get damaged by the Nishime gravy practically fell apart in my hand as I tried to eat it. NOT good.
The only saving grace here was the Ume (duh) and the Furikake (double “duh”), where I reluctantly give Gulick’s Musubi even 1 SPAM Musubi (average), but I’ll go with that.
Note to Gulick management: if you’re going to offer as many Musubi selections as you do, you MUST cook and season your rice properly. Must! Invest in a better rice cooker (Grant’s Grill did!), and/or perhaps better quality ‘premium’ rice. If Iyasume does it, so can you!
Things can only get better from here, which for the most part thankfully it does, where next let’s check out the Nishime…
Shiitake Mushrooms? Check. Maki Konbu? Check. Fried Tofu? Check. Konnyaku? Check. Daikon? Check. Carrots? Check. Everything all cooked Al Dente and well saturated with the Nishime gravy? Check, check and check.
Oishii desu ka? CHECK! Omai! Really good!
There was just one problem both Diner E and I noticed, which is that the fried tofu tasted a little sour, like it was beyond its freshness date. Not repulsive, but detectable. Other than that isolated component, the Nishime as a whole for me was fantastic, where I easily award it 4 SPAM Musubi. Throw in FRESH fried tofu and I’d easily give Gulick’s Nishime a solid 5 for the slam dunk.
Next let’s try Gulick’s Maki Kombu…
Gulick Delicatessen – Maki Kombu: Kombu (seaweed) wrapped around chicken, carrot, takenoko (bamboo shoots) and gobo (burdock root) and tied with Kannpyo (calabash/gourd).
Both Diner E and I have just one problem with this: it’s WAY TOO BIG. This is like the Japanese equivalent of “why make the burger 1 story high when you can make it 10″ approach. Just look at how big it is in the previous photos. It’s HUGE, measuring 4″ in length by 1-1/2″ diameter. I’d rather have it being a tiny compact morsel where I eat the whole thing in one fell swoop, not nibble at it section by section. Ya’ know? I just want to taste all the ingredients TOGETHER, not separately, which you’re sort of forced to do in this super-sized Maki Kombu form.
Other than that issue, the flavor and texture of the components combined was spot on, and everything was well saturated with the sauce. I also noticed a distinct ginger accent to it, which was really nice.
Summing it up, I give Gulick’s Maki Kombo 3 SPAM Musubi, where believe it or not, if they scale down the size, I’d say it can only get better.
Only one thing left on my plate to share my thoughts on, where actually this photo is from Diner E’s plate, which is the Vegetable Tempura (on the right next to the cone sushi)…
Winners. The vegetable tempura batter has a nicely seasoned flavor and delicately-crispy texture that’s quite unique and unlike tempura I’ve had from other Okazuya establishments. This is definitely one of their “MONEY” items and worth driving out of your way for. Best of all it didn’t taste greasy, while the medley of veggies and Kamaboko (fish cake) all brought their A-game to this party. Summing it up, 4 SPAM Musubi for Gulick’s Vegetable Tempura.
Back to Diner E’s plate, check out how tender and juicy the Shoyu Chicken was…
A closer look at the Gobo Kinpira (left) and Tofu Patty (right, in chopsticks)…
Diner E enjoyed the Gobo Kinpira, while noting it was on the sweet side, which he thought was good, but noted could have used a little more spicy hot in the form of Togarashi. The Tofu Patty was just “a-aight”, but not a choice he’d make again.
Finally, we have Gulick’s all-important Okazu dish, the Chow Fun…
“Too busy” says Diner E. Too much carrots and cabbage. The seasoning was also too pronounced, where, like Mac’ Salad, both Diner E and yours truly believe in the “Simple is best” approach to this dish. Which St. Louis Delicatessen remains the reigning KING of Okazuya-style Chow Funn Noodles.
Service at Gulick Deli was friendly and quick, prices are “competitive”, while street parking in this suburban neighborhood location can be hit or miss, depending how busy they are when you arrive and/or how far you’re willing to walk.
On a future visit, I must try their “high ticket item” Butterfish, while for some reason I’m intrigued in sampling their Pinak Bet (notice the spelling). Which is what’s so great about the typical Okazuya in Hawaii, where the’s so much cultural diversity under one roof that you can mix and match on one plate. Love that.
It’s GREAT to see “old school” mom ‘n pop Hawaii businesses such as this place still thriving, thanks to the next generation of ohana carrying the torch. Long live Gulick Delicatessen!
Gulick Delicatessen
1512 Gulick Avenue
Honolulu, Hawaii 96819
Tel. (808) 847-1461
The Tasty Island rating:
(3) Very Good. Considerable of another visit or purchase. (Supah’ Ono!)
Kalihi Eats: Pancakes & Waffles
Several Fridays ago we decided to have breakfast for lunch at the new Pancakes & Waffles in City Square Shopping Center in the heart of Kapalama, Kalihi, a.k.a. “The center of Hawaii’s food universe”, a.k.a. “God’s Country”. I for one LOVE breakfast food and can eat it any time of day. Portuguese Sausage, Eggs and Rice for dinner? Shoots, hook me up! Breakfast Cereal for a midnight snack? Make me a bowl, please.
As always, first let’s check the place out…
Pancakes & Waffles is located in the stand-alone strip building on the makai (ocean side) end of City Square Shopping Center, across from Young’s Fish Market, Utage and Sugoi’s.
Apparently the word is out, as several fellow Yelpers mentioned this place being packed with a crowd on their visits. Which held true, as when we arrived, every table had been taken, yet thankfully one group had just left and we scored a place to sit.
There’s seating throughout the establishment that’s on a first come, first serve basis…
The way the “system” works here is you go up to the service counter and place your order, to which you are given a number in a table stand. From here you find a table (or preferably have someone hold one for you while you take the order) and place the number on your table. A food runner will then bring your order to your table when it comes out. Fountain drinks are self-serve, while they also have refrigerated bottled beverages, hot coffee, tea and cocoa.
Without further ado, here’s the menu (click image to enlarge to full legible size)…
Must say, that’s quite a spread. What’s interesting is the variety of ethnic options, including Portuguese Vinha D’alhos (Vee’na Doash), Japanese Azuki and Korean Kal Bi. Then they throw in the Southern twist with Fried Chicken and Waffles. Gotta’ love that! In fact, in hindsight, I wish I had ordered that, which I’ll get to in a bit.
Getting to our order on this first time visit, Diner A decided to try their Fried Rice Loco Moco…
Pancakes & Waffles – Fried Rice Loco Moco: Brown gravy all over homemade hamburger patty and delicious fried rice, then topped with two over-easy eggs. .95
Here’s a peek beneath the egg at the burger patty…
Diner E decided to try their Hamburger Patty and Eggs, which includes a short stack of Pancakes, while backing that up with a side order of fried rice…
Pancakes & Waffles – Hamburger Patty and Eggs with Short Stack of Pancakes and side order of Fried Rice.
Wow, I’m energized for the day just looking at all that! Either that, or ready to fall back asleep. lol
Here’s a closer look at each dish…
Finally, yours truly decided to try the P&W Special…
Pancakes & Waffles – P&W Special: Three egg omelet with ham, Portuguese sausage, tomato, onion, bell pepper, mushroom, potato, cheese and hollandaise sauce. Serve with short stack pancakes. .95
Talk about everything, including the kitchen sink! What swooned me was the mushrooms and the hollandaise sauce. Can’t go wrong with those two ingredients sharing the same plate!
Three egg omelet? Check. More eggs in the form of egg yolks and butter made into a sauce and poured on those three eggs? Triple bypass surgery check…
Let’s peek beneath the hood…
Aaaahhh…oooooohhhh…aaaaaahhhh, ooey-gooey, melting cheese all over that. This has got to be good. Upon trying it though, I found it a little over the top, which shouldn’t be a surprise. There’s really just too much going on here. No question very tasty, but simply over the top. Also, the Hollandaise sauce wasn’t anything spectacular, not tasting particularly buttery or rich, but more just adding thickness to the overall texture of the complex omelet ingredients. While I think the ham and Portuguese sausage was overkill as far as meats are concerned, as they sort of canceled each other out. Either one or the other would have been better.
Still, don’t get me wrong, overall it was a delicious omelet, and I’ll give it a very good 2 SPAM Musubi (equivalent to 7 out of 10 stars).
Now let’s try the pancakes, which are included with the omelet as one of the starch options to either rice, toast or home fries…
A side cup of aerated butter is brought along with each order of pancakes, while artificial Maple syrup (Mrs. Butterworth type) is provided in a squeeze bottle at each table.
Eh, they’re OK, but not the greatest pancakes in I’ve ever tasted. They’re not as fluffy and delicate as I had hoped, but a little more dense and chewy. Not on the extreme bad side, but enough to notice that. From what I hear, the benchmark pancake place is Liliha Bakery, which I have yet to try and confirm that claim. Still, this is a decent pancake and certainly a good value, considering you get three with your eggs and choice of meat or other accompaniments.
What I wish I had ordered in retrospect after observing those around me was the Honey Buttered Fried Chicken and Waffle. With that you get three HUGE HONKIN’ pieces of fried chicken on a waffle and smothered with Honey Butter Sauce. I tell you, it looked soooo ono! EVERYONE (4 people) on a table across from us had ordered that, so it’s gotta’ be good. Next time fo’ sho!
As for Diner E’s plate, he pretty much enjoyed everything enough to give his “Saimin Kaukau approved” 3 SPAM Musubi rating…
He noted the fried rice flavor was spot-on, but the rice was a bit undercooked and stiff. Yet he still enjoyed it enough to finish all of it, which says it all.
Finally, Diner A really, really enjoyed his Loco Moco, noting the brown gravy was “onolicious”, with plenty of depth and character, while his Fried Rice was cooked more thoroughly than Diner E’s was…
He also gave a big thumbs-up to the homemade burger patty, noting the nicely seared edges and moist, yet thoroughly cooked doneness of the beefy-tasting ground beef, thank you very much. With that, he gives his Fried Rice Loco Moco a resounding 4 SPAM Musubi, adding that he’s eager to bring his family here one weekend for breakfast or brunch.
Pancakes & Waffles
1284 Kalani Street
Suite D100
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
Tel. (808) 877-7770
Business hours: 6:30am to 2:30pm daily
Pancakes & Waffles menu (<—download PDF document; 1 page)
The Tasty Island rating:
(3) Very Good. Considerable of another visit or purchase.