Oahu Melting Pot Cooks Up[ Delicious Cuisines

The cuisine on Oahu is as tantalizing and unique as the many different races and ethnicities of people who make up the island. A person could eat his or her way through Oahu for weeks, tasting different ethnic foods, without sampling the same flavors twice. Oahu is the only place in the world that has such a multitude of cuisines, each with an exotic historical and cultural background.

When talking about food on Oahu, terms such as plate lunch, bento and okazuya are used to describe the type of place and style of food based on the different origin of the food.

Plate lunch is local to Hawaii and automatically assumes there are two scoops of rice and one scoop of macaroni salad. Plate lunch, a favorite “feel-good” fast food tradition, is served from mom and pop lunch wagons and neighborhood lunch counters. These home-cooked meals offer “comfort food” on the go and are the preferred lunch staple for businessmen, laborers, students, and tourists. A five-minute wait and about five dollars buys an entree (beef teriyaki, roast pork, shoyu chicken, hamburger steak, beef curry, mahi mahi, and meat loaf are the most popular), white rice and macaroni salad, all smothered in rich savory gravy.

Plate lunch has been popular in Hawaii since the late ‘20s and early ‘30s, when plantation workers would bring the lunch that their wives made to work in tin boxes and pails with sections for the different dishes. The single men would either have lunch prepared by the plantation wives or they would purchase it from the plantation store nearby. This also is how lunch wagons got started by providing simple and fast meals that people could eat on the go.

For the Japanese immigrants, the lunch box was called a bento. Today, the mention of bento conjures up an image of a lunch that includes rice, pickles and a few other samplings of food in a neatly sectioned container. The other word often heard when talking about food in Hawaii is okazuya. Although the term comes from Japan, the food is not limited to just Japanese. Okazuyas are found throughout neighborhoods all over Oahu and is a place where customers can pick and choose their own combination of ethnic foods in one shop.

In addition to the different ethnic style of food, the types run the gambit to include food from the early immigrants (Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Filipino, Portuguese) to other cultures that have brought their food to our beautiful island of Oahu (Vietnamese, French, Thai, Indian, Mexican, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Middle Eastern).

Local chefs that have taken advantage of the bounty of the sea and land of Hawaii, have developed a type of food called Hawaii Regional Cuisine (HRC), which offers world-class dining. HRC is a distinctive cuisine featuring island fish, produce and food products often using a fusion of culinary and ethnic food styles found in the islands. Some of the best Oahu chefs including Alan Wong, Roy Yamaguchi and George Mavrothalassitis have spearheaded the promotion of the Hawaiian Islands’ culinary revolution worldwide.

Oahu also offers fine dining restaurants that feature dishes from around the world, and some restaurants have even combined the best of both worlds to create new epicurean delights unique to Hawaii. For those visitors seeking a romantic dinner overlooking breathtaking views of the ocean or the sparkling Honolulu city lights, Oahu has all of this and more.

The diversity of food is woven together with the aloha spirit that reflects the spirit of the people of Oahu and the food they eat. With so many options of food to choose from on Oahu, itineraries can be developed just around eating. The following is just a tempting sample of restaurants to explore from budget plate lunches to fine dining on the island of Oahu:

Plate Lunch Eateries

Helena’s Hawaiian Food is a small, family-owned restaurant that was honored by the James Beard Foundation with a Regional Classics award in 2000. Highlights of Helena’s menu include tripe stew, squid luau, short ribs (pipikaula style), and fried butterfish collar. www.helenashawaiianfood.com

Ono Hawaiian Food is regularly voted the best restaurant serving Hawaiian food. Portions are big and include menu items such as kalua pig, lomilomi salmon, chicken long rice, poi, pipikaula (seasoned beef jerky), and haupia (coconut) pudding.

Rainbow Drive-In has been a local favorite for more than 50 years. Its most popular menu item is the mixed plate featuring two scoops of rice, macaroni salad, teriyaki meat, chicken and mahi mahi, all smothered in brown gravy. www.rainbowdrivein.com

Highway Inn, located in the town of Waipahu, has been serving local favorites and Hawaiian classics for more than 62 years. The award winning restaurant and caterer is best known for its beef stew, butterfish ‘n stew with gravy, dried pipikaula, lau lau, and squid luau. www.myhighwayinn.com

Kakaako Kitchen serves quality gourmet plate lunches that feature fresh, locally grown produce. All baked-goods and delicious desserts are made in-house daily. Owner, Chef Russell Siu (who also owns 3660 On the Rise), decided to open Kakaako Kitchen so that visitors and locals alike could experience the best of what locals call the “plate lunch.” www.wardcenters.com

Diamond Head Market & Grill is known for its healthy, gourmet plate lunches and award-winning breakfast offerings. Banana pancakes, loco moco, kim chee fried rice, grilled ahi plate, and Portobello burger are just a few of the most popular items on the grill menu. In the market, customers will find snack items, sandwiches, salads, prepared meals, and decadent baked goods. www.diamondheadmarket.com

The freshest fish on Oahu can be found at Nico’s at Pier 38, located right next to the Honolulu Fish Auction. The restaurant is best known for its fresh catch of the day fish breakfast and lunch plates, but it also serves tasty non-seafood offerings, including chicken katsu, hamburger steak, loco moco, and the Pier 38 Double Cheeseburger, which many consider to be the best burger on the island. www.nicospier38.com

For tasty local fare, a visit to He‘eia Kea Pier General Store & Deli on Oahu’s Windward coast is a must. Chef Mavro and Town alumnus Chef Mark Noguchi reopened the decades old mom-and-pop shop to serve healthful and delicious local comfort foods using locally sourced, sustainable ingredients. Popular items include Kuahiwi Ranch burger, kalo-mac salad, and vegetable stir fry. www.heeiapier.com

Okazuyas

Fukuya Delicatessen & Catering has been serving Japanese okazuya fare for more than 75 years. The quaint take-out eatery often sells out of its top menu items including chow fun, chow mein, sushi, chicken, barbeque meat, fried ahi, fried mahi mahi, and tempura. www.fukuyadeli.com

Gulick Delicatessen offers a wide selection of local favorites, including shoyu chicken, chow fun, beef broccoli, and butterfish from either of its two Honolulu locations. Mitsuba Delicatessen’s specialties include noodles, sushi (maki, egg, crab, and hot dog), shoyu chicken, and shrimp tempura. New Wave Kitchen has a faithful following. Popular menu items include garlic chicken, chow fun, fried rice, miso soup, tempura, and poke.

Hawaii Regional Cuisine Restaurants

Alan Wong’s Restaurant, winner of the prestigious James Beard award and twice named in Gourmet magazine’s “America’s Top 50 Restaurants,” is known for fun flavors to savor such as, crispy wonton ahi poke balls on avocado with wasabi sauce; and macadamia nut-coconut crusted lamb chops; and coconut tapioca with passion fruit sorbet and fresh fruit, to name just a few. www.alanwongs.com

Roy’s Restaurant offers celebrity chef Roy Yamaguchi’s signature Hawaiian Fusion cuisine at its three Oahu locations in Hawaii Kai, Waikiki and Ko Olina. “Roy’s Classic” dishes include yellow fin ahi poketini; roasted macadamia nut mahi mahi with lobster butter sauce and melting hot chocolate souffle.
www.roysrestaurant.com

After three years on Maui, George Marvrothalassitis returned to Oahu and opened Chef Mavro Restaurant. The menu features Hawaii Regional Cuisine influenced by his native province of France. Guests can choose from three prix-fixe or a la carte menus. And for those who are not wine connoisseurs, Chef Mavro has selected wines that best complement each dish. Chef Mavro received the 2003 James Beard Award. www.chefmavro.com

3660 On the Rise is a small restaurant in the Kaimuki neighborhood. Chef and owner Russell Siu delights diners with dishes like ahi katsu and New York steak alaea, while his wife and co-owner creates delectable desserts such as the highly recommended and requested mile-high pie. www.3660.com

Experience contemporary island cuisine with a Thai accent at Chai’s Island Bistro at Aloha Tower Marketplace. Owner-chef Chai Chaowasaree is well known for his incredible Thai dishes with a Hawaii regional twist. The grilled mahi mahi with Thai red curry sauce is just one of the dishes at Chai’s that bring together the flavors of two regions on one plate. The restaurant also has gained a reputation for showcasing some of the island’s best musicians nightly. www.chaisislandbistro.com

Hoku’s, the award-winning signature restaurant in the Kahala Hotel & Resort, offers Oahu’s most innovative dining with panoramic views of the Pacific. An open kitchen serving ethnically diverse cuisine features fiery hot woks, a kiawe wood grill, tandoori oven, and wood-burning pizza oven. Chef Wayne Hirabayashi was born and raised in Hawaii, and is a graduate of the prestigious Culinary Instituteof America in Hyde Park, New York. Experience his personal culinary spin on ethnic cuisines refined with fresh island ingredients. www.kahalaresort.com

Fine Dining

La Mer at the Halekulani offers the quintessential fine dining experience on Oahu. Chef Yves Garnier uses local ingredients to create his elegantly prepared Neoclassic French dishes. www.halekulani.com/dining/la_mer/

Nobu Waikiki, at the Waikiki Parc Hotel, is the first Hawaii location for celebrity chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa’s popular Nobu restaurant chain. Brought to fruition by the award-winning architectural expertise of David Rockwell’s New York-based Rockwell Group, the 7,500 square-foot restaurant features a full service sushi bar, cocktail bar, main dining room, and private dining areas for special events. www.noburestaurants.com/waikiki/index.html

In November 2007, Beachhouse opened its doors at Waikiki’s first luxury resort, the Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort and Spa. The Beachhouse offers elegant oceanfront dining and modern classic cuisine. Notable chef Rodney Uyehara, formerly of The Bistro at Century Center, creates the finest quality steaks, fresh seafood and vibrant island-inspired cuisine utilizing Hawaii’s freshest ingredients. An international wine list accompanies the restaurant’s world-class menu. www.beachhousewaikiki.com

Azure, led by Chef Jon Matsubara, offers sophisticated dinner service at The Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort. The beachfront restaurant specializes in fresh island seafood and fish, handpicked daily from the Honolulu Fish Auction. www.azurewaikiki.com

Morimoto Waikiki, which opened in the fall of 2010, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and is celebrity chef Masaharu Morimoto’s first venture in Hawaii. This is also the first of Chef Morimoto’s restaurants that serves breakfast, which include both traditional Japanese and American breakfast options. www.morimotowaikiki.com

Local Favorites

Indigo Eurasian Cuisine’s Chef Glenn Chu will tempt your taste buds at his hip downtown restaurant with crispy goat cheese won ton with four fruit sauce; garlic speared joy scallop; and lemongrass lamb shanks. The restaurant also houses three bars that serve Indigo’s famous martinis, making it a hot spot to grab a drink or two, especially on First Friday. www.indigohawaii.com

Local award winner for casual dining, 12th Ave Grill, specializes in Contemporary American cuisine. Its dishes include comfort-food classics, such as macaroni and cheese; gourmet appetizers and entrees, including smoked ahi bruschetta and roasted Kauai free-range chicken; and tasty desserts, such as chocolate fudgesicles with caramel and mocha sauces. www.12thavegrill.com

Considered by many to be the leader in the local farm-to-table, sustainable food movement in Hawaii, Oahu-born chef Ed Kenney serves simply crafted food with extraordinary taste at his popular Kaimuki restaurant, Town. Its menu, which changes daily and highlights the state’s bounty of fresh ingredients, has included items such as MA‘O organic lettuces, hand cut pasta with Hau‘ula he‘e (octopus), Kulana striploin, and guava claufoutis for dessert. www.townkaimuki.com

Just two years following the opening of Town, Chef Ed Kenney opened a restaurant at the Hawaii State Art Museum in downtown Honolulu, which he fittingly named Downtown. Downtown serves deli-style takeout and casual sit-down dining during lunch, as well as dinner on the first Friday of every month. Similar to Town, Downtown supports local farms, uses organic ingredients where possible and is committed to sustainable practices. www.slowdowntown.com

Cinnamon’s Restaurant, located in the Windward Oahu beach town of Kailua, has been a local favorite for breakfast and lunch for more than 25 years. Cinnamon’s serves a full menu of award-winning sweet and savory dishes, such as Portuguese sweet bread French toast, mahimahi eggs benedict, Hawaiian omelet with kalua pork and lau lau ingredients, basil pesto frittata, and loco moco. www.cinnamonsrestaurant.com

No list of local favorite restaurants on Oahu can be complete without mentioning Side Street Inn, a definite local favorite that is frequented by Hawaii’s most renowned chefs who often dine here after work. The restaurant serves local comfort food, including sizzling New York steak, fried rice, pan fried island pork chops, and Nalo green salad. Side Street Inn opened a second location in 2010 on Kapahulu Avenue, just outside of Waikiki. www.sidestreetinn.com

Resource

Hawaii Tourism Authority / Oahu Visitor's Bureau / July 21, 2010

		Hawaii for Visitors Hawaii Travel Guide by Kathie Walling	FOLLOW US: Blog \| Facebook \| Twitter \| Email \|