'Ono Kine Grindz

Fritz's European Bakery

Fritz's makes excellent breads, but it's been a while since I last had their sandwiches.  Were the sandwiches here as good as I remember?

The Boss on wheat, grilled.

Fritz's Special on multi-grain, grilled.

 

If you need a sugar rush afterwards.

Fritz's European Bakery
1336 Dillingham Boulevard
Telephone: 808.845.0650

The Original Pancake House

Most mornings, breakfast for me consists of two slices of sweetbread toast, a cup of coffee and a banana.  Every now and then, I feel like something a little more elaborate and if I have the time, and the opportunity, I like to eat breakfast out at the Original Pancake House.

And even though there's a Pancake House right near my apartment, I will normally visit the location in Kalihi, if only because it holds some special memories for me.  Since I've been working a number of weekends lately, every few weeks I've made it a point to meet some friends for breakfast before going in to the office (or for brunch).

On one visit, we arrived shortly after 8:00 am, only to find the restaurant fairly crowded.  On that ocassion, we ended up waiting about one half hour for a table.  On a more recent visit, it wasn't nearly as crowded when we met for brunch.

On the first ocassion, it was the Swedish pancakes served with lingonberry butter (US$6.75?) and a nice hot cup of coffee.

The pancake itself has really crisp and crunchy edges with a slightly "chewy" middle that's still a bit tender.  The batter probably uses buttermilk as the pancake has a slightly tangy flavor to it.  It's one of my new favorites here.

Here's what the lingonberry butter looks like -- it's just a small bowl full of tart lingonberry jam with a scoop (or more accurately, a blob) of whipped butter in the center.  Most of the time I'll mix the jam and butter together, spread the mixture all over the pancakes, then roll them like crepes before eating.

The next time I was here, it was R&D's Favorite Omelette with three buttermilk pancakes (US$8.80).

The R&D is one of the house specialties.  Described as a baked omelette, the eggs are perfectly whipped and have a delicate, fluffy texture to them.  Stuffed inside was some spinach and ground beef that had been seasoned with Italian herbs, garlic and onions.  Spooned on top was some "Spanish" sauce that was tomato-based.  This savory omelette was perfectly seasoned and packed with flavor.  Satisfying.

Take a look at these light, fluffy, golden brown pancakes.  Need I say more?

The Original Pancake House may be a little pricey when compared to similar eateries around town, but the food, and especially the pancakes, are well prepared and are delivered to the table while still hot off the grill.  The service here is excellent, which makes dining here all the more enjoyable.  Just make sure you get here early, otherwise, you may encounter a long line (and a considerable wait) at the door.

The Original Pancake House
Waiakamilo Shopping Center
1414 Dillingham Boulevard
Telephone: 808.847.1496

Dillingham Café

Months ago, a reader of this blog suggested that I pay a visit to Dillingham Café.  Located in a small strip mall (if you want to call it that) on Dillingham Boulevard across the street from Saint Germain Bakery (formerly known as Dee Lite Bakery), and on the site of a former gas station, Dillingham Café is one of many unassuming neighborhood restaurants. 

Although it isn't what I would call homey, it's very much an everyday, casual sort of place -- more like a coffee shop than a café.  The interior is clean and brightly lit, and on the day I visited, there was a crowd of people standing at the counter ordering some lunch.

The extensive menu is made up of local favorites, burgers and sandwiches with a smattering of Filipino specialties thrown in for good measure.  On my first visit here, I decided to try the beef stir fry (US$5.25).

Slices of beef were stir fried with long beans, red bell peppers and onions, then plated with two scoops rice and your choice of tossed or macaroni salad.  The strips of beef lacked tenderness and seemed to be barely seasoned, but the salty and slightly sweet sauce along with the medley of stir fried vegetables kept me interested.

On a subsequent visit, I decided to try one of the specials.  I chose the garlic steak and mahi (US$7.95).

Slices of beef were coated in a thick, flavorful garlic sauce, while a piece of pan fried mahi sat alongside it on the plate.  On its own, I doubt that the beef would have had much flavor as it seemed unseasoned.  While the mahi, on the other hand, which was coated in egg before being pan fried, was moist and well seasoned.

While my experience here was average at best (tastewise), the friendly staff, the prompt service and the great prices will probably bring me back again.  Since this is a new addition to the Kalihi dining scene, it may take a little while before Dillingham Café becomes a major contender here. 

Dillingham Café
1901 Dillingham Boulevard
Telephone: 808.847.1500

New Diner's Drive In

POST IN PROGRESS

Many years ago, this was one of my late night haunts.  I've stopped by here a couple of times recently and discovered that the "new" Diner's isn't nearly as good as the "old" one was.

Diner's combo special #1 - charcoal broiled New York steak with/without teriyaki sauce, mahi mahi, and fried chicken (US$6.45).

Homemade hamburger steak smothered in brown gravy and sautéed onions (US$5.65).

New Diner's Drive In
1333 North King Street
Telephone:  808.842.0344

Boulevard Saimin

Whenever it's wet and rainy, I seem to crave noodle soups and tonight was no exception.  Initially, I had planned to go and grab a bowl of pho at Pho 97, but it was already after 8:00 pm and I believe the restaurant was already closed.  Instead, I decided that I would visit Palace Saimin, but as I pulled into the driveway, I discovered that they were closed too.  Since I was already in Kalihi and craving a bowl of saimin, I decided to stop by Boulevard Saimin.

A number of years ago, when I used to work in the neighborhood, Boulevard Saimin was a popular lunchtime spot for both myself and my co-workers.  The bowls of saimin were huge and filling, and there were quite a number of different choices that were available on the menu.  When I arrived tonight, there were people occupying a few of the many booths inside the restaurant.

Since it was already late (a little after 8:30 pm) when I arrived, I decided to quickly place my order for a bowl of the tsukimi (poached egg) saimin with wun tun, which is something that I've always ordered here.  Just as I was placing my order, I recalled an e-mail that I received from a reader of this blog not more than a couple of hours ago.  I decided to try his usual, the kayaku saimin with wun tun (kayaku saimin US$6.25; with wun tun US$6.80).

A few minutes later, the bowl of piping hot saimin arrived at the table.

The bowl was filled to the rim with noodles and broth, then garnished with some char siu, a couple of slices of kamaboko (fish cake), some chopped mustard cabbage (kai choy) and Chinese cabbage (won bok) and quite a bit of aburage (deep fried tofu).  The bowl of saimin was warm, flavorful and comforting, but just a little salty.  There were six wun tuns floating in the bowl, and although they were meaty, the wun tun skins were just a little to thick.

To go along with my bowl of saimin, I also ordered two bar-b-q beef sticks (US$1.85).

Marinated pieces of beef are first skewered before being grilled.  This time, the beef was a little tough and dry, and I really didn't enjoy the coating of overly sweet bar-b-q sauce.  In fact, when the bar-b-q sticks were brought to the table, the bar-b-q sauce started to become a little "firm" and jelly-like.

The saimin here at Boulevard is OK.  Not the best, in my opinion, but definitely good enough to be considered when you're craving saimin and it's raining outside.  There are quite a few choices on the menu, so you won't be stuck with too few options.  The service here is efficient and friendly, and the prices are reasonable considering the size of the bowl and the amount of ingredients in it. 

Boulevard Saimin
1427 Dillingham Boulevard
Telephone:  808.841.7233

Utage Restaurant & Lounge

A while back, when I did a post on Sunrise, one of my readers asked if I knew of any other Okinawan restaurants.  I mentioned this place, Utage, and offered a review on my next visit.  Utage is located in the City Square building next to Young's Fish Market, Kalani Korean Bar-B-Q & Sugoi.

Friends of mine asked me to call on my next visit here so they could sample some of the Okinawan specialties served here.  When we arrived at about 8:00 pm, a few of the high-backed vinyl booths were occupied.  Although it looks small from the outside, this place is actually quite spacious.  There are quite a few seats inside the restaurant.

This was the table next to mine. From what I could hear, it seemed as though the two couples enjoyed their food here tonight.

After looking over the menu and making our selections, this arrived at the table.

It was an appetizer of sorts, consisting of some pickled daikon that was crunchy, tangy and slightly sweet.  Each meal comes with a beverage of your choice, so I decided to have some ocha (tea).  Take a look at this teapot.  My grandmother has one just like it at home. 

A bowl of piping hot miso soup came next.

Filled with lots of firm cubes of tofu, chopped green onions and knotted konbu (seaweed), this was just a little too strong and a little too salty for my tastes.  Nonetheless, I found it quite satisfying.

I chose the goya (bittermelon) chanpuru (stir fry with tofu and eggs) with shoyu pork (rafute) (US$9.25).

This dish can be prepared with shoyu pork, as shown above, or it can be prepared with pork, chicken, Spam, bacon or tuna.  The shoyu pork was mouthmeltingly tender, its sweetness complimented the bitterness of the melon very well.  The pieces of bittermelon were tender, yet still retained some bite.  There was lots of flavor here, but much of it was too sweet.  I also didn't like that there was a lot of "gravy" on the bottom of the dish -- I guess I don't really like it when the dish is served "wet".  By the way, I didn't eat much of the fat that was on the pork.  I ate a couple of pieces of pork with the fat and that was about enough for me. 

For dessert, which was also included, I had a scoop of Dreyers green tea ice cream.

Both of my friends had the nabera (squash) chanpuru (stir fry with tofu and green onions) with chicken (US$9.25).

One had green tea ice cream, the other, tapioca.

The food here at Utage reminds me of home cooking -- nothing fancy, nothing spectacular, but comforting, even when they are not prepared exactly to my liking.  In fact, many of these same dishes have been cooked for me at home by my grandmother, who is half Okinawan.  I felt that for the price, the meal here was a good deal.  For less than US$10.00 each meal comes with soup or salad, a drink (coffee, tea, iced tea, fruit punch), an entrée including rice, and dessert.  These days, deals like this are very hard to find.

Utage Restaurant & Lounge
City Square
1286 Kalani Street Suite B102
Telephone:  808.843.8109

Nico's at Pier 38

I've been wanting to visit Nico's ever since I was tipped off about the place by "Juliana Chaize" via e-mail back in April of this year.  At the time, her e-mail indicated that Nico's had been open just six months and that they served delicious gourmet-style plate lunches at drive inn prices.  Nico's is located in a mostly industrial area off of Nimitz Highway.  See the sign above, take the left turn and you're almost there.

Nico's is literally on the water and is across the way from United Fishing Agency.  For those of you who don't know, United Fishing Agency is the home of the Honolulu Fish Auction, the largest auction house in the state.  Therefore, if you have a chance to eat the catch-of-the-day at Nico's you know that it will be of the freshest quality.

On my way to the pier, I almost missed the sign taking me to Nico's.  You'll know you're there when you see the green awning which covers the outdoor seating area.

Inside the shop, you'll see the menu board on the left as well as a list of the daily specials.  The counter is straight ahead with the open kitchen in back.  On the right is the drink machine and the condiment stand.  After placing my order, I went to secure a table outside.  As you can see, it was a gorgeous day and there was lots of outdoor seating.  It's cleared up a bit, but when I first arrived, only 2 of the 15 or so tables were unoccupied.

Based on a recommendation from Gail over at Hawaii Diner, I decided to have the Pier 38 double cheeseburger (US$5.75) which comes with your choice of french fries or tossed greens.  I chose french fries.

The two "homemade" hamburger patties, melted cheddar, lettuce, tomatoes and red onions are all served on a sesame seed bun.  Unlike most of the other local burger places, you can really tell that this is a homemade burger just by looking at the patty -- none of that "uniformly shaped" stuff here.  Juicy and perfectly seasoned, this is one of the better burgers that I've had the pleasure of eating.  In fact, it was so tasty and juicy, I had to keep licking my fingers after every bite.

Here it comes!

Along with the burger came these crisp golden french fries.  The french fries were lightly seasoned with some sea salt (great touch!) and I think parsley flakes (?).  Crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside, these were also cooked just the way I like them. 

Update:  07/20/05:

OK folks.  I have to admit that I did go back and I did order the fish, the furikake pan seared ahi with ginger garlic cilantro dip (US$6.95) to be exact.  Here it is for you all to enjoy.

It was nice piece of fresh ahi that was coated with furikake then pan-fried to the specified doneness (medium).  The fish was tasty, and though I felt that a little less furikake could have been used, it was cooked exactly as I had ordered it.  The ginger garlic cilantro dip was nice, but I didn't eat it with the fish.  This plate lunch is served with one scoop of white rice and your choice of either mac salad or Nalo greens.  Other menu items that sound really tasty are the "Catch of the Day" salad, the fried calamari on Nalo greens with sweet chili dressing and the grilled ahi sandwich.  I'll definitely be back to try those.

The food here at Nico's is tasty and incredibly well priced.  The portion sizes are perfect for lunch and the burger is one of the best that I've had yet.  In fact, I enjoyed the food here so much, this might just become a regular lunchtime hangout.

Nico's at Pier 38
1133 North Nimitz Highway
Telephone:  808.540.1377

Ray's Café

Many of you might remember Ray's Café when it was still in downtown Honolulu near the corner of Smith Street and Beretania.  All of you must definitely remember the inch thick prime rib for $9.95 as well.  A few years ago, Ray's relocated to the Kalihi area and I haven't been back since.  That is, until now.

Ray's is located on North King Street at the corner of Kopke Street.  In a non-descript shop that was once the home of Naka's Okazuya, you won't find the shop too easily.  The easiest way to find it is to locate the bright orange, hand-lettered sign.

Once inside, I found several of the tables occupied.  Everyone seemed to be enjoying their food, so I decided that it was time for me to look over the menu.

Here's one half of the menu.  It seems like there is quite a nice selection of steaks and the price seems quite reasonable.

Taped to the stainless steel refrigerator, just below the cats and the fan are a few of the daily specials.

After I had placed my order, I sat and waited.  In the meantime, I noticed the condiment tray.  Looks like everything I could ever want to use while I'm here -- syrup, mustard, powdered coffee creamer, Tabasco, steak sauce, ketchup, shoyu, salt and pepper.  Whew!

What did I order?  Well, I actually was going to order the lobster omelet, but it was already sold out.  Instead, I ordered one of the other specials -- New York steak with fried mushroom, onion and bell pepper (and asparagus and celery) AND french fries (US$9.95).

The steak was tender with most of the fat being trimmed away before it was cooked.  It was also perfectly seasoned which meant that I didn't have to add any additional salt or pepper to it.  I also tasted the slightest hint of butter on the steak, leading me to believe that it might have been cooked with butter.  The vegetables were still crisp and crunchy, adding a lot of color and texture to this dish.  The french fries, were of the crinkle cut variety and were a little undercooked (I like mine crispy), but acceptable.

Offering simple, homestyle meals, the food here at Ray's is delicious and a definite bargain.  There are no frills here, but you do get good service and the food is always fresh.  It's too bad that Ray's isn't in downtown, otherwise, I'd probably come here more than I have been.  Then again, now that I've re-discovered the food here at Ray's, maybe I'll start making the drive to Kalihi more often.

Before leaving, as I was paying for my meal, I took this photo of the kitchen where all the tasty food is cooked.

Ray's Café
2033 North King Street
Telephone:  808.841.2771

Spot's Inn

It's been a while since I've eaten lunch in the Kalihi area, but two of my readers, Clinton in California, and Lance from somewhere here in Honolulu area, have mentioned Spot's Inn to me recently.  While I used to visit this place weekly almost 10 years ago, I haven't been here in quite some time.  This past week, I was in the area and decided to drop by.

Spot's Inn is located across the street from Honolulu Community College,  and is right next to the Kapalama Canal.  It's in a small strip mall called Kokea Center, and it's in the same complex of buildings as Nisshodo.  As I arrived, I noticed that the parking lot was practically full.  There weren't too many people in line, but the dining area was crowded so I decided that I would order my lunch to go.

From the little specials board to the left, I ordered the New York steak (US$7.95).  Each plate is served with rice (one scoop) and macaroni or tossed salad. 

Even though it was super busy, I got my lunch in a very reasonable 10 minutes -- this was especially good since I ordered my steak well done.  The steak was still tender and very juicy, and quite surprising lean.  It had a wonderful flavor with just the slighest hint of butter.  If I didn't know better, and if this steak wasn't being eaten out of a styrofoam container, I would have guessed that this steak was from a more "gourmet" type restaurant.  The steak was that good.

On Spot's menu, it says in quotes "Gourmet Food at an Affordable Price!".  Based upon my visit today, it certainly tasted like gourmet food and the price was very affordable taking quality into consideration.  In fact, if I were able to come out here more often, I probably would.

Spot's Inn
Kokea Center
1111 Dillingham Boulevard Suite E9
Telephone:  (808)848-2770

Spot'sInnMenu
(requires Adobe Acrobat)

Natsunoya Tea House

A couple of weeks ago, it was announced that a good friend of mine had accepted a promotion to a new position within our company and would be leaving the office at the end of the month.  Last Friday, we had a luncheon in the office to celebrate this event and to wish her well in her new position.

Leading up to the event, we had discussed a luncheon and after tossing around some ideas, we decided on ordering food from Natsunoya Tea House.

Natsunoya provided several types of bentos and menus to choose from and in the end we decided to order from the shokado bento menu.  Four different menus were offered with a minimum of 5 orders per menu choice.  I decided to choose the Natsunoya Deluxe (US$13.00) -- more information on the items included to be provided later.

When lunch arrived, I wasn't in my office.  When I returned to my desk, I was pleasantly surprised to see a lacquered shokado bento box on my desk.

I was surprised that this wasn't served in the standard styrofoam take out container.  This was a nice touch, especially when you take the price we paid into consideration.

Here a list of the bento box's contents:

• katsuboshi chicken
• nishime
• tamago yaki
• niku teriyaki
• 2 pieces shrimp tempura
• pumpkin (kabocha) tempura
• namasu
• misoyaki butterfish
• rice and tsukemono

There didn't seem to be any pumpkin tempura in the box.  Instead, it was substituted with Okinawan sweet potato tempura.  I didn't see any tsukemono in the box either, and didn't notice any substitution for it.  Here are the contents of the shokado bento that I ordered, shown individually.

Katsuboshi chicken.

The chicken was deep fried, but a little oily -- probably from sitting in the bento box for a little too long before being eaten.  The chicken was well seasoned, though just a little too salty for me.

Tamago-yaki and nishime.

The tamago yaki was a bit bland, with not enough shoyu or sugar used to season the eggs.  The nishime, traditionally a New Years' dish, was much better.  The vegetables here were cooked to perfect "doneness" -- meaning, the vegetables retained their texture and "bite".  Most times when eating nishime at restaurants, I find that the vegetables have been simmered for too long, causing them to become "mushy".  There was one piece each: carrot, bamboo shoot, konnyaku (devil's tongue jelly), daikon (Japanese radish) and araimo (Japanese taro).

Misoyaki butterfish and niku teriyaki.

The misoyaki butterfish was a big disappointment.  Too much sake had been used in the marinade causing the bitter sake flavor to overpower the sweetness of the miso.  The niku (beef) teriyaki was very delicious.  The grilled meat was lean and tender, and had just the right amount of sweetness to it.  It was also nice that they decided to use ginger in the marinade -- many places don't do this anymore.

Shrimp and Okinawan sweet potato tempura.

The shrimp and Okinawan sweet potato tempura were good, but already a little soft.  Again, this is probably due to sitting in the bento box for a while before being eaten.  The napkin lining the compartment was soaked with oil meaning that the tempura wasn't drained too well before put into the bento box. 

Rice and namasu.

The pressed rice was unseasoned (maybe a little salt) and was served topped with a generous sprinkling of black sesame seeds (kuro goma).  The namasu, a side dish of vinegared cucumbers and daikon, was given to a friend who enjoyed them.  For some reason, namasu is a dish that I've never eaten.

Here are the other three shokado bento menus that we were offered:

Tea House Special (US$11.00):

katsuboshi chicken
nishime
tamago yaki
niku teriyaki
shrimp tempura
pumpkin tempura
namasu
croquette
rice and tsukemono

Vegetarian (US$11.00):

somen salad
nishime
kabocha
miso nasubi
vegetable tempura
namasu
musubi and tsukemono

Chef Special (US$13.55):

katsuboshi chicken
misoyaki butterfish
tamago yaki
kuri maki namasu
shrimp tempura
vegetable tempura
nishime
spinach goma
musubi

Customized shokado bento menus also available for the  depending on the number of bentos ordered.  Free delivery is provided to downtown Honolulu.

Natsunoya Tea House
1935 Makanani Drive
Telephone:  (808)595-4488