'Ono Kine Grindz

Irifune

This past Saturday a friend asked if I was free for lunch.  "Sure", I said, "where do you want to go?"  He replied that he wanted to go to Irifune.  I hadn't been there in years, and remembered the delicious garlic ahi (tuna), so I happily went along.

Irifune has been in business since 1974 and has developed quite a following.  If you happen to pass by around dinner time, it's likely that there will be a few people waiting outside for a table.  Filled with too many objects to count, I think part of the reason for wanting to visit, is the quirky, yet relaxed ambiance.

Here's a kind of wall of fame.  If you're a regular, I'm sure your picture is here somewhere!  Can you see yours?

With our lunch, we are served a bowl of miso soup.  This one has tofu, mung bean sprouts and green onions in it.  Delicious.

To start, we ordered the homemade gyoza (US$4.00).

The menu described this as "homemade dumplings stuffed with tofu and cheese".  Tofu and cheese?!  The gyoza was actually filled with tofu and cream cheese, a very unlikely, but very delicious combination.  The gyoza was probably deep-fried, and not fried in the traditional method, which is steam frying.  It was light and crunchy and surprisingly, not oily.

With our appetizer out of the way, we proceeded with lunch, which was the mixed plate (US$6.50).

The mixed plate consisted of (clockwise from left):  garlic ahi, tossed salad, teriyaki chicken and vegetable tempura.  Included also was a bowl of white rice.

The garlic ahi was just as I remembered it.  It was pan-fried (?) and wonderfully garlic-y, with just a slight bit of spiciness to it.  The fish was soft and flakey, perfectly cooked.

The teriyaki chicken, was a little bit better than average, although a bit more ginger could have been used to flavor the sauce. 

The vegetable tempura was also great!  A wonderful mix of vegetables (carrots, zucchini, onions, long beans, etc.) held together by a wonderfully light and crisp batter.  The homemade dipping sauce gave this just the right amount of zip!

After lunch was over, I kept asking myself why I didn't come here more often.  Considering the quality of the food and the size of the portion, this seemed to be quite a bargain for lunch.  I guess this is one place I'm going to start visting a lot more frequently.

Irifune
563 Kapahulu Avenue
Telephone:  808.737.1141

KC Drive Inn

UPDATE:  March 2005
KC Drive Inn has closed.

Several weeks ago, I heard that the KC Drive Inn might be closing soon and that the property was up for sale.  Now since this could happen at anytime, and without sufficient notice, I decided to make a trip there.

KC Drive Inn has been open since the 1929 and used to be located on corner of Kapiolani and Kalakaua where the Hard Rock Cafe now stands.  The restaurant has been in it's currently location since the early 1980's. 

Regarded by most to be the first drive-in restaurant to open in Hawaii, KC Drive Inn is known for the waffle hot dogs and ono ono shakes.  So tonight, I ordered a waffle hot dog with homemade chili (US$3.70).

For those of you who haven't had this, the waffle hot dog is a must try.  The hot dog is actually cooked inside of a crunchy, golden brown waffle.  In fact, if I didn't have this with the homemade chili, I would probably want to spread some butter on this and load up on the maple syrup!  This would actually be great for breakfast.  The chili, while nice and meaty, didn't have the kind of spicy flavor that I normally like.  Next time, I would probably order the waffle hot dog plain with a side of eggs!

In addition to the signature waffle hot dogs, KC Drive Inn also serves saimin, oxtail soup, hamburgers and a wide range of plate lunches.  The food is great and an excellent value.  I guess that's what's kept them in business for more than 70 years. 

KC Drive Inn
1029 Kapahulu Avenue
Telephone:  808.737.5581

La Bamba

It's been a while since I last had Mexican food.  In fact, it's been about 4 years!  Why so long?  Well...because there's a lack of good Mexican restaurants here in Hawaii.  Since I felt like eating Mexican food tonight, I decided to visit an old favorite, La Bamba.

I've been visiting La Bamba since the early 90s and the food and atmosphere have not changed at all since the last time I was here.  I tried to come here a few nights ago only to find this place packed, however, I got lucky tonight...there are a few tables available when I arrive at about 7:00 pm.

(Please excuse the photos.  I was unable to "remove" the yellowish cast, which was caused by the lighting inside, from a few of the pictures.)

I was served the requisite chips and homemade salsa to start.  In addition to the homemade salsa, I decide to order a small guacamole (US$4.00) to enjoy with my chips as well.

Many times, guacamole is made with mashed avocados.  I love this one because it's served chunky style.  You get nice big chunks of avocado and tomato, and lots of cilantro (Chinese parsley) too.  This is the best guacamole I've ever tasted.

For dinner, I ordered the carne asada (grilled steak, US$14.95).

The food here is cooked homestyle.  No frills.  The refried beans and fluffy Mexican-style rice are served on the side with a small lettuce and tomato salad, a small portion of guacamole and two flour tortillas.  The steak is lean and tender.  Seasoned perfectly with just the right amount and right combination of spices to make your taste buds smile. 

Overall this was a nice way to end the long weekend.  The food and service, as always, was great!  Now, the only thing I need to do, is make sure I come back...and come back soon!

La Bamba
847 Kapahulu Avenue
Telephone:  808.737.1956

Leonard's Bakery 

Ask anyone about Leonard's Bakery and I bet the first thing they would mention is the malasadas.  Leonard's Bakery has been doing business since 1952 at the same spot on the corner of Kapahulu Avenue and Charles Street.

Well, what exactly is a malasada?  Malasadas have their origins in Portuguese cuisine and are a sort of fried pastry dough.  Malasadas from Leonard's are exactly that.  Dough that has been fried until crispy and golden brown on the outside, while remaining fluffy and moist on the inside.

Here at Leonard's you can get your malasada fix 2 ways, either with sugar or with sugar/cinnamon!  At a measly 66 cents each, I get 3 of each to go!

Incredibly delicious, they should be eaten while still hot for the best sensory overload around!

Leonard's Bakery
933 Kapahulu Avenue
Telephone:  808.737.5591

Here's a recipe for malasadas made the easy way. 

Easy Malasadas

1 1/2 cups Bisquick®
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup milk

vegetable oil (for deep frying)
1 cup granulated sugar (or sugar/cinnamon)
brown paper bag

Blend the first 5 ingredients together until smooth and lump free.  Set aside.  This mixture should be almost the same consistency as pancake batter or a little thicker.

Take 5 slices white bread and remove the crusts and cut each slice of bread into 4 squares.

Then, dip the bread into the batter and drop into hot oil, frying until golden brown.  Remove from oil and then place in paper bag filled with sugar.  Shake to coat.

ENJOY!

Rainbow Drive-In

After a day of shopping and a few disappointing meals, I decided to head on over to Rainbows.  This is one of Hawaii's premier "drive-in" restaurants and has been since 1961.  This place serves great local-style favorites and has been one of my favorite eating spots since I can remember.

Rainbows is one of the few remaining plate lunch/burger drive-ins from bygone era.  Many others, such as Kenny's Burger House in Kalihi, and Burgerland Drive Inn in Kapahulu, have since closed.  This place still has the classic menu boards and all of the local-style offerings such as teri beef, boneless chicken and beef stew.

Tonight, I had the Bar-B-Q beef sandwich (US$2.50), french fries (US$1.20) and chili rice bowl (US$1.90).

The Bar-B-Q beef sandwich is one of the best around.  The sandwich comes wrapped in the traditional white waxed paper and is piled high with lean Bar-B-Q beef.  The beef is tender (can you say melt in the mouth?) and the flavor is just right.  Where else do you think you can find another sandwich like this?

The chili rice bowl is also another winner...

In my opinion, this chili is better than Zippy's.  Just the right amount of spice and plenty of ground beef...no fillers!  The bowl is actually just the right size to accompany my sandwich!

Next time you're hungry, stop by Rainbows for some awesome local-style grinds.  The food here is delicious and served in generous quantities at a reasonable price. 

Rainbow Drive-In
3308 Kanaina Avenue
Telephone:  808.737.0177

Gina's B-B-Q

If you've ever been to Market City Shopping Center, then it's more than likely that you've eaten at Gina's.  This local-style Korean restaurant has been in the same location for a good 10 years or so and they serve an unreal amount of food for a reasonable price. 

Whenever I come here, it's quite crowded and tonight's no exception.

Tonight, I ordered the spicy BBQ chicken and meat jun combination plate lunch (US$6.50).  This is standard Gina's fare.  The "plate" is actually a styrofoam container (take out) which tries very hard to contain the following:  3 scoops of white rice, 4 side dishes of your choice, and the main dish(es).

The spicy BBQ chicken is actually chicken that has been marinated in ko chu jang sauce (hot bean paste) and then grilled.  This is a little sweet and a bit spicy...actually, it's my favorite dish here...though it could be a bit spicier!

The meat jun is made by marinating sliced beef in a teriyaki-style sauce, then frying in a coating of flour and egg.  This is usually served with some dipping sauce (which is in the small plastic container in the picture).  This is a staple in any local Korean restaurant...though I doubt you'd find it at very many places in Korea.

The side dishes that I selected from top to bottom are: bean sprouts, cabbage, and watercress (which are "cured" in salted water) and taegu (hot and sweet shredded codfish).  To round off the of the plate...yes, there's more...add one fried man doo (fried Korean dumpling) and one hobak jun (fried zucchini).

All in all, this was too much for me to eat, so I'm dividing the plate in half, and taking some for lunch tomorrow.  How can you beat that value?  Next time you're hungry...and I mean HUNGRY...stop by Gina's B-B-Q, you won't be sorry!

Gina's B-B-Q
Market City Shopping Center
2919 Kapiolani Boulevard
Telephone:  808.735.7964 

India Café

Know any good Indian restaurants, I was asked.  Sure do!  If you're like me, you like to venture to the small, hole-in-the-wall places that are well off the beaten path.  I discovered this place purely by accident.  One day while searching the web for places that served Indian food, I came across India Café.  Located in the back of a small strip mall, you'd never know it was there...unless you were told where to go and what to look for.

Tonight, we ordered dishes "family-style" so everyone could have a little of everything to try.

We had the lamb masala.  This dish is made by slow cooking cubes of lamb in a type of thick curry sauce until tender.

We also tried the tofu sambal.  This is made by combining tofu, sambal chilli and other spices in a very flavorful dish!  This is one of my favorites.

Next up was the spicy eggplant.  This dish is very spicy and a great compliment to everything else we ordered.

A bit milder, but equally delicious, was the cauliflower stir-fried with red peppers, onions and curry.

We also decided to try one of the seafood offerings on the menu.  This one was the spicy shrimp curry, which wasn't as spicy as it looks.

To round out the meal, we ordered one order of nasi lemak.  This was not made in the typical Malaysian fashion that I was used to, but was made by cooking jasmine rice with coconut milk, star anise, cardamom and a cinnamon stick.  With all of those ingredients, the rice had a nice aroma, but not enough flavor.

We also order a few of the roti paratha.  This is a type of flat bread that is fried until crispy.  My only wish is that they would have "puffed" the bread up a bit more before serving.  Otherwise, this was very delicious.

If you're looking for something different, visit India Café.  It makes for a wonderful introduction to South Indian cuisine at an affordable price.

India Café
Kilohana Square
2851-1 Kihei Place
Telephone:  808.737.4600