Wahoo's Fish Taco
Here in Hawaii it seems as though quite a number of Mexican food restaurants have been opening up lately. Some have met with great success, while others, can be considered mediocre. It was with great interest that I watched the corner of Ward and Auahi come alive with the construction of a new building that was completed in about 6 months time. Several weeks ago, tenants finally started to move in. First, of course, it was a combination Jamba Juice and Starbucks. Shortly thereafter, came this place, Wahoo's.
Doing a quick search on the internet, I found that this was part of a chain of restaurants that got their start in California more than a decade ago. Was this going to be another Del Taco, or even worse, a Taco Bell?
When I arrived on a recent weekday, I found myself confronted with a sign upon entering:
"10 minute wait from this point."
Were they trying to tell me that it was really busy and I had to wait, or were they trying to scare me away. After looking over the menu, which was rather extensive, I paid the cashier and took my number (#29) to the table.
As you can see from this photo here, there was just enough of a crowd for me to believe that I had made the right choice by coming here. There were quite a number of tables inside, and there were a few that were unoccupied.
After waiting for a little less than the anticpated 10 minutes, my #3 combo, Banzai burrito combination platter (US$9.75) was delivered to my table.
Stuffed with the filling of your choice (I chose blackened fish), Ahee rice, black beans, and sauteed teriyaki veggies (!), this combination sounded much worse than it ended up being. The combination of the veggies, chunks of fish, rice and black beans, made this an interesting flavor combination.
Here, take a closer look.
On the one hand, the teriyaki veggies were a bit sweet and mildly salty, while the beans lent a slightly "smoky" flavor to the burrito.
The burrito was served on a plate with more Ahee rice and your choice
of white or black beans. Since this was my first time
here, I asked for a little of each and have to say that I enjoyed the
black beans more. Next time, though, I'll just order the burrito and
skip the rice and beans. I honestly don't think that I need more carbohydrates in my daily diet.
On a subsequent visit, I decided to start with the chips 'n salsa (US$1.50).
For $1.50, you get a small basket of stale chips and some OK tasting salsa. This wasn't anything special as the salsa itself wasn't too spicy, and the tomatoes lacked the necessary sweetness.
To go along with the chips and salsa, I decided on the #2 combo, two tacos combination platter (US$7.75).
According to the menu, this is the "bestseller". It comes with your choice of two tacos (what I had) or two enchiladas, with the filling of your choice (I had one carne asada taco and one flame-broiled chicken taco) and a side of rice and beans (I chose black beans). It was also served with more of that salsa.
A close up of the carne asada taco.
The taco itself with filled with a few cubes of beef that were a bit tough and quite dry. There was a light sprinkling of cheese and to top it all off, was a huge handful of lettuce. The taco was pretty much flavorless even with the addition of some hot sauce and all the salsa that was spooned on top.
The flame broiled chicken taco, though, fared a bit better. Here's a close up.
Well-seasoned white meat chicken chunks were flame-broiled before being stuffed inside a flour tortilla. And although, the chicken was a bit dry, at least it had a lot of flavor. I added a bit of hot sauce to give it some kick and squeezed a bit of lime over it all to give it some tanginess.
When I first walked into Wahoo's, I actually thought it was going to be an upscale taco shop. Instead, what I walked into was all looks and not enough substance. Combine the wait time, the mediocre food, and the premium prices and what's left is a place that I probably won't be revisiting any time soon. In fact, I would much rather pay a little less and get a little more at Maria Bonita's or even Diego's.
Wahoo's Fish Taco Hawaii
Ward Gateway Center
940 Auahi Street
Telephone: 808.591.1646
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