Trip to Hawaii (Oahu - November 2015)…Final meals

A week has passed since I arrived here, and I had to go back to LA in the afternoon. I saw Jason off to work early in the morning. I won’t be able to see him again until he returns in a few weeks.


After working out in the gym, I decided to have my second breakfast (!) at Arancino di Mare, because Jason told me that I must have their breakfast crepe. I started with the salad of locally grown vegetables (very good), then from several choices of their crepes, I ordered a savory kind with sautéed spinach, portbello mushrooms, and pancetta toppings. The filling was egg salad. Jason was right…the crepe was so delicious! The crepe itself was so delicate, and the filling and the toppings made excellent flavor combinations. Even the side of roasted potatoes were good. I was so satisfied.



Then, before I left for the airport, I had to swing by at Pioneer Saloon to pick up a bento to take to the plane, because I love their food so much. I got miso butterfish (again!) with multigrain rice, extra Nalo farm greens, plus a boiled egg with soft yolk. Thanks to the bento, with some extra cookies from Honolulu Cookie Company, I had a nice flight back to LA.

Trip to Hawaii (Oahu - November 2015)...Japanese Hawaiian

It was already Monday and my last full day in Hawaii in this trip. Jason left for work at 5 am...he said he drives about 45 minutes to a jungle to work on a project.


So, I had a full day myself, no car, until he came back at night. I worked in the morning, then left for a little shopping in Alamoana. For lunch, I stopped by at MW Restaurant, because I felt like having their seafood. I had grilled miso butterfish with quinoa salad. It was tasty.

I did some shopping in the afternoon and worked again back in the hotel. Mellow day. Jason came back to the hotel a little before 8 pm. He was exhausted from long day of work. So, we walked to Jason's regular place, Sansei Restaurant, for Hawaiian style sushi. Because it's so close and also the food is good, he said he comes here a couple of days a week. So, it's really like his backyard spot.  I've been to Sansei in Kihei several years ago, and I remember I enjoyed it.


We started with uni shooter, ocean salad, and agedashi tofu.


Nigir sushi...local marlin, local snapper, hotate, hamachi, ahi, hokki-gai.


So, those fusion sushi rolls are still big in Hawaii, and I do enjoy those creative sushi rolls when they are good:-) We had Takah Sushi Special Roll (shrimp, crab, ahi, avocado & cucumber, crusted with masago), and 69 Roll (don't know why the name...California roll, topped with broiled unagi, masago, and unagi sauce).


Very nice and satisfying low-key night.

Trip to Hawaii (Oahu - November 2015)...Tonkatsu and Burmese

It was already Sunday. Jason had to wake up very early for work the next day, so we decided to stay in our area and have a relaxing day.


For lunch, we walked to Ginza Bairin in Waikiki. This is an only US location of a traditional tonkatsu restaurant in Ginza (Tokyo, Japan). Jason was missing my cooking after living in Hawaii for a few months, so he wanted to eat tonkatsu to feel like home. I had their pork tender tonkatsu.


Jason had katsudon! Boom. Power lunch.

Then, we hung out in the beach most of the afternoon, including a power nap.


For dinner, we went to Dagon on S. King Street. It's an only (?) Burmese restaurant in Oahu and popular among locals. The restaurant is BYOB, too.


We started with their famous tea leaf salad. There were fermented tea leaves, lettuce, tomatoes, sesame, peanuts, dry peas, etc. etc. Our server squeezed a wedge of lime and tossed the whole salad. It was so good that I felt I wanted to eat it every day.


For main courses, we had mahimahi Burmese curry, and chicken & kabocha stew with rice. Wow...both dishes were so full of flavor and really wonderful. They were not "hot" spicy. They had more subtle different flavors. I enjoyed them so much.

I definitely want to come back here to try other dishes.


After dinner, we had to make an "accidental" stop at Leonard's. How could we resist?! I had a malasada puff with macadamia nut cream. Dangerous!

Trip to Hawaii (Oahu - November 2015)...Farmers Market and Vietnamese Crab Curry

It was a sunny Saturday.


We headed to Saturday farmers' market at KCC. Jason has been coming here almost every Saturday to enjoy shopping and brunch. This is such a fun place to visit as you can enjoy all the locally produced items and food here. I needed to get new supplies of Hawaiian herb tea, macadamia nuts, etc. There are many tourists, so the place is packed every weekend.


I like Otsuji Farm's kale smoothie. We also tried their ahi sliders (on top of kale leaf tempura) and trumpet mushroom tempura.


The Pig & the Lady at farmers market always has a long line!


We got Laotian grilled chicken banh mi with pho (au jus) French dip. So good.


Hawaiian Sea asparagus salad to take to the beach. It's a super food, loaded with vitamins and antioxidants.


And, of course, coconut juice.

After the market, we went to Jason's secret beach to hang out and snorkel. It was a lot of fun.


For dinner, we went to Bac Nam restaurant on King Street. It's a popular Vietnamese restaurant. One of my friends recommended that we try their crab curry. So, we decided to go there. The restaurant was already packed at 7 pm.


This is also a BYOB place, so I enjoyed my wine from Loire.


Vietnamese steamed dumplings with sweet & sour dipping sauce.


Shaken beef.


Sautéed unchoi.


And, their famous crab curry.

Everything was so good! Two of us ate everything. The curry was mild and tasty. I even felt like coming back here the next day.

Trip to Hawaii (Oahu - November 2015)...Contemporary Local Dining

The weather has finally turned sunny on Friday.


We saw a beautiful rainbow from our balcony in the morning.


For brunch, we went to Koko Head Cafe in Kaimuki. Jason loves the place and he was finally taking me there. The restaurant is run by Chef Lee Anne Wong, who also owns Hale Ohuna where I enjoyed dinner in my last visit. Koko Head Cafe does "island style" contemporary brunch.


We got the counter seating so we can see all the action in the kitchen. This is a very popular place, and right after we got seats, we saw there was a long wait outside.


We started with black sesame yuzu muffins, and "Dumplings all day Wong".


Jason had breakfast congee with bacon, Portuguese sausages, heritage ham, etc. Very rich.


I had "fish and eggs" in a sizzling skillet. It was miso-marinated marlin with scrambled eggs, sautéed ong choy, on top of ocean rice (rice mixed with seaweed). Very nice and satisfying.

In the afternoon, we enjoyed some drive, shopping, and massage & facial. I felt so refreshed.


For dinner, we went to Lucky Belly in Chinatown. I came to this place in January and loved it so much. They serve contemporary Asian cuisine plus unique ramen dishes.


Beet and spicy greens...goat cheese, candied pumpkin seeds, pomegranate dressing.


Shrimp gyoza...edamame avocado puree & ponzu.


Duck tataki...kabocha puree & pear and raisin chutney.


Then, each of us had a bowl of ramen. Jason had "Beast Bowl" (brisket, short ribs, and oxtail wontons), and I had "Belly Bowl" (pork belly, bacon, and sausage). Wow, my ramen was so good. The thick cut of the belly was so jiggly and tender. I loved the sausage addition, and also the generous amount of wakame, too.

Their wine list is also good. I enjoyed Carricante from Sicily, and also Salice Salentino from Puglia.