Tsukiji Shokudo Genchan Waikiki – Waikiki, HI

Ah yes. Slowly catching up on my posts but decided to stick a new one in! Tsukiji Shokudo Genchan Waikiki has been open for about a month and I wanted to give it a try. Oh, this place is hard to get to. Waikiki is already a pain but this place has absolutely no parking. One of the worst kept secrets is the Ross Store parking lot. If you know you’re going to buy something from Ross, you can park in their lot for 2 hours FREE. It’s great. We took full advantage, ate dinner, walked over to the International Market Place for dessert, shopped at Ross and got out just in the knick of time!

Tsukiji Shokudo Genchan Waikiki offers a pretty extensive menu: hotpot, sashimi, poke, Japanese pupus, and plenty of specials! If you check out their yelp page, I uploaded pictures of the menu from my visit.

Salmon and Avocado Salad – $10.80

Nice salad with a good dressing. Very generous with the salmon and ikura. The addition of limu is a bit of a headscratcher. I’m not a fan of limu so I’m glad it was just sprinkled on top so I could just remove it. Good salad.

Spicy Karaage – $7.50

Interesting preparation. My dining companion thought it reminded her of Korean chicken from Zippy’s, she’s probably right. It has big chunks of chicken thighs fried with a very light batter tossed in a savory soy sauce. Not spicy at all but I enjoyed it.

Spicy Trio Don Set – $19.98

According to the waitress, the trio of fish varies on the day. During our night, it was ahi, salmon and hamachi (and ikura!). It was good, nicely seasoned! Their sets come with the entree, rice, miso soup, and tsukemono. The tsukemono was interesting, the usual daikon dish and then a Korean seasoned bean sprout side dish.

Special Ahi Don Set – $18.86

Ah, my dish. I should have gotten the trio special above but I didn’t want us both to get the same dish. I was disappointed. Do you notice that it’s basically slices of ahi sashimi? I hardly would call this a special ahi don, I would have expected seasoning. Well, after I was able to dig in further, there was a mound of ahi chunks under the nori that was somewhat seasoned. Still disappointing, I wouldn’t get this dish again.

I think this restaurant was pretty good! I would definitely give them a try again knowing my new parking option. They weren’t too busy but I wonder if it’s because word hasn’t gotten out yet.

 

Yakitori Hachibei – Chinatown, HI

My friend suggested we try Yakitori Hachibei, I saw it on Yelp but people said it was always busy. Well the stars must have aligned for us on this day because we were able to grab a last minute reservation at the bar for dinner. Was it good? Yes. Was it worth the hype…well…I can’t say it’s the best yakitori place in town but it certainly had it’s high points. To the pics!

Cabbage Appetizer – complimentary.

Served raw with a very light dressing. I’m not the biggest fan of raw cabbage so it was okay.

Bacon and Egg Maki (Japanese breakfast stick)

Will you look at that? Just look at it! Sweet tamago encased with bacon, an American dream.

Tare Bara (pork belly dipped in lightly sweet soy sauce)

Pork? Yes, please. Belly? YES, please. Get in my belly. This was delicious. Probably one of our favorites of the night since we ordered it twice.

Goma Salmon (salmon in shoyu sesame sauce)

Good dish, nice chunks of salmon!

Hachibei Tempura Chicken Fingers (chicken fingers done the hachibei way)

This is their version of nanban chicken. My friend doesn’t like tartar sauce so we got it with a different preparation. All the reviews on Yelp say their tartar sauce is good, so give it a try!

Sukiyaki (sukiyaki on a stick…really on a stick)

Stop the presses. MUST TRY DISH IS RIGHT HERE. It really literally is sukiyaki on a stick. The unassuming meat roll is covering up all the fixings that come in sukiyaki. Yup, all the veggies and such are wrapped tightly on this stick with wonderful seasoning. That egg yolk right there? That raw egg yolk? You break that yolk up and dip your sukiyaki in. Heavenly. I loved it. Trust me.

Hachibei Chicken Ramen

We fell into the hype. We saw these bowls being carried out to other diners and had to get one for ourselves. Light chicken ramen served in their custom designed cups? Sure, why not. It was an okay dish. When they say light broth, they mean light broth. Nothing I would return for but it was nice to try once.

O’Kims – Chinatown, HI

O’Kims is definitely one of those hole in the wall places that is hard to access. There is no parking so you either have to strike it rich with Chinatown street parking or park at a municipal lot. This shop is very small and it’s set up essentially for take-out. We did a lunch order for the office a few months back and I enjoyed it! If they had a parking space for quick in and out stops for take-out, I would be coming here way more often! I hope you can give them a try, it’s a small shop and they change their menu monthly. They even have vegan options! Let’s take a look at some of the food…

Kalbi Steak – Short ribs with sweet shoyu seasoning, roast root veggies, purple rice, green salad and kimchi.

Kimchee Fried Rice with Egg Nest

Jidori Chicken Ginseng Risotto

I didn’t get this dish but the ones who did didn’t seem to enjoy it too much…

Seaweed Salmon – Slight poached salmon with nori and panko on top, Korean remoulade, tosazu gelee, pickled cherry tomato, nori chip, green salad, purple rice and kimchi.

I tried two dishes! I enjoyed this! The fish was cooked perfectly, not dry at all. At first I thought the fish was a bit small but it was actually the perfect size. The deep fried nori chip…hmm…definitely not needed or memorable.

Confited Pork Belly Brulee – Confit pork belly with sesame leaves and miso sauce, pickled onions, apple & ginger jam, green salad and kimchi.

I really enjoyed this dish, the pork was delicious and I love the deep fried leaves on top of the pork belly. Although, I think when I got it…it may have been deep fried kale? Either way, it was delicious and complemented the pork really well. What I appreciate about O’Kim’s is how high quality their food is and the little touches and details they add to their dishes. Highly recommended!

Recipe: Soon Dubu with Pork Belly

Do you folks follow Maangchi on YouTube? I have been following her channel for years and have made a few recipes which have all been successes! My biggest challenge to come…homemade kimchee. It’s time to up my game and make some good kimchee myself. I’m stressed just thinking about it! But excited as well.

I learned from her how to make some of the BEST Korean soups. The golden base of Korean soups are pretty basic: daikon, seaweed, and dried anchovies. Sounds simple but it makes all the difference in the world. Here are some pictures of a soon dubu I made before, recipe can be found here.

GOLDEN BROTH!!!!!

Did you know there is a special tofu to use to make the best soon dubu? Yes, it comes in this packaging at the Korean supermarkets! Yummmm…

Frying up some pork belly. So this recipe was a play on her recipe, I had some old kimchee that goes really well with pork belly so I made a soup out of it.

Ooooh…that looks sooo good.

Just get me a bowl of that purple rice they serve up and I’ll just be in heaven…

Thank Q Pocha – Honolulu, HI

I have to apologize for some of these posts, I am posting pictures from meals months ago at times so my details on these meals may be minimal. I preface this post with that because…this is one of those posts. This was my first time trying Thank Q Pocha and I think to rally up business, they started offering half-off menus during the weekdays. This may have changed since then but this is the deal we got! Here are some pictures:

Kimchee Fried Rice with Cheese

If you’ve been following Korean food trends, cheese is huge. It’s pretty cool to see the melted cheese surround the fried rice, it’s a nice way to offset the spiciness of the kimchee fried rice. Do I still make better fried rice? Yes. (hahaha)

Thank Q Bulgogi Plate

I think? Nothing special, it’s just a stirfry.

Kalbi Ssam

It’s the wraps you make when you go eat Korean BBQ, only they do it for you and you don’t have to smell like Korean BBQ smoke after eating this. It was good!

Braised Pork Belly Stew

I think? Lol, sorry for this post…I’m pretty sure this is what it was. Pretty good, I love anything served in a stone pot.

Chicken Wings

Meh – I didn’t eat these. Just wanted to show you how they are served up.

California Pizza Kitchen – Kahala, HI

All locals know how popular CPK is here in Hawaii. Especially the CPK in Kahala Mall. I never understood the fascination because any given night at Kahala Mall, you will see big groups of people outside the restaurant waiting to get in. CPK serves up okay food but it can be hit or miss depending on your server for the day, I am always weary of busy restaurant chains because I feel the staff then doesn’t care to provide good service because they are always going to get customers no matter what.

This particular visit, we were roaming around the mall and decided to go to CPK since we were pretty early. We got a table pretty quickly and it was a pretty good experience! Here are the pics!

Complimentary bread – wish they served up some butter. But good overall!

Spinach and Artichoke Dip – classic dish from CPK. Delicious as always, consistently!

Avocado Club Egg Rolls – once again, another classic appetizer from CPK. It was so good! I love this dish.

Garlic Cream Fettuccine – Okay dish, basic, nothing special.

Fire-grilled Ribeye – ooohhhh, never thought of ordering steak from CPK. Doesn’t it look good?? Definitely not a great quality cut of meat but I wasn’t expecting that since this is not a steakhouse. Still thought it was pretty good! We enjoyed it.

 

Bills Hawaii – Waikiki, HI

On a nice Sunday morning, I got to try Bills Hawaii for a brunch before a movie. It was a great day! I’m not generally a big brunch person but was curious to try this place. This restaurant originates in Australia and I’m pretty sure it was named Bills Sydney when it first opened here in Hawaii but then changed to Bills Hawaii. The restaurant is open air and has a very casual beachy feel which is perfect for tourists. Let’s get to the food!

Two lattes up! I wish I had the heart design. Is there even a design on my drink? Haha, the coffee was good.

French Toast, fruit, caramel, pistachios, and yoghurt – $15

$15!!! Well this toast was just alright…not a huge fan of the sour yogurt and the bread was a bit dry. I would not recommend this dish…

full aussie – scrambled waimanalo eggs, sourdough toast, cumin roast tomato, bacon, miso mushrooms, pork and fennel sausage – $22.00

$22! Hahaha sorry to exclaim the price for each dish. I wanted to try it just to see what a full aussie breakfast is like. Not impressed. For the prices we paid, I don’t think it was worth it. Parking is across the street and with validation, it’s still $7! Oh man, I can’t recommend this restaurant unless you have some cash to burn and want to enjoy a nice environment and mediocre food.

Sushi Izakaya Shinn – Honolulu, HI

Have I come to Sushi Izakaya Shinn a few times? Yes. Do I feel like I enjoyed each time? Debatable. Maybe I felt like I had to give them a chance? The hostess is an unfriendly woman and to me that makes a huge difference in your experience. They are on open table so you can make reservations before going. One visit, we were checking their reservations and it was open and clear all night. We walk in and inquire for a seat, the restaurant is not full by the way and she informs us coldly that there were no open seats. If she apologetically informed us of this, I think I would not have left with such a sour taste in my mouth. The thing is, the staff once you get seated are great. I’ve had good experiences with the grill master and the wait staff, it’s just the host staff that ruins everything. I refuse to go unless I put a reservation in through Open Table. Also, the parking is horrendous. They share a small lot with Mini Garden and this other shop in the back…not sure what the back lot is…not a place I would go. It’s hard to get parking so good luck with street parking.

Okay I did a lot of smack talking, let me share the meal I had there last.

Fresh Oysters – delicious but pricey. We were in the mood for oysters so it was really nice. Do you folks know of any all you can eat oyster places? That would be heaven.

Fire Cracker Roll (Go to the Hell) – that’s the exact title. It didn’t wow me but it was okay.

Enoki Bacon (top) and Chicken Meatball – well the enoki looks pretty burnt. Gosh, I can’t even remember this meal…

Chicken Skin and Beef Tongue

Totally my own guilty pleasure. Grilled chicken skin? YES. It was good, sorry not sorry. Their beef tongue, my favorite here. I like that they slice the tongue so thick. Some places slices beef tongue so thin…this place makes it perfect. I really enjoyed the tongue.

Mochi Bacon and Chicken and Leek

I mainly wanted to try the bacon wrapped mochi. It was a nice bit of the soft mochi with the smoky bacon. I was glad to try it but probably wouldn’t order it again.

Grilled Lamb Chop 

It was good, but once again, not memorable.

Miso Ramen – lol, okay I think this wasn’t half bad. Definitely better than Ramen Nakamura. This restaurant really serves everything. Sushi, Robata, Noodles, and Oden! I didn’t get to try the oden but if you’re into oden, they serve it up!

Mizu Shingen Mochi with Green Tea Ice Cream

This is mizu shingen mochi right? I think it’s better at Tsukuneya…

Dagon – Moilili, HI

Everytime I’ve come to Dagon, I always walk away happy and satisfied. This is actually my second post on Dagon, you can read the first one, here. Dagon specializes in Burmese food and I love it! They use a lot of different spices to blend together the most incredible flavors. I hope you get to try it yourself. I actually walked here from work for a lunch break one day, was worth the hot walk (walking back to work was another story…)! Here comes the pics…

Appetizer Sampler

This includes harvest vegetarian spring rolls, yellow split pea fritter, burmese samusa, and fried tofu. So…my initial thoughts? Too much fried food on one plate. It was nice to be able to try each of the dishes. My least favorite was the yellow split pea fritter, it was deep fried and hard to eat. My favorite? The fried tofu. Do you see the little rectangles near the bottom of the plate, those are it! According to their menu, these are made of homemade tofu with fresh yellow split pea. It is crisp (light!) and silken on the inside. Totally true! I would order the fried tofu again.

Garlic Noodles with Shrimp

Garlic? Noodles? Sign me up. Got two of my weaknesses right in one dish. The noodles were good! They also come with an interesting chili sauce. I think next time I want to try one of their noodles in broth…

I tried to get an artsy scooping shot but the lighting did not work with me. I can’t let my hard work go…my dining companion had to wait a while before I gave up…haha.

TEA LEAF SALAD – STAR OF THE SHOW

There are two different tea leaf salads, I get the Tea Leaf Salad and it is my favorite salad of all time. The tea leave mixture MAKES this dish. It arrives at your table unmixed, your waiter asks if you want it mixed and say yes…then get ready to be in heaven. Hmmm…I am already craving more of the salad…

Ramen Nakamura – Waikiki, HI

I’ve heard about Ramen Nakamura for the longest time, they’re at the edge of Waikiki on Kalakaua. The reviews seem to be awesome and they always have a line out the door. We just had to try it once! When we got there, there was a line so we thought it was a good sign! We finally got into the restaurant and they certainly run a tight ship, customers hustle in and out of the restaurant as they complete their meals. Kamaaina get a discount so make sure you bring your ID for 15% off and it’s cash only! So what’s the verdict?

Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen Combo

Well…I’ve had much much better elsewhere. What is the big deal about this place? You know one way I judge a good ramen joint? How the eggs are made. Look at this egg. The gray ring around the yolk signals it’s been over-boiled…how disappointing! The ramen was not memorable and I just had no urgency to come back.

Gyoza – typical, average, nothing special

The ramen combo comes with the small fried rice and gyoza. The whole meal was just meh to me, nothing special. The broth was mediocre with no depth in flavor. I would not recommend this restaurant especially since we have so many great ramen restaurants elsewhere.