Sansei Seafood Restaurant and Sushi Bar – Waikiki, HI

Jul24

I went from never been to Sansei to going 3-4 times in the last few months. Was it worth it? Um, yeah! It’s pretty dangerous that Sansei also serves the one alcoholic drink I love. Hmm…this is not going down a good road. It’s okay, I know you’re here for the food pics anyhow! My wonderful friend Kristian treated me to the best graduation dinner ever and I will never forget it. 🙂 Thank you Krey! On to the food pics…

Hibiscus Pineapple Cocktail – Cruzan pineapple rum, mint, hibiscus syrup, fresh pineapple, house made lime sour

What does it taste like? Pineapple, hibiscus and oh, I don’t know…a pinch of heaven. If you know me, you know that I don’t usually drink alcohol. Well, I had two of these that night. I wish I could have a non-stop supply if I didn’t have to drive or if it didn’t cost money…haha.

Panko-Crusted Fresh Ahi Sashimi – Island fresh ahi tuna wrapped with arugula and spinach, panko crusted and flash fried, served with a soy wasabi butter sauce

This is one of their award winning dishes! It is very good and highly recommended for you to try.

Salmon Sashimi

What can I say? I love salmon! And I love that they serve it with fresh lemon slices. Is it the best salmon I have ever had? No, but it was still good!

Sansei’s Lobster & Blue Crab Ravioli

I would skip this, skimpy on the portion of ravioli and where is the seafood? The ravioli wasn’t even stuffed full! The sauce was delicious but I don’t think this dish is worth the cost.

Maui Style Teriyaki Beef

I ordered this at least twice in my visits, teriyaki beef is a pretty plain dish but I liked that their beef was sliced thicker. I’m not usually a fan of teriyaki beef because it is usually such thin slices.

DK’s Crab Ramen with Asian Truffle Broth

Another signature award winning dish I would highly recommend you trying. Unfortunately we got this after we got stuffed on all the other food so we couldn’t enjoy this as much. It’s very good.

Ama Ebi Nigiri

One of my favorite sushis is the ama ebi, raw sweet shrimp. Some places don’t fry up the heads for you, why not? That’s one of the best parts! I loved that they gave you rice with the head too…lol. That’s a bit unusual…but hey, I’ll take it! Very good.

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Silk Road Cafe – Honolulu, HI

Jul21

I had a meeting in downtown last week and jumped at the chance to grab lunch to go! Boy do I miss working in downtown…all the good food is there! It sucks because a lot of the restaurants aren’t open during the weekends and parking can be such a pain/pricey. Silk Road Cafe serves up Uzbekistan food and I have never tried Uzbekistan anything so I was excited to give it a try. I just looked them up on Yelp and realized they are open on Saturdays! Hmmm…that’s got my brain going. Much more open street parking on Saturdays. I can safely say that I really enjoyed my dish so I would recommend you trying it out!

Plov (Osh) – $8.75
Rice pilaf with beef, carrots, chickpeas, and raisins.

I think this dish was okay. I don’t think I would get it again since it’s really mainly just a rice dish, why not try a plate with protein and their awesome rice already? The meat you can see here was dry…I’ve seen other pictures of the dish with slices of beef so it seems to be a bit inconsistent. I’m glad to have tried this dish but wouldn’t order it again.

Tabaka plate – $9.75
Uzbek-style rotisserie chicken thighs

YUM. First impressions, Uzbekistan people like using dill (lol). Do you see the fresh dill on my chicken and the carrots? Oh but it all works so well together. I’m not usually a big fan of carrots but these are some of the best carrots I have tasted. It’s definitely pickled carrots but it’s not sour, has more of a sweet garlicky taste. No raw carrot taste which I like. As I finished off my carrots, I found small red bits. I’m pretty sure it was beets…which explains the sweet flavor! Great!

The salad had a nice simple vinaigrette. The chicken thighs were tender, smoky, delicious. The basmati (?) rice was aromatic and soaked up the juices from the chicken nicely. Yumm…I definitely want to get this dish again.

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Ramen Bario – Waikiki, HI

Jul19

Have you been to the new Waikiki Yokocho? It’s modeled after the Japanese alleyways full of delicious restaurants. I finally got to give it a try the other week. We were planning to eat our way through the joint but only ate one bowl of ramen. Weak sauce. I decided to give Ramen Bario a try since I’ve seen most pics of their food and am always game to try tsukemen! If you go to Waikiki Shopping Plaza after 6pm, they have a flat rate of $7 for parking until 12am. If you don’t plan to roam around Waikiki and have something to buy at Ross, I would just park in their lot and get validated parking.

The ramen options are a bit pricey but if you show your ID, they give you a kamaaina rate of 15% off. Let’s get to the food:

Egg Ramen – $13.48

Egg Tsukemen – $14.48

So this was my dish. How was it? Not great. Similar to the Egg Ramen except they add the spicy seasoning into this one already. I like that they keep fresh minced garlic on the table for use…but for me the dish wasn’t that great. The broth tasted a bit sour, might have been on purpose but I wasn’t a fan. I felt like I got less noodles when I paid more! I don’t plan on returning.

Hoji Soft Cream with Warabi Mochi

There’s always room for dessert right? Decided to try Nana’s Green Tea. I’m not the biggest fan of green tea so I tried to hojicha ice cream. It was pretty good, though I’m not a fan of waffle cones. Should have gotten a parfait huh? I actually prefer the Black Sesame ice cream at Matcha Love in the new Mitsuwa Marketplace in the new International Marketplace. Whew that’s a mouthful. If you get a chance, try black sesame ice cream. It’s so good!

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Senia – Honolulu, HI

Jul15

Senia Restaurant is a newer restaurant run by a super talented local chef. We knew we had to give it a try and definitely were not disappointed. If you want to go, I highly highly suggest making a reservation. They have their reservations online through their website…and my meal was a while back so they now also serve lunch! Here are the pics from our meal…

The Freddie Cocktail

Basil Hayden’s bourbon, chestnut, blood orange and smoke. It was an interesting drink, not the usual fruity fare I go for. They bring the cup with the “ice” cube inside and pour the drink in front of you which includes a bunch of smoke. The drink definitely has a woody taste…glad I tried it. Would I get it again? I don’t know…

“Poke” Cracker

This is probably one of the most photographed dishes. Doesn’t it look amazing? Well it tastes great too. I gotta be real, we really ordered this to take a great picture but it certainly helps that it was delicious.

Hot-Smoked King Salmon

I don’t know how I can explain this dish, it was wonderful. The fish was cooked perfectly, the vegetables look burnt but they didn’t taste it.

Glazed Pork Belly

This was like our entree to share, since it’s a shared dish for a group. So good. It comes with a green crepe or manoa lettuce for you to make your own wraps. Delicious!

Cake Slice

Chiffon Cake, Yuzu-Meyer Lemon Curd, Whipped White Chocolate. As good as it looks! It was light and tasty.

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Angelo Pietro – Kaimuki, HI

May30

Angelo Pietro moved to Kaimuki and while they are in a smaller space, the food remains the same! They sell their salad dressings in stores but my friend noticed they no longer sell the ume salad dressing in stores but they still serve it with their salads in the restaurants…so if you’re into ume, give them a visit!

Plantation Iced Tea

Meh, not sweet enough but they do allow you one free refill. Guess which Chinese person took advantage of that?

Pietro Rainbow Salad

This is a great salad, comes with greens, bell peppers, carrots, raw daikon, and raw potato strings. It comes with all four Angelo Pietro dressings!

Spaghetti Sukiyaki Style

Not my dish but I got a taste and it was nice! Definitely tasted like sukiyaki but with a slight buttery finish. Very good!

Pork and Eryngii Spicy Cream Sauce

This is my dish and I love it! I love the deep fried garlic on top..it adds a nice taste and crunch to the dish. My absolute favorite.

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Bozu Japanese Restaurant – McCully, HI

May16

I tried Bozu Japanese Restaurant for the first time last week and got hooked. I mean hooked, I went back to the restaurant three nights later. I’m not usually a night owl but for some odd reason, both visits were during their late night happy hour special which I believe starts at 9pm. While I did get one item of the late night menu, everything else was pretty much from their regular menu. They are located in the McCully Shopping Center on the 2nd floor, not hard to find especially since the 2nd floor is kind of empty. The staff there are all so friendly! The restaurant is filled with Japanese nationals but I got first rate service both nights. And as I left both nights, all the sushi chefs enthusiastically yelled their farewells and thank yous. Great food and service? Can’t miss! Here are the pictures.

Cold-style Chawan Mushi

Oh my god. If there is ever a dish to get here, THIS. IS. IT. The silky smoky smooth savory egg custard, a layer of some type of delicious gelatin, ikura, uni, crab meat, shiso leaf…it just all tastes so great. Perfect combination. Perfect dish. Trust me and get it.

Salmon Lovers Don (Late Night Happy Hour Special)

Great dish! Lots of good quality salmon and a mountain of ikura. It’s also a huge mountain of rice, but good quality seasoned rice. Delicious!

Powerful Natto (Tuna, Squid, Yam, Masago, Takuwan, Okura, and Quail Egg)

All I can say is, you better like natto or do not get this dish. I usually see this dish named as a stamina bowl or something in other restaurants. It’s a slimey gooey mess, the exact mess I’m into.

Bozu Special Roll

How do you go wrong with this roll? All the best fish and topped with ikura! The picture may be a bit misleading, this roll is HUGE. Definitely need to share it with a group.

Ika Shiokara Pasta

Oh boy, it was a nice dish to try but boy is it salty. It must be the shiokara that makes it sooo salty. It tastes pretty good but I don’t know if I would order it again. They do cook the pasta perfectly though!

Spicy Ahi with Taro Chips

Delicious! But I gotta say…this spicy ahi is definitely spicier than other places so if you can’t handle spice…I wouldn’t recommend it. I liked it though! I may have overkilled it with two visits in one week – but definitely plan to visit again!

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Izakaya Nonbei – Honolulu, HI

Jul31

Izakaya Nonbei has become one of my favorite Japanese restaurants. I don’t want it to get too popular but hey, I also want them to stay in business because they are so good! It’s really sad to see when good restaurants close down and a whole bunch have recently! Izakaya Nonbei has been around for a while and I have been there very few times, but I plan to go back very soon! If you plan to go, I highly suggest reservations.

Crab Avocado Salad – This salad was heavenly. The yuzu dressing they serve with the salad is out of this world. If you come during happy hour, they have it for a special price! Definite must-order.

Agedashi Tofu – good, solid dish

Shoyu Yakimusubi – I tried both the shoyu and miso. Not something I usually order but it tasted good!

Karei Karaage – this is another signature dish for the restaurant. Crispy fried flounder. The whole fish! It is so fried that you can basically eat the whole fish. It tasted good!

Nasu Kinoko – this was surprisingly my most favorite dish of the night. This dish was ordered at the recommendation of the waitress, it is eggplant stir-fried with different types of mushrooms. I’m not even a fan of eggplant and this was my favorite. The sauce it was cooked in was like a savory shoyu butter sauce. I just wanted a big bowl of rice and pour this on top of it. I’m salivating just thinking about it…this dish is enough reason to return. For real. Order it, you won’t regret it.

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Sea Dragon BBQ Cold Noodle House – Honolulu, HI

Jul29

Sea Dragon BBQ Cold Noodle House is located at the corner of S. King Street and Kaheka Street. The restaurant location has had a few turnovers in the past few years so we will see how this one goes. I actually went to this restaurant in December of last year and thought it was a nice Korean restaurant. I like that Korean restaurants are adding call buttons to every table, it is hard to flag down wait staff sometimes so this makes it very easy. I enjoyed the food here but I felt it was pricier than other Korean restaurants for the same food. I hope I remember more details as I post…

Assorted Ban-chan

Kimchee – good, standard

I believe this was eggplant and it was delicious!

Corn Fritters? It wasn’t that great.

Cucumber Kimchee

Vinegared Daikon Strips

Vinegared Wakame and Cucumber

Naengmyun – I got it spicy. Delicious! Nice and refreshing. I think you get the same from other Korean restaurants.

Kalbijjim – I guess this is the star of the show. This is not a cheap dish but feeds 2-3 people fine if you accompany it with the noodles. Like I have mentioned before, the dishes taste good but they are a bit pricier than I would like.

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Cafe Pesto – Hilo, HI

Jul25

I am going to end my Hilo food posts with my most favorite meal! Cafe Pesto is an awesome Italian restaurant in downtown Hilo. If the service was good, it would have been a perfect experience! But it’s okay, good food fits the bill for me.

Started off our dinner with a Hilo Sunrise – this is fresh lemonade with lemongrass, lime leaf and Island honey. It was delicious and comes with complimentary refills!

Complimentary Bread with Pesto Butter. Delicious! I was so hungry, that bread was devoured.

Smoked Salmon Alfredo

Grilled Chicken and Hamakua Mushroom Risotto

I don’t usually order risotto but something about this dish made me want to get it. A lot of the food reviews seemed to like this dish as well so I went for it. I’m so glad I did, it was delicious! The chicken was cooked perfectly especially for chicken breast. I would definitely recommend this!

Volcano Mist Salad

I don’t usually post the appetizer last but I can’t help it. This was my absolute favorite dish of the trip. And I know what you’re thinking, what salad? Well, buried under the mountain of fried onions and tomatoes, there is a small amount of romaine lettuce…lol. This salad was so delicious. Smoked mozzarella, local tomatoes, crisped onion rings, a citrus balsamic dressing…it just all worked so well together. I was tempted to order this dish to go right before we came home. Mmm…can’t stop thinking about it.

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Da Poke Shack – Kailua-Kona, HI

Jul23

Da Poke Shack was rated the number one place to eat in the U.S. by Yelp. That’s big. That’s huge. Granted it was 2 years ago but I knew that I had to try this place out while in the Big Island. Was it good? Yes, definitely. They are a small shop along the highway, their set-up reminded me a lot of Ono Seafood. They are also next to a small building with very limited parking and only outside seating…which was barely any. We ate in our car. The line to get your plate was LONG. But the front service staff were patient and very kind. As I stood in line, I couldn’t believe the amount of kalua pig plates being ordered. No offense to anyone but I’m not going to Da Poke Shack to get cooked entrees. The poke bowl comes with two choice poke, one scoop rice and one side. I almost went for the plate since I was out there but I don’t think I could have eaten 4 choice poke, 2 choice side and rice. Ah, maybe next time…haha. A reason to return. Their prices are based on market price, their fish is never frozen, only fresh. The bowl was about $14 dollars while the plate was about $26.

From bottom left to right: Rice (you can get hapa or white, furikake is optional), Pele’s Kiss (spicy), Clams (this was a side dish! Clams!!), Wet Hawaiian (inamona). How was it? Delicious. I loved it, and the spicy one was actually kind of spicy. Wish we had a location here to try more. But lucky we do have Ono Seafood which currently ranks higher than Da Poke Shack on the 2016 list.

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maybeitsjenny

Hawaii based food blog with foodie travels!

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