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!

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!

Do you see my Cafe Lani post below? Let me help you erase that memory and hopefully lure you down the hall to the wonderful restaurant, Rokkaku Hamakatsu. A little Japanese oasis of a restaurant in the hustle and bustle of the Ala Moana mall. I’ve been to Rokkaku once before, years ago. I had a good experience, but I think I was too young to appreciate how wonderful this restaurant was. My only memory was that they have the toilets from Japan and I get a kick out of those. Anyway, I almost feel disrespectful that I could only think about toilets when I thought of this restaurant. That is wrong. Let me show you why…

Peach Sake

I’m not much of an drinker but this drink was really nice. It was on the sweeter side which is probably why I enjoyed it. Very smooth and easy to drink. Too easy to drink. I understand the aesthetics of this presentation but it felt a bit wasteful. They filled my cup up incredibly full so the box containing the cup had at least half an inch of my drink! Oh! I was so tempted to drink out of that box. I can’t stand to waste, but I could see dust particles in the liquid in the box. I had to resist. I wish they would just give me a bigger cup so I didn’t lose that sake…hehe…

Sashimi Platter

Oh my, this was delicious. Maguro, Salmon, Kampachi and Saba (forgive me, I forgot the entire title of this one). I don’t know if I have had kampachi as sashimi before but it was delicious. Reminiscent of hamachi. The saba was delicious too! I wasn’t sure if it would be fishy (as we all know saba to be) but it was so clean in taste. The platter was definitely worth it. Delicious.

Deep fried Baby Octopus – $6.00

As sad as it is to digest anything baby (okay, I wasn’t really sad about it) – this was delicious. Good crispy crust. Great starter.

Holland Cutlet (2 pcs) – $12.00

What is a holland cutlet you ask? It is cheese wrapped in ground pork and deep fried katsu style. The picture in the menu didn’t quite match what we got. As you can see…the cheese kind of…only stayed in one hole? Hahaha, no matter. This was delicious, I enjoyed it. They certainly do great with tempura and katsu, I think I’d like to try their assorted platter next time to try the other tonkatsu dishes.

Grilled Prime Beef Tenderloin Steak – $38

Oh. My. God. This dish was to die for. They have a rib eye option and that’s what I usually go for…never know if tenderloin will be as tender and juicy. This does not disappoint. It’s served on a bed of mashed potatoes and topped with fried garlic chips. It was absolutely mouth watering. The steak was melt in your mouth tender….ahhhhh…I wish I could have it again. The mashed potatoes…eh…tasted a bit like box mix but then again I like box mix (sorry).

I had to show you a slice of the steak. We ordered it medium, I generally like medium rare. I think it came out medium rare and so it was a point for me! So. Good.

Fresh Wasabi Sauce

This was served with the steak. I took a dab at it with my chopstick and whoa, that’s some potent stuff. If you need your sinuses cleared, I found your solution. The sauce was good but it would have overpowered the steak and honestly, the steak did not need anything. In its simplest form, it was perfect.

 

Is this restaurant kind of pricey? Yes, it is. But the service and food we received was well worth. When you walk into this restaurant, you are so tucked away that you forget you’re in Ala Moana. It’s such a nice ambience inside and the wait staff are very nice and attentive. I highly suggest you try this restaurant! I’d love to return here again soon…once my wallet allows it.

I forgot to take pictures of this but for any of the katsu dishes you get, they give each person a little mortar and pestle bowl full of sesame seeds. You grind the sesame seeds into a paste yourself and then add their homemade katsu sauce to create your dipping sauce. The sauce was pretty good but I don’t know if I’m a huge fan of such a strong sesame taste for my katsu. If you love sesame, you will love this experience though!

The wait is over. I am back for one post and will disappear again for a long time. Well, I don’t purposely do it and I appreciate anyone who still visits this blog. I sincerely do. I had something unreal happen to me again the other week but didn’t rush over to post it because it’s almost becoming too much of a thing to come on here only to complain. I think one thing that has made it harder for me to update is that I purchased a new computer and I have not had the time to properly transfer all my files over to the new computer. I’m also switching from an Apple back to PC so that’s a whole different headache. I enjoy Apple but I think I prefer PC just a little more.

I am still working away and schooling myself! Two classes again this semester. I’m really trying to push myself to get that degree. I should have time this summer, I might take a class for three weeks. Three weeks where we meet Monday through Thursday from 4:30 pm to 7:00 pm. I am silently crying already. We will see if I take it.

Today, I wanted to share my experience at Cafe Lani. You know the restaurant. If you go to Ala Moana, you will see a crazy line for this restaurant. Why? Beats me. The newest fad? I mean the restaurant looks great. The windows are from ceiling to floor so you can see inside and see the cute beachy feel of the restaurant…and they have a window where you can watch the bakers make fresh bread. That’s the draw for this restaurant, free unlimited fresh bread for you. You’re not filling up on carbs that will inhibit your ability to eat your weight in food at a buffet, you’re just filling up on delicious carbs.

I could never come on a weekend and wait for a seat, I bet it would take over an hour to get one. The restaurant reminds me a lot of the restaurants in Japan that specialize in American cuisine. Biggest sign? They have a steak dish that is served with foie gras on top. I had that exact dish in Japan. They also have the fake foods on display in front, how much more Japanese can you get? I came on a Thursday night and the wait was only 15 minutes. I was game to try it. Let’s take a look at the food!

Right when you sit down, they set down this plate of “sauces” for your bread. This plate is for you to share with your dining companion.

My favorite sauce of the evening. It’s really just a sweet fruit jelly, it went very well with the fresh croissants.

Butter

Chocolate Sauce

Cream Cheese

Winner bread of the night? This perfect croissant. What perfection. Right out of the oven, flaky, buttery, delicious. It was so good. I had three. Sorry, not sorry. They had other breads afterwards which included a cheese roll (not a fan) and a cheese danish. The danish was a bit weird to be served with dinner…

Panko Crusted Mustard Opah

My initial thoughts? Did panko go up in price? I expected the fish to be covered with a panko crust but I must say, the fish was good. It was cooked to perfection. Want proof?

Look at how juicy the inside of the fish is! It was delicious. I forgive the panko-less crust.

Seafood Doria – my friend is allergic to shrimp so we received extra mussels. This dish usually comes with shrimp as well.

This dish was good! Seafood, cheese, veggies and marinara sauce baked over buttered rice. Who can complain about butter?

“Cheesecake” Parfait

So why did I put cheesecake in quotes? Because other than the very top thin layer, the rest of the dessert was vanilla ice cream. I don’t like vanilla ice cream so I wasn’t a big fan. In all honesty, we shouldn’t have ordered dessert because we were SO full off the bread and dinner. I was game to get the dessert because it looks so good and I wasn’t sure when (or if) I would ever be back. The middle of the parfait is filled with corn flakes. Why? We could not finish this dessert and I did not feel bad about that.

All in all, my experience here was lackluster. The food was okay but overpriced. Our waitress was not nice or genuine. She basically ignored us from the middle to end of our meal. Anytime she talked to us, she had the perfect tone of voice and words yet she would be looking elsewhere when talking to us. There were two young Japanese ladies from Japan dining next to us. We finished about the same time and as our waitress returned with their change, she sternly told them about 10 times that their payment did not include tip. Boy that was uncomfortable. I got a sense the young ladies did understand but the repeated words of the waitress did not seem to bode well with the visitors. I think I would be offended too. Maybe the waitress was not given tip a lot by these visitors, but with the service we received from her, maybe she didn’t receive tip for several reasons.

Anyway, I can’t recommend this restaurant. The pictures in their menu are a bit deceiving. Their rib eye steak in their menu looks so nice and thick but the actual piece you get is so thin. It’s little things like that, that make me wonder why the restaurant is so popular. I really think it’s because they are the newest kids on the block in a shiny new space, it’s mediocre at best and I don’t think it’s worth it at this point.

Happy 2016 everyone! Gosh, 2016. Where does the time go? Well, 2016 is a nice even number. How have your holidays been this past year? I’ve had a pretty good holiday season, relaxed. I always do my holiday shopping online and it’s great. And luckily for me, I received all my packages before the holiday so it all worked out well. Christmas is always my favorite holiday but I find myself every year saying, I didn’t get to enjoy it as much as I could have. It’s really too bad. I spend the first half of December stressing out so much about school that when finals are over, I spend the rest of my time recovering. But what’s best for recovering? Eating. Folks, I have not stopped eating. I haven’t been able to update regularly but I have been capturing all the good eats. My latest share is from Sushi Bistro Shun, have you been? It’s located on King Street just after Gyotaku, it’s quite a gem of a restaurant. If you haven’t been there yet, I highly recommend it!

Special Tsukune – $3.75

Oh my, this dish was d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s. I think many people will be freaked out by the raw egg. You mix the egg with the shoyu based sauce in the plate and dip the meat ball in the sauce as you eat it. Oh it was so delicious. And surprisingly, all the sauce disappeared with the meatball. The sauce looks plentiful but it was perfect.

Diced Steak – $9.00

Served with a delicious daikon sauce. Delish!

Bacon-wrapped Asparagus – $3.00 (each)

I liked the way this was cooked. The asparagus was still very firm and crunchy and the bacon wasn’t too hard. I’m one of the minority that enjoys a soft bacon versus a crispy dried up piece of bacon. So those who want the crispy bacon, you won’t like the bacon on this stick.

Kabocha Tempura – $6.95

Yum. Cooked to a perfect crisp. Sliced perfect, sometimes restaurants cut the slices too thick. This one had a good flesh and crispy skin ratio. I loved it. They have a specials board and may not always remember to bring it by but ask them for it! It’s an actual board with pinned notes of all the specials. It includes this kabocha tempura and a white peach chu-hi that I like. 

Four Types of Sausages – $13.00

How can I explain this dish past its title? It is four different types of sausage. I don’t quite know how to explain the four, we weren’t given a description so I will try my best. From left to right, spicy sausage, chicken basil sausage, arabiki sausage and tomato italian sausage. I thought the sausages were alright but the thing is, they brought this out way at the end. After we finished all our food. This is definitely better as a starter, not a great ender to the meal. I wouldn’t order this again.

Sashimi Platter A – $31.00

I’ve heard this twice already. To get a better bang for your buck, order a sashimi set and get a side order of rice. You can then control the amount of rice you have with your fish and some say it’s cheaper this way too. My friend does not like wasabi so this will help him in eating just the sashimi and rice without having to constantly ask for no wasabi. I think this is a good idea all around! 

Special Shun Chirashi – $23.00

What can I say? I’m a sucker for a great chirashi. This one is made up of very different ingredients which come together to create a delicious bite. If you don’t like natto or yamaimo, you won’t like this bowl. If you do, this would be heavenly! I left that whole chunk of wasabi in this bowl so I definitely cleared some of my sinuses up during this meal. I loved it though. I definitely think this restaurant is a hidden gem and will definitely return. 

I got to get this story out before I start the post. I was so shaken this morning because an elderly man almost hit my car. I was driving straight on a road that had two lanes going in both directions. Suddenly as I’m driving, this silver corolla comes out of nowhere into my lane about to hit me. He must have drove out of a lot from the other side, cut two lanes and trying to get into my lane. I had to swerve and hit my brakes HARD. I kept beeping him and he didn’t even seem to realize what he did and even hear my beeping. That really shook me up, I hate slamming on my brakes, I feel like I am breaking my car. Then as we’re driving, I change into the right lane and guess what? HE DECIDES TO LANE CHANGE INTO MY CAR AGAIN. I couldn’t believe it. I was hopping mad and I just kept beeping like a mad woman and he finally realizes it and goes back into his own lane. God, I just sped up like a devil to get away from this man.

I know this sounds terrible but I feel like when people get to a certain age, they shouldn’t be allowed to drive. I know I’ll want to drive as long as I can but he was making a lot of poor decisions and didn’t even hear my loud beeps. It was crazy and I still feel shaken up right now from what happened. Sorry for the rant, I am just super bothered.

My real post today is sharing a meal we had at Lucky Belly recently. We were celebrating Administrative Professionals Day and our secretary wanted to eat here so there we were! The food was good but I would recommend going during their dinner service. Their lunch menu is extremely limited. I have a funny story about this. So we had one person pay the entire bill and collected from everyone afterwards. As we were calculating afterwards, we realized we totally jipped them on tip. Felt terrible so I offered to drive out to give them the rest of the tip. Ummm…the guy who got received the tip had a very whatever reaction to it. Why do I allow my morals to dictate my actions?? Oh yeah, because it’s the right thing to do. Monotone reactions aside, I am fine because it was the right thing to do. Well, let’s get to the pictures!

Lucky Bowl ($9) – bean sprouts, soft egg, wakame, sesame seeds, green onion & ginger

Belly Bowl ($14) – Lucky bowl contents plus belly, bacon & sausage

I got the belly bowl. It was not great. I think the pork made the entire bowl too rich. The soup itself is already pretty strong so adding all this sausage, bacon AND pork belly is just too much. I wouldn’t get this one again.

Karaage Chicken Sandwich ($11) – Served with jalapeño namasu slaw & cilantro mustard. What a deal! My coworker enjoyed it!

Shrimp Gyoza ($11) – comes with edamame avocado puree & ponzu. This dish was okay, nothing special. The avocado puree is….interesting. I wouldn’t get it again.

Pork Belly Bao ($9) – comes with sake hoisin & pickled cucumber. I’m pretty sure $9 was only for two of them, our tables ordered two orders. This was good! Good buns which makes a big difference!

All in all, I think Lucky Belly is more for the young crowd after work. Definitely recommend coming for dinner over lunch. They also don’t take reservations for lunch so I suggest going right when they open if you have a big party. We came with our list of orders ready to go which they appreciated.

Have you been to Izakaya Naru? They’ve been around for a few years but exist in a bit of a non-descript location. They are located in the same building as Sushi King but when they first opened, they had like no signage. I didn’t even know they were a restaurant until I noticed customers inside as the door opened and closed. I seriously thought it was some kind of secret society, lol. This is a sweet place run by sweet Japanese people. Their crowd is a mix of locals and Japanese tourists, they are very artistic. Their menu is handwritten by the staff and if you make a reservation, they hand write your name on a sign. Very nice and personalized touch. The lighting in the place is a bit dim so I apologize in advance for the dark pictures!

Garlic Fried Rice with Squid – $9.50

The rice was definitely tasty and I liked the little crispy rice on top. Just a bit of a small portion for $10.

Salmon Carpaccio – I think this was a special for the day. It was good but not something I would order again.

Gyoza Pizza – $8.50

This is one of their signature dishes. Very interesting concept. It’s pretty much the gyoza skin as the crust, topped with gyoza filling and cheese and baked. I think this dish is okay but not great. Definitely something to try once to say you tried it but not something I would want again.

Shoyu Pork Belly – $9.75

First of all, what’s up with the egg?! Japanese restaurants are the very place I expect the egg to be cooked on point. The gray ring was disappointing, not that it stops me from eating it. The pork belly was not great, it definitely could have been more tender than it was. Felt very dry, good thing had the fat to help out the dryness. I wouldn’t order this again.

Okinawan Sweet Potato & Mochi Ice Cream Parfait – $7.00

Very interesting dessert. I was not a fan at first but I really did enjoy the sweet potato mochi. The title of the dish was a bit deceiving, it’s actually sweet potato mochi so don’t be like me and start looking for separate mochi. They added frosted flakes cereal on the side which really threw me off. It did not go with the dessert and the dessert did not need that. I do actually want the mochi again so that’s a plus.

This is definitely not one of my favorite izakayas. I guess I should try some other dishes next time because the staff are really nice! I had a really nice and refreshing drink and I can’t remember it! Maybe that’s a good excuse to give them one more try…