Tag Archives: Korean Food

30Aug / 2023

Kan Sushi – Waikiki, HI

Am I finally posting a new place pre-social media frenzy? Maybe, maybe not. I am scheduling this out but when I checked out Kan Sushi – it was before it was crazy busy. We came on a weekday for lunch. Kan Sushi is an all you can eat sushi/pupu/korean bbq/noodles restaurant. I mean, they seriously have everything. Here is the link to their current menu. Currently, the lunch price is $29.95 or $35.95 for dinner. The only difference is that select items are only available for the dinner price. But when you dine there during lunch and want to pay the dinner price, you can…and you can order dinner items! To me, the dinner items wasn’t enough for me to want to pay extra so we went for the lunch deal!

Kan Sushi is located in Waikiki in the old Todai/Makino Chaya location. Parking is a bit of a pain in the butt, but it is free for kamaaina! Entrance to parking is on Ena Road, there are signs in the parking with a QR code that you need to scan before heading into the restaurant. Once you’re in the restaurant, you fill out the online form and your waiter/waitress gives you a coupon code to input that gives you I believe 2 hours of free parking. Yes!!! 9/2/23 Parking Update: I am seeing that parking now costs money. It was free when I went to dine.

Nicely renovated!!

Tunapeno (4pcs)
spicy tuna, tuna tataki, jalapeno, spicy mayo, sriracha, soy mustard

Good, not great. I really don’t like their spicy tuna and if you know me, I love spicy tuna. They season it weird and the ahi is basically a paste, no bueno.

Truffle Salmon (2pcs)

Yum. I love truffle! This was good! Each nigiri order comes with 2pcs, I shared this with my friend. Yum!

Snowflake Salmon (2pcs)

Not quite sure why this is called snowflake salmon – I think there is supposed to be a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. Do you see any sprinkling of cheese? It was good, but nothing spectacular.

Beef Belly Truffle Fries

No. No. No. No. The fries were soggy and not fried well. Beef belly? It’s basically bulgogi on top. And truffle? Where’s the truffle taste? There was absolutely none.

Bacon Pork Belly (Garlic)

I was happy to see KBBQ on the menu and was relieved when we ordered this that it wasn’t a huge serving. This is a managable size and was good!

Cajun Shrimp Udon Pasta

Okay, don’t hate me but this was probably my favorite dish of the meal. I really enjoyed it! Noodles were cooked well, love cajun seasoning and they were pretty generous with the shrimp. Definitely would get this again!

Tom & Jerry Roll (8pcs)
spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, avocado, salmon, pico de gallo, garlic flake, ponzu

This one was a risky order. 4 of the rolls are topped with pico de gallo, the other 4 are topped with crunchy garlic. The rolls are spicy tuna and shrimp tempura (you already know how I feel about their spicy tuna). You know what? The pico de gallo worked really nicely, added a nice fresh crunch to the dish. The cilantro and onions were wonderful. The pieces with crunchy garlic, not great. This is a risky order because it can really fill you up. I don’t know if I would order this again.

Avocado Ball
krab meat (imitation crab), spicy tuna, poke, crunch, hot sauce, avocado, spicy mayo, eel sauce, tobiko, cheese powder (did not see cheese powder on this either)

Okay, this wasn’t really my dish. It’s so pretty to look at but it is HUGE. Good news? No rice, it’s filled with imitation crab (they called it krab and krab is all over the menu) and chunks of random fish. I was already too full so I couldn’t partake in this but hey, if you like avocado, go for it!

Roly Poly Roll
krab meat, salmon, masago, green onion, eel sauce, soy mustard sauce

Not my dish again, it’s salmon wrapped with you guess it, krab salad. It was alright. OH AND BY THE WAY, THEIR SHOYU AND WASABI is some of the weakest tasting I have ever had. Imagine using watered down low sodium Aloha Shoyu or something. Sneak in your own kikkoman or yamasa packets, the junk shoyu really ruined my eating experience.

All in all though, I would return because the price point is great. This is a good place to go with picky eaters too since it’s not just sushi, you can order all kine food!

Post Views: 5,631

Posted in Food, Restaurant

Tags: , ,

Permalink 8 Comments

05Jul / 2023

So Gong Dong – Ala Moana, HI

Oh man, I haven’t been to So Gong Dong in probably over a decade. Maybe more? Forreal. We were craving Korean food so we came to check them out! They are now in the same building as Yogurstory (former Likelike Drive Inn). Parking is a bit tight since they share the lot with Yogurstory and that place is crazy busy as heck but I was able to get a stall right away. Also, get plenty road work behind the building so no more street parking there for now. So Gong Dong was good and they were pretty fast bringing out the food. Still doesn’t beat my favorite Korean restaurant though (Frog House).

Kimchi Pancake | $17.55

Yummy pancake, nice and crispy. Small kine thick but it’s okay, tasted good. Was it $18 good? Well, I know how easy it is to make so no it’s not worth the price but also I am lazy so we are all good, no judgements made here.

You can also see their banchan here, good typical banchan fare. Nothing to complain about.

Kalbi | $23.95
marinated short rib

I mean, it was good but when is this dish ever bad right? Hard to screw this dish up.

Combination Soondubu (Soft Tofu Soup) | $12.95
beef, shrimp, clam

They are know for their soondubu and I think it’s probably the best value dish on their menu. I like that you can get all kine different soondubu, I wanted bang for my buck so I got the combination. They also give you a raw egg.

Kind of fun to crack it into the soup at the table. No worries, the soup is so piping hot that it cooks the egg. Just stir around if you don’t trust it, I just buried it into the soup carefully because I no like break the yolk. This soup was delicious! I would get it again!

Post Views: 619

Posted in Food, Restaurant

Tags:

Permalink 6 Comments

30Jun / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

Have you folks tried those furikake wonton chips at Foodland? They now sell it alongside their housemade tortilla chips. Those wonton chips are TOO DAMN GOOD. It’s not hard crispy, it’s a nice and light crispy. And everytime I go into Foodland and look at their dips because I bet they would be good with those chips. I broke down and got this dip to try. It was okay, I think it’s a gimmicky name. It’s really just creamy salmon dip with furikake haha. But I enjoyed it! Glad I tried, not sure I would buy again (cause it’s pricey!).

Oh yum. I forget the price of this but it was a good sandwich, this was also from Foodland. And a bit blasphemous but I ate it cold. I bet it would be super good warmed up in a toaster oven.

Don’t you love a good ‘ole Hawaii style potluck party? Look at all this glorious food on one plate. I was in heaven, can’t go wrong. Loved it!! Spinach rolls are one of my favorites of all time!!

Post Views: 605

Posted in Food, Snapshot

Tags: , ,

Permalink 6 Comments

26Jun / 2023

Daan Korean Cuisine – Richmond, BC

I am always down for Korean food and I knew I had to get my fill of Asian food before heading up to Whistler. Well, Daan Korean Cuisine was close by and had bossam so duh, we had to go! It was pretty busy for a weeknight, we had to add our name to a waitlist but we got called in quick! It’s nice that they call you on your phone when the table is ready. Dining audience was a mix of Korean and other ethnicities! A big variety. I was actually surprised to be seated next to a Chinese family. I guess when I go Korean restaurant, I don’t usually see Chinese families? Do you folks? Anyway, let’s get to the food!

Beef Short Rib Stew | $19.99 (CAD)

Would I call this a stew? Emmm no. It’s very soupy as you can see. A nice little kick of spice and they were pretty generous with the rib meat. Had a small amount of the glass noodles but they were all the way at the bottom of the bowl! I was feeling like something brothy, hit the spot!

Seafood Tofu Soup | $15.99 (CAD)

Not my dish, but it was enjoyed (by a Korean no less!). Looks nice a flavorful. I had a sip of the soup, was nice!

Complimentary Banchan

Always gotta show you folks the banchan. Didn’t love the kimchee but it was alright. The bean sprouts and potatoes were okay too. Nothing to write home about (even though I’m writing about it on a blog).

Small Seafood Pancake | $19.99 (CAD)

Okay. If you like super crispy pancake, this is the place to go. It was super crispy. What threw me off? The use of imitation crab. Nothing against imitation crab but I’m just not used to it being used in this dish. Was good though! I was stuffed so was hard to get all this food in…

Small Bossam | $23.99 (CAD)

The highly anticipated dish of the night! How was it? Good! Very strong doenjang (Korean soybean paste) taste on the pork. What did I miss? The raw oysters in the kimchee veggies but maybe better for my tummy that I don’t eat that. Would I order this again? Yes!

Funny story about this restaurant too. The two servers were a young girl and young man, both looked like they could be Kpop trainees. I’m used to being served by older Korean ladies so it was an amusing turn, and both of them were very nice (also not used to that lol).

Post Views: 742

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Travel

Tags:

Permalink 8 Comments

02Jun / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

Lego Typewriter

I don’t usually buy Lego sets but when I saw this one released, I knew I had to get it! It’s pricey but thanks to a friend, I was able to get it at a discounted price. And well it took forever to build! So many little pieces but it was worth it. The keys do work and the carriage moves, I should take a video of it working. It’s pretty neat!! Wish I had a clear display case for it because it will now collect dust (like real life typewrites yeah?)

Poke Bowl (2 Choice) | $12.95

I haven’t been to Alicia’s Market since they had that fire and reopened. Got these bowls for the boys, it’s nice that one choice or two choice is the same price. Kind of pricey for the portion but was good. I believe we chose Shoyu Onion and Spicy Ahi.

Spicy Mixed Noodles (Bibimkooksoo) | $13.95

Next door to Alicia’s is Joon’s Korean BBQ, I didn’t feel like poke bowl so I gave them a chance! When I first got the order, I thought the portion was kind of small. They usually give it in a big lunch plate box but you know what? It was a pretty hefty portion and I asked for spicy and I got what I asked for, it was spicy. My face is leaking kine spicy. I wouldn’t go out of my way to go back here but would try it again if I was there.

Post Views: 632

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Snapshot

Tags: ,

Permalink 8 Comments

21Apr / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

Breakfast Bento | $4.77

Sushi Robot is located outside of the Kaheka Don Quijote – they been there forevers and sell all kinds of good grab and go foods. I got this bento one morning after an early shop. Can’t lose with a $5 meal! And it’s definitely filling. I would get it again!

Okinawan Soba | $13.00 (or $14.00)

Raysam Hawaii is a cute little Okinawan food truck that comes onto the UH Campus! I like to support him when I can, it seems like a one man operation. I enjoyed their handmade omusubi and decided to try their okinawan soba this time. It was delicious! And I love that he serves it separate from the broth, no bloated noodles!

I saw this bag of turtle chips at 711 and couldn’t resist because I love truffle. Bugga was expensive, $6.09 and how is it? Junk brah, no get it. It’s still too sweet and the truffle taste is minimum yet artificial and just tastes like MSG or something. No waste your money.

Post Views: 885

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Snapshot

Tags: , ,

Permalink 12 Comments

14Apr / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

For those who know, know! Gateway Cafe is located in the Gateway Student Housing for UH students but their cafeteria is open to the public! For $12.25 at lunch – you can get a pretty good buffet! They put up daily menus every week so you can take a look and see if you are interested. Here’s a sampling of a recent lunch I had. The pasta is hit or miss but on this day, it was a hit! The pink vodka sauce is chef’s kiss. I can’t forget to eat my hot dog. They also advertise their in-house baked bread but I am pretty irked that the last few times I’ve gone…no bread!!! I would pay just to eat that bread. Give me the bread!

Jajangmyeon | $12.95

Is it time for me to compare the different black bean noodle restaurants in Hawaii? This dish is from Dowon Chinese Restaurant, it was alright. To me the sauce was a bit watered down and kind of sweet. A bit odd. I guess I gotta try On Dong again to compare. Also, I don’t know if they give it for dine in but when you order take out, they don’t give you the raw onions and black bean paste as a side. Boo.

Pan Fried Dumplings | $5.00

This is a funny story. I am usually the runner for food pick-ups in Chinatown. This time, my coworker helped do the run and boy did she get a sweat. I ordered pan fried dumplings from Heaven Chinese Noodle and BBQ Cafe. This place is a super hole in the wall Chinese place at the Chinese Cultural Plaza. And when you find it, it’s hit or miss if you are able to communicate with the staff. I gave an easy enough order, pan fried dumplings for $5.00. They go and ask my coworker how many dumplings. Like what??? How many pieces. So she’s texting me asking and I’m like…whatever comes in that order? I was so confused. I think they eventually said it’s 5 pieces, okay that works great. She got super flustered because they weren’t that friendly too lol.

Anyway, the dumplings were really good and they ended up giving I think 7 dumplings so thank you. I really enjoy their food, very home cooking kine and their prices are good! If you’re curious where they are, they are right next to Royal Kitchen.

Post Views: 666

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Snapshot

Tags: , , ,

Permalink 6 Comments

31Mar / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

Just a super cute gift I got from my coworker for Girl’s Day! Isn’t this so cute and thoughtful??

Bi Bim Kook Soo | $14.49

I got this from Yummy Korean BBQ – the Moanalua Shopping Center location. To me it was pretty good! Everything was seasoned perfect so I enjoyed this a lot! One of the better take-out bibimkooksoo dishes I’ve had in a while!

Air-fried Roast Pork

Did you know you could make chinese style roast pork in an air fryer? I didn’t. Okay, well I’ve never made chinese roast pork ever in my life but take a look at this! Look at the skin and how crispy it is! I don’t have a recipe lol but it was delicious!

Post Views: 643

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Snapshot

Tags: , ,

Permalink 6 Comments

29Mar / 2023

Recipe: Easy Beef Bulgogi Meatballs

Super short post – another TikTok recipe! Super easy and I used Halm’s Hawaiian BBQ Bar-B-Que for the seasoning which made it even easier!!! The meatballs are good, a little sweet for my taste but that’s what happens when I use the pre-made sauce but well, that’s what makes this easy right?

Easy Beef Bulgogi Meatballs (adapted from Two Plaid Aprons)

Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
1.5 cups Halm’s Hawaiian BBQ Bar-B-Que sauce
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
2-3 stalks green onion thinly sliced (plus more for garnish)
1/2 teaspooon cracked black pepper
Toasted sesame seed optional for garnish


Instructions
Make and assemble the meatballs:
In a mixing bowl, add the ground beef, 1 cup of the Hawaiian BBQ Bar-B-Que sauce, finely chopped onion, breadcrumbs, green onion, and black pepper. Mix until well combined.

Using a 1 inch cookie scoop or a tablespoon (I used a heaping T), portion mixture into 1 inch meatballs. You should get about 40 meatballs. Then, round out the meatballs by rolling each between your palms.

Preheat the oven to 425°F and prepare a sheet pan lined with foil.
Arrange the meatballs on the prepared sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, generously brush each meatball with the remaining 1/2 cup of Hawaiian BBQ Bar-B-Que sauce. Return the meatballs into the oven and bake for another 5 minutes, or until the meatball is cooked through with the internal temperature registering 160°F and the the sauce on the outside is sticky.

Post Views: 686

Posted in Food, Recipe

Tags:

Permalink 6 Comments

03Mar / 2023

Mixed Plate Friday

Steamed Tapioca Pearl Dumplings Stuffed with Peanut Pork

I know nothing about this dish. All I know is it was delicious and I would probably never attempt to make it, I found it at Lao Asian Market and would absolutely get it again.

Vietnamese Steamed Dumplings | $11.95
marinated shrimp, pork and onions wrapped into a thin layer of tapioca flour dough, then steamed – served with special House fish sauce

Absolutely banger of a dish from Bac Nam – I don’t see these dumplings in a lot of Vietnamese restaurant menus so I was ecstatic to try it! They did not disappoint.

Braised Mackerel with Radish

I don’t have much information on this. I got it from Palama Supermarket and ate it hot with some white rice at home. It really hit the spot, a real comfort dish.

Post Views: 701

Posted in Food, Restaurant, Snapshot

Tags: ,

Permalink 8 Comments