Burgers
I’ve found that there are basically three kinds of burgers in the islands. First, there are the excellent, high-quality gourmet burgers, like those at Alan Wong’s Pineapple Room and Ed Kenney’s Town restaurant, both from the Hawaii Regional Cuisine section. These burgers use quality, oftentimes locally-grown beef that is no doubt pleasing to the distinguished palate and definitely raises the bar to extreme levels. Newer spots like Burgers on the Edge, The Counter, and Honolulu Burger Company all carry these same restaurant-quality patties, but are experienced in a more casual setting.
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Gourmet burgers like this one from Town are definitely tops quality-wise, but be careful when bringing the family, as kids may not have quite the same palate as a gourmet chef. |
Secondly, the mid-range, quality burgers found at most American restaurants, like Outback and Ruby Tuesday’s from the American Casual Restaurants section, and Ryan’s in the Dinner w/Drinks section or Big City Diner from the Local Family sections. The spots listed here, however, are not merely part of the menu, but are the menu!
| Popular Teddy's Bigger Burger serves a great burger in a casual, retro environment. |
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And third, there are the economy class burgers, which are similar in size and price to a basic cheeseburger at a McDonald’s or Jack-in-the-Box, and are often found at eateries where burgers are not featured items on the menu, such as at lunch wagons, plate lunch houses, carnival’s, and other casual establishments. Some of the better ones are found at Bob’s BBQ (go for the teri-burgers) from the plate lunch section and Shige’s (get straight burgers – no teri) from the saimin section. The cheapest places offer regular versions at anywhere from 99 cents to $2.50 and deluxe versions for about a dollar more. In these cases, a regular will include nothing more than a patty, a bun, and some sauce, while deluxe orders are spruced up with the addition of fresh vegetables like lettuce, tomatoes, and onions, which makes for a surprisingly big difference.
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Is that a thumb print? Oh, well. Shige's is a hole-in-the-wall found in the saimin section of local specialty Products, but their small, economy-class burgers are delicous and come oozing with old-fashioned charm. |
Oh, and don’t be fooled by all those exaggerated pictures and fancy ads showing fast-food burgers that look like a gourmet burger from Alan Wong’s Pineapple Room! Those poofy buns, steak-sized patties, and veggie condiments that could fill an entire salad take hours to make in a professional studio and are seldom realistic. With the pictures in this site, what you see is what you get!
Cheese Burgers in Paradise. 3 locations, all in Waikiki: 2500 Kalakaua Ave. (map shown), 923-3731, parking outside store; and 1945 Kalakaua Ave, 941-2400, parking on street, and the Waikiki Beachwalk. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Prices: $$. Map. Busy, loud, and very Waikiki-ish, this restaurant is filled with tacky hula-girl dolls and a commercialized island scene at its very finest. They do serve a good burger, though. Both also have live entertainment at night. The 2500 location has a better view of Waikiki Beach if you can get a window seat, but is much more crowded. Breakfasts are also not bad and quite economical.
Islands Burgers. Ala Moana S.C. 943-6670. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $$. Map. Islands Burgers is located at the Ho’okipa Terrace of the hulking Ala Moana Shopping Center, the sea of concrete and re-bar that somehow keeps growing like some kind of huge, organic mass. There are restaurants and night spots galore in this area, not to mention the shopping. The burgers are large, messy, and about $10 or more for a burger, fries not included! And if you do get fries with your burgers, please share, as one order can easily satisfy two or three normal appetites.
| Fancy stuff goin' on down at the Counter, in Kahala Mall. |
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The Counter. A Closer Look. 4211 Waialae Ave. at the Kahala Mall S.C. 739-5100. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking in Center lot. Prices: $$. Map. They say there’s over 312,120 different burger combinations at this fast-growing American Franchise! Don’t know how they came up with that amount, but if its burgers you want, this place sure doesn’t disappoint. Besides their 100% Angus ground beef, raised on a vegetarian diet without hormones or antibiotics and their fine array of cheeses, veggies, and other fillers, they also have ground turkey, veggie patties, chicken breast, and a few sandwiches available. Other items include fries, sweet potato fries, chili, onion rings, shakes, and desserts like apple crumble, key lime pie, or caramel brownies. Great burgers, fun atmosphere, and finally, a place where you can get your patty done rare, medium, or well-done!
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A delicious Thai-rific burger from intriguing spot Burgers on the Edge. |
Burgers on the Edge. A Closer Look. 890 Kapahulu Ave. outside of Safeway. 737-8866. Lunch and dinner daily, late-night till 12am Friday and Saturday. Parking at Safeway Complex lot. Prices: $$. Map. An intriguing choice for connoisseurs and those looking for quality beyond the ordinary, Burgers on the Edge carries a foie gras-filled Wagyu burger called the Parisian that will set you back almost $17, and the addition of sweet potato or truffle fries are almost $5 more. Don't be too alarmed, however, as all other beef burger options are from $6.99 to just under $10. Unless choosing from a list of great burgers like a Malibu, Kung Pow, or Thai-rific, you can build-your-own with no less than five ingredient types - bun, type of cheese, sauces, additions, and type of patty (Wagyu or chuck). With choices like jalapeno ketchup, garlic hoisin, caramelized apples, kim chee, meunster cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and much more, you're sure to find something for every taste!
Teddy’s Bigger Burgers. A Closer Look. 3 locations: 3114 Monsarrat ave. in Diamond Head (map shown), 735-9411; Koko Marina S.C. in Hawaii Kai,394-9100; and 539 Kailua Road in Kailua, 262-0820. Lunch and dinner daily. Prices: $. Map. Teddy’s is the best on the island for an order-at-the-counter burger, the teriyaki version being my favorite. The 50’s retro-style diners, complete with colorful checkerboard floors, jukeboxes, and neon lights, could all, except for the Waikiki location, use a few more tables, as they can get really crowded during peak lunchtime hours. The garlic fries used to be great when fresh garlic was used, but today are a joke basket of fries with garlic powder sprinkled over them! Stick with regular fries, which are of a good quality and come thick-cut but smaller than wedges.
Kua Aina Burger. 2 locations: 1200 Ala Moana at the Ward Center in Kakaako, 591-9133 (map shown); and 66-160 Kamehameha Highway in Haleiwa, 637-6067. Lunch and dinner daily. Prices: $. Map. Kua Aina used to be the King of burgers here once upon a time, but the competition has grown exponentially in the last several years. It’s still a great burger, though, and definitely worthy of checking out. The fries are a different style, thinly-cut like string potato’s.
W&M. A Closer Look. 3104 Waialae Ave. in Kaimuki. 734-3350. Limited hours, from 9am on weekends and 10am on weekdays – 4:30pm daily, except closed on Monday and Tuesday. Parking outside store. Prices: $. Map. W&M Burger is an old-time, local-style place that is take-out only. It's a good thing, too, otherwise you'd never find parking in their small lot.
Old-timers have been swearing by this teriyaki-sauce infused burger since the early 50’s. The tiny shop with the tiny parking lot is located mountainside of Waialae Ave., between 2nd and 3rd avenue’s, right before (or after) City Mill Hardware store. You’ll often have to send someone out while you wait in the car for an open space to park. It’s usually not that long of a wait, though, because this is a take-out only establishment. We love this very cheap burger mostly because of the teri-infusions, but this same incentive can also be the reason for mushy buns if left sitting for too long, which forces us to sometimes begin eating in the car!
H & T Burgers. 46-056 Kamehameha Hwy. at the Windward Mall S.C. in Kaneohe. 235-1311. 9am-9pm daily, except closed by 5pm on Sunday. Parking in center lot. Prices: $. Map. The specialty here is the teriyaki burger. It is lathered in a sweet teriyaki sauce that drips everywhere in a sloppy, delicious mess! The special request for in-the-know locals here (not on the menu) is to have your fries with teri sauce ladled over them. There are also a few plate lunches and hotdogs, but teri-burgers are the reason to be here.
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