Aku Eats Oahu : Local Grindz : Local Family

Local Family

Local-style comfort foods and "call-me-auntie" waitresses abound at places like Kenny's Drive-Inn in Kalihi.

If you want to see the style of restaurant local families have historically gone, this is your section. Not too cheap, not too expensive, but just right for a sit-down meal where you can relax and not worry about impressing anyone. Included here are some truly nostalgic eateries that go back to our grandfather’s time, before the advent of large chains and fast-food outlets, when these types of restaurants were king and supreme! These days, they are where older generations read morning newspapers or gather amongst friends, children run through the aisles, and young families quietly enjoy their meals anytime mom and dad don’t feel like cooking, still dressed in comfortable lazy-afternoon attire.

You can’t help but get emotional over the recent closings of some of these history-laden establishments, such as KC Drive inn, which first opened its doors in 1929. Their famous waffle hot dogs, peanut butter shakes, and old-fashioned, home-style cooking was so familiar to us islanders that it seems we kinda took the place for granted until we realized one day that it was gone - just like that! The same goes for Columbia Inn, formerly known for their delicious saimin, fried noodles, and large breakfasts. These were the kinds of places that still served jello as their standard dessert. So cute!

Zippy’s. A Closer Look. Various locations. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily, most locations open 24 hours. Parking outside stores. Prices: $. We call it the Hawaiian Denny’s, because you see these guys everywhere. A local favorite for over 40 years, Zippy’s is perhaps the most progressive of the local family restaurants, and has demonstrated a business savvy and flexibility to change with the times, starting with a simple restaurant style to one that encompasses full-fledged bakeries, sushi bars, okazuya’s, and a huge volume of benefit-ticket items, especially the very popular chili tickets. Every scout, school band member, hula dancer, or sports team on the island has sold their fair share of Zippy’s chili! It is an excellent, low-cost meal, with over 110 tons of this signature item sold every month! The fried chicken is also very popular, as is the zip-pac, which is a bento box of rice with liberal sprinklings of furikake (a seasoning added to rice made from dried fish, seaweed, sesame, and other salty flavors) and one piece each of panko-battered fish, teri-beef, fried chicken, and spam. Their macaroni salad is arguably the best on the island. The take-out plate lunches can sometimes be small, but then again, we are comparing them with standard plate lunch sizes, which can often be shared between two individuals. Most locations offer both a take-out, seat-yourself side and a sit-down restaurant side, where fresh fish selections can be a pleasant surprise for the price and the New York Teri-steak plate is pretty darn good, too. For breakfast, the mushroom omelet is one of my favorites, and comes filled with fresh mushrooms sauteed in a rich butter sauce, while the Zippy’s omelet carries a load of different fillings and is a safe choice for persons who are not quite sure of what to order.

Forget the fish steaks! It's all about the whole fish, with eyes bulging and fins flaring, like this aweoweo from Kenny's restaurant.

Kenny’s. A Closer Look. 1620 N. School St. at the Kamehameha S.C. in Kalihi. 841-0931. Breakfast, lunch, dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $$. Map. With KC Drive-Inn, Hungry Lion, and Columbia Inn now closed, we hope and pray places like Kenny’s will continue carrying the torch for generations to come. The easy-going island-style, bordering on almost too casual (just the way I like it, sometimes!) is perfect for morning coffee with pancakes once or twice a week, and a lunch and dinner thrown in somewhere, too. Kenny’s has been getting a lot of attention for their fresh island fish, and not the ones you normally see at a restaurant - we’re talking small reef fish with names like mamo, aholehole, akule, and nabeta. They are often full of tiny bones that can make eating a chore, but are oh, so tasty when pan or deep-fried – you can order it extra crispy, to the point where some of the smaller bones are fully edible. The menu is several pages long and covers a wide variety of dishes like burgers, noodles, steaks, stews, spaghetti, and a very popular, plus-sized Chinese chicken salad.

Likelike Drive Inn. 745 Keeamoku st. in McCully/Moiliili. 941-2515. Open 24 hours. Parking outside store. Prices: $. Map. Serving every variety of local, diner-type food since 1953, Likelike is a definite nostalgic favorite. The old-fashioned hamburger steak has been drawing raves for a long time, and the service is usually warm and friendly in the local/casual kind of way. And don’t forget the value of being open at 3 or 4am, when you absolutely gotta find something to fill your stomach before going home to spend an entire productive day locked up in your room with a heavy blanket draped over the windows and the a/c on full blast.

Flamingo’s. 803 Kamehameha hwy. at the Pearl City Business Plaza in Pearl City. 456-5946. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Parking fronting store. Prices: $$. Map. Local comfort food all the way, this formerly large family of eateries is down to one location in Pearl City. Once known for their very famous Flamingo Chuckwagon buffet, a western BBQ-style chow-down that was wildly popular back in the day, it now remains a distant memory. The menu is currently a wide variety of local, American, and Japanese items, a few of which are saimin bowls, teriyaki chicken meals, hamburgers, donburi bowls, and Japanese salmon breakfasts. The tempura mahi is a favorite choice with a flaky, white meat and a firm tempura batter half-way between the lightness of real Japanese tempura and the heavier local tempura. For dessert, the banana mac-nut pie is a winner.

Victoria Inn. 1120 12th Ave. in Kaimuki. 735-1782. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Parking in lot behind restaurant or on street. Prices: $$. Map. Similar to Flamingo’s and New Eagle Cafe, this Kaimuki spot has been whipping up American, local, Hawaiian, and Japanese foods for many generations.

New Eage Cafe is a humble, yet comfortable and very roomy diner right on Nimitz hwy. It gets surprisingly busy, shelling out dishes like this opakapaka sandwich.

New Eagle Café. 1130 N. Nimitz Hwy. at the Nimitz Business Center in Kalihi. 545-2233. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $$. Map. This casual diner on the way to the airport pulls in decent crowds, whether for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. There are many Japanese selections like chicken tofu, donburi bowls (shoyu-flavored meats with egg and sliced onions, served over a bowl of hot rice), and teishoku (set) meals, as well as American selections like T-bone steak, deep-fried scallops, fresh fish, burgers, and sandwiches. The friendly waithelp staff have often been serving for decades, and make for a real call-me-auntie kind of place!

Big City Diner. 5 locations: the Ward Entertainment Complex in Kakaako (map shown), 591-8891; the Atrium S.C. in Kaimuki; 98-211 Pali Momi st. in Pearl City; 108 Hekili st. in Kailua; and 94-800 Ukee st. in Waipio. Breakfast, lunch, dinner daily. Prices: $$. Map. Big City Diner is a more recent addition to the local family restaurant scene, and it has made a decent impression. The guava BBQ baby-backed ribs, garlic fries, pulehu steak w/onions and mushrooms, and it’s “Grandma’s” kim-chee fried rice are all good choices here. Large breakfasts with your usual suspects of eggs, pancakes, breakfast meats, and the like are also served. Evenings can get a little “sports-bar-ish.”

The Alley. A Closer Look. 99-115 Aiea Heights Dr., inside the Aiea Bowling Alley. 486-3499. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late-night till 2am daily. Parking fronting bowling alley. Prices: $$. Map. This unusual location is a great all-around place for fun and good grindz. The bowling alley, mini-video arcade area, and ample tables to watch the lanes are an added bonus to the restaurant/bakery/bar and grill. If you want, you can even take-out from the restaurant and eat anywhere in the spacious facility, except for the bowling area, that is. There are large portions and great flavors here, especially the juicy burgers, fries, hamburger steaks, and especially the “tasty chicken (yup, that’s what they named it). This kicked-up local spot even serves home-made sourdough-crust pizza! And don’t forget the bar area, which has great rotating specials all night long and stays open till 2am!

Mililani Restaurant. 95-221 Kipapa Dr. at the Mililani S.C. 625-2000. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $$. Map. This casual, local-style haunt has turned into quite the institution out there in Mililani Town. Dishes can be Japanese, Korean, Filipino, Chinese, Portuguese, you name it – all tailored with local tastes in mind. The Portuguese sausage fried rice and fried noodles are super-popular here, but you’ll find everything from roast, fried, bbq, mushroom and mochiko chicken to beef stew, garlic steak, shrimp tempura, and black-bean ahi. In other words, anything you’ve seen at any casual, island-style restaurant, you’ll probably see here, and much more.

Wailana Coffee House. 1860 Ala Moana Blvd. in Waikiki. 955-1764. Open 24 hours. Parking in lot on Ena Rd. or on street. Prices: $. Map. This comfortable, spacious dining institution sits right across the street from the Hilton Hawaiian Village and is a cheap alternative to the other more expensive restaurants in Waikiki, offering coffee-house-type meals, local grinds, and even some fancier fare like deep-fried scallops, prime rib, and crab legs. Breakfasts are popular here, with omelets, waffles, sweet bread French toast, and especially the all-you-can-eat pancakes for a quick fixer-upper, which can be ordered at any time of the day!

Hapa Grill. 91-590 Farrington Hwy. at the Marketplace at Kapolei. 674-8400. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $. Map. Hapa Grill is a relatively new creation out on the west side. Owner Sandy Tangonan has employed the use of her parents famous lunchwagon, Sassy Kassy (now closed), and their tried-‘n-true teriyaki sauce, used to marinate delicious portions of beef, chicken, salmon, and tofu. Other great choices are pork chops w/onions and brown gravy, pulehu rib steak, and several different stir-fry’s. They even have some Italian-themed dishes like shrimp scampi over linguini, chicken or eggplant parmigiana, and fettuccine alfredo.

The beefsteak at Alonzo's at the Mililani Golf Course, is super-soft, super-tender, and super-delicious.

Alonzo’s at the Mililani Golf course. A Closer Look. 95-176 Kuahelani Ave. in Mililani. 625-2256. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Parking in Gold Course lot. Prices: $$. Map. Alonzo’s is one of several great restaurants located in various golf Courses around the island. They carry some excellent local-style grinds here, and also have a really good Filipino menu, with such items as pinakbet, crispy pata, lechon kawali, and a really excellent beef lauya, to name a few. But the signature dish Chef Alonzo has become known for is his Hawaiian beefsteak, which is a teriyaki-marinated steak presented pupu-style, or pre-cut into strips so you don’t have to worry about a knife. The place is very casual, but does have a wait staff and can get quite busy at times. Whether its lup cheong w/eggs, pancakes, waffles, and other breakfast fare, or such items as garlic roast pork w/gravy, fried noodles, oxtail soup, burgers, kalua pig w/cabbage, garlic chicken, and more, Alonzo’s makes a great stop.

Famous for large portions and dishes like this must-try fried Spam musubi, Maui-born Da Kitchen is definitely worth checking out!

Da Kitchen. A Closer Look. 915 Isenberg St. across from Stadium Park in McCully/Moiliili. 957-0099. Lunch and dinner daily, except closed Sunday. Parking outside store or on street. Prices: $$. Map. This Maui transplant with the plus-sized portions and ono local grindz has finally reached Oahu, settling-in at the St. Louis Alumni Facility across from Stadium Park. The dining room is small and parking is not always the easiest, but enjoying their excellent, made-to-order chicken katsu of three-cutlet portions, a huge and delicious hamburger patty in either sandwich, steak-plated, or locomoco form, and perhaps most of all, an awesome and highly-recommended fried Spam musubi that’ll surely get your attention, you may not mind the trouble. Other menu items are mostly what you’d expect at a good local eatery, such as teriyaki chicken, saimin, and deep-fried mahimahi, but be sure to try the katsu moco, a colossal creation that’ll feed at least two decent appetites and combines some of their best virtues – chicken katsu, hamburger steak, and locomoco! Costs are a bit on the high side, but quality levels are mostly better than most in this genre.

Bob’s Big Boy. 2828 Pa’a st. in Mapunapuna. 833-3440. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily, late night till 12am, Friday and Saturday till 1am. Parking outside store. Prices: $. Map. This very casual restaurant is located near the airport and is visible from the main H-1 highway. You may be surprised at the huge variety of items for very good prices, everything from pancakes w/sausage and eggs to chicken fried steak w/country gravy, saimin, meatloaf, shrimp scampi, burgers, and many, many more items. They even have an in-house bakery where you can get sweet potato/haupia, banana cream, and key lime pies, and can be ordered by the slice or whole.

Anna Miller’s. 98-115 Kaonohi St. at the Pearl Ridge West S.C. in Pearl City. 487-2421. 24 hours. Parking in center lot. Prices: $$. Map. This local institution out in Pearl City has been quietly serving American/local-style meals for as long as I can remember. As a kid, I’d always order the hot turkey sandwich, smothered in a rich turkey gravy, hoping that I wouldn’t have to finish the peas and carrots given on the side. Simple, old-fashioned meals in a large, comfortable, coffee shop-type setting. The breakfast menu is especially popular and can get quite busy on the weekends. They also have a bakery section where you can order some pretty good pies that are so top-heavy with sweetened fruit that they end up falling all over your plate in a gooey, but delicious, mess!

Blazin’ Steaks. Various locations. Prices: $. Map. Blazin’ Steaks had a humble beginning that was even smaller than a lunchwagon! From what was basically a few tiny trailers, they moved on to a fast-food location at Kaneohe’s Windward Mall, then a sit-down restaurant in Kalihi. Currently, they are a franchise with new spots opening up everywhere! At six bucks for an 8 oz. serving of steak ($10 for a pound), veggie salad, rice, and a drink, it’s no wonder business is booming! The steaks are sliced up into strips, which makes for knife-less convenience and also for the Hawaiian salt and natural juices to cover more surface area – in other words, more flavor! And the same prices also go for the chicken or fish plates, which are cooked up several different ways.

Haleiwa Joe’s. 2 locations: 66-011 Kamehameha Hwy. in Haleiwa (map shown), 637-8005; and 46-336 Haiku Road in Kaneohe, 247-6671. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking outside stores. Prices: $$$. Map. Haleiwa Joe’s is a casual eatery where you can watch the boats and other water sports at Haleiwa Harbor. There are items like coconut shrimp, luau lumpia (a Filipino spring roll, only with Hawaiian “luau” items like kalua pig inside), fresh fish, steaks, and even sushi. The Kaneohe location has a completely different view. The restaurant is located in the beautiful Haiku Gardens subdivision on the rainy and much greener Windward side of the island, and within view of the sheer cliffs of the Koolau mountain range.

Jackie’s Diner. 98-040 Kamehameha Hwy. at the Waimalu S.C. in Pearl City. 484-0999. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking in center lot. Prices: $. Map. This casual diner is famous for their authentic Puerto Rican pastele (pronounced pah-te-le), a dish made of a pork, green banana, onion, and other items wrapped in a ti or banana leaf and steamed, kinda like a Mexican tamale. Pastele is very popular in Hawaii, particularly on the West side of the island and the Kalihi area. It takes owner Jackie Chong Torres all of 5 days to make each batch of pastele because they are made in the old-fashioned way with no short cuts, just like she would for a family meal. You can feel the love in every bite, I tell you! She also makes genuine Hawaiian food that is very respectable, and local specialties like beef and tripe stews.

New Uptown Fountain. 522 N. School St. in Liliha. 537-1881. Breakfast and lunch daily, dinner Monday-Saturday. Parking difficult in small lot outside store. Prices: $. Map. Make sure you plan this one, as it is a little bit hard to find, the parking is tough, and the hours are a little quirky. They are open early but close at 12:45 sharp to prepare for the evening hours, which begins at 5pm and runs till only 7:15pm. Once inside, you will enjoy the super-casual surroundings and olden-days appeal of the place. Even Anthony Bourdain recently stepped in for a segment on his nationally televised food show, invited by local boy editor and writer Dave Choo, where he (Mr. Bourdain) declared the spam musubi as his favorite item! The vintage signboards scattered throughout post classic ice cream and soda logo’s as well as some menu items which haven’t changed since the original opening in 1949! This restaurant is perhaps most famous for its home-made hamburger patties, which hint of garlic and is excellent in burgers, hamburger steaks, or loco-moco’s. They also have a large saimin bowl that also deserves attention, and a dish which is basically a loco moco, but instead of using gravy over the rice and hamburger, they use either curry or stew.

Liliha Bakery & Coffee Shop. 515 N. Kuakini St. in Liliha/Kalihi. 531-1651. 24 hours except closed on Monday. Parking outside store. Prices: $. Map. Old-timers love this place. While the bakery side does gangbusters all day long from its signature cocoa puff desserts, the single, long countertop on the coffee shop side, with its row of barstools, also puts in a respectable show, especially during breakfast time. You may be in for a wait. Pancakes, Portuguese sausage, eggs, and rice or grilled mahimahi, cutlets, and hamburgers – it all works here!

Is this really where Adam Sandler met Drew Berrymore for the first time?

Hukilau Café. 55-662 Wahinepee St. in Laie. 293-8916. 7am-2pm Tuesday-Friday, 7am-11:30am Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday. Parking anywhere around store. Prices: $. Map. This neighborhood favorite and very, very casual spot is tucked away on a side street on the North Shore, just off the main road of Kamehameha Hwy. The restaurant is famous for being the alleged site where Adam Sandler and Drew Berrymore met in 50 First Dates, but, sorry to burst your bubble – that was not so. The movie only used the name while building their own Hukilau Café next to the beach, tearing it down as soon as filming was over, so don’t expect the comfy-cozy Hawaiian-style atmosphere you saw in the movie! You can, however, expect some great country-style cooking where the cast and crew of 50 First Dates regularly stopped by to eat. The beef stew omelet, which is simply beef stew over rice with two eggs on top, is one of their most famous breakfast dishes, while the teriyaki beef plate or burgers are both great for lunch.

Crouching Lion. 51-666 Kamehameha Highway in Kaaawa. 237-8511. Lunch and dinner daily. Parking outside store. Prices: $$. (Currently closed for business; may not re-open) Map. Right on the edge of beautiful Kahana Bay, on the Windward coast sits a comfortable restaurant that fills up with busloads of tourists. It is one of the only places nearby to have a sit-down meal with wait service, and sports a really gorgeous, second-floor view of the ocean. Sorry to break it to you, but that’s where the positives end. Both the food and service are nominal, at best, but they don’t much care because the tour buses just keep ‘em coming!

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