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Shokudo, a closer look
Aloha!
12/27/09 - Located on the ground floor of the Ala Moana Pacific Center, directly fronting Ala Moana, Shokudo has quickly become a popular stomping ground for folks of all ages, backgrounds, and preferences. From before the opening bell, which rings at 11:30am, grandpa's and grandma's are already waiting patiently outside, while businessman and office types follow shortly thereafter. From there, you never can tell who'll show-up, as it's a whole smorgasboard-mix of a crowd. The later it gets, however, particularly just after dinner-time, the more you'll see a younger generation on the cutting edge, in larger groups, all looking for a fun time in a modern, trendy atmosphere. Since they close at 2am Friday and Saturday, and 1am the rest of the week, Shokudo is ideal for a late-night crowd, when older folks like us are already in bed!
Though the entrance faces Kapiolani Blvd., validated parking is accessed from Kona St., the small road just behind the building and parallel to Kapiolani.
Like the diverse crowds, you can expect a few different looks from both the menu and dining room, as well. I mean, Shokudo still carries that unmistakeable feel of youth and trendiness, but the large facility is split in two by a lengthy bar, both sides offering a bit of a different angle on style and design:
I prefer the smaller, top section (second shot) myself, with it's falling clouds of light and successively elevated sections, like a stadium coliseum or theatre. However, either side, as you can see, is comfortable, clean, and fun, with wide-berthed chairs and booths with lots of wiggle room.
Here's a shot at the bar splitting the two sections of the restaurant:
While Shokudo does have some authentic items, such as a house-made tofu, miso soup, and udon, to name a few, don't come here if authentic is what you're after. By and large, the menu is undoubtedly themed after Japanese dishes, but also come infused with touches, sometimes subtle and sometimes blaring, of American, Chinese, Korean, French, and Italian, as well. Right there on the menu, it says that the idea here is ordering different dishes, then sharing amongst yourselves, as to get a taste of as many items as possible! Why, that sounds like an izakaya! And that it is, actually, as there are lots of small, single-item dishes which can serve either as sides, appetizers, or as main dishes when ordering several of them. But then again, that's only part of the menu scheme. Besides dishes we'll get into throughout this page, there's also assortment of bento-box choices, where you can get complete meals of rice, miso soup, tsukemono, salad, and one or more main entree varieties. Basically teishoku sets, we'll check out a few of these later, but first, it's all about izakaya-style eats.
One of these must-try dishes is the house-made tofu ($7.45), served with sea salt, nori, green onion, and a soy dashi broth:
Dipped into the broth, sprinkled with salt, and/or garnished with nori and green onion, the tofu is silky-smooth, velvety, and one of the better versions I've tasted around town.
Another great and classy choice is the yuzu hamachi carpaccio ($13.45):
This schnazzy platter was a refreshing starter dish, featuring fresh slices of hamachi sashimi swimming in a ponzu citrus dressing, with vegetable garnishes and a vinegary pickled wasabi sprinkled-on, adding extra zest, body, and a uniquely interesting last-touch. It was the perfect combination of flavors, all feeding off of eachother perfectly.
If you don't care for mayo, you may not appreciate the next dish, but me? I luuuv mayo, and their lobster dynamite roll sure did hit the spot. A bit expensive, at $14.45, but I was relieved that they didn't give us some type of lobster pate, tiny shreds, or even imitation stuff, but real, whole chunks of lobster meat that was surprisingly substantial. The lobster sections were baked in a super-rich mayo sauce, which was better eaten in tandem with the California roll underneath, as the rice served to balance-out the dynamite's bold flavors:
As for other rolls, they have about twelve different varieties to choose from, all done in new-wave styles and listed for $9.45 to $14.45. Most are familiar names like spicy tuna, spider, unagi/avocado, shrimp tempura, and rainbow, but a few are not items you'll quickly see at typical Japanese restaurants, even fusion ones. Take, for instance, their beef tataki sushi, which are seared Prime beef slices served over a brown-tinted balsamic vinaigrette rice - is that even sushi anymore? Or how about a spicy tuna on crisped rice, or the very popular sushi pizza, which is sushi rice covered with a light, baked dynamite of salmon, scallop, crabmeat, onion, and sliced jalapeno, all served on a wide pan and cut into squares. Like I said, not your average Joe sushi, that's for sure!
I gotta say, these fusion dishes are beginning to impress me, most of them working really well. And some... reeeally well. The only problem with the ahi salad shown next was that on the menu picture, the ahi pieces were seared on the outsides, and as you can see in the next shot, they were actually completely in the raw. No worries. I was just thinkin' seared would probably look nice on film - in truth, most times I prefer raw over seared anyway (unless you're talking about the ahi katsu from 3660 on the Rise!).
Called tuna sashimi salad on the menu, we soaked these pinkish-red slices in the salads' Oriental-style vinaigrette, while a dollop of wasabi mayo also helped-out, as well. The fresh mound of organic greens, cucumbers, and onions were all slightly softened as for the dressings' flavor to infuse into them, but yet, were still crunchy-firm and refreshing. The combination of soft ahi and firm veggies, both soaked in sauce, along with finishing touches from the deep-fried onion rings, was absolute genius, I tell you. Excellent, all-around.
There are plenty of other worthy pupu dishes here as well, and some very interesting ones, at that. Yukari fries are flecked with a shiso salt seasoning; the same lobster dynamite shown in the roll above can arrive with baked French baguettes instead of rice; and who can forget the mochi cheese gratin, with mochi pieces baked in mozzarella and dashi broth, then topped with green onion and nori. But there's also gyoza and potstickers. Ramen and yakisoba. Shrimp and calamari tempura. I'm getting dizzy...
The largest of Shokudo's bento boxes, at $18.95, features four different entrees and a host of sides:
Besides a mini-set California roll, teriyaki chicken, ahi/salmon sashimi, and mixed vegetable tempura, you'll get rice, green salad, tsukemono, miso soup, and a bowl of that delicious house-made tofu in dashi broth. Interestingly enough, this set, along with several other combination bento box sets, are only available until 4pm, while for some reason, dinner sets are cheaper but limited to only a single entree item per set (with several sides). Go figure.
Though I've come here several times, this was a first for bento boxes. And probably my last. Not that they were terrible, but compared to the ritzy, creative, and highly fashionable pupu dishes, which were all pretty much impressive, these boxes just didn't compare. The best thing on the above set was its salmon and ahi sashimi. The teriyaki chicken was boring and taste-less, the tempura batter, very much on the heavy side, and the California roll, just ok.
I found the chicken karaage much better, shown next as part of a two-choice bento set ($11.95). A tasty, crunchy coating surrounded each piece, and I could think of lots of different uses for that glorified thousand island sauce, or perhaps a festive remoulade, which was delicious.
Many of you familiar with Shokudo may be wondering why I haven't mentioned the stone-pot, ishiyaki dishes yet, a very popular item here. All served over rice in a 500 degree stone pot that stays super-hot (watch-out!) for 20-30 minutes, there are several choices available - unagi, salmon/ikura, curry, garlic shrimp, garlic ahi (this particular dish is served a bit differently, with the ahi coming separately), and Korean-style bibimbap. As the items inside continue cooking at your table, the rice develops a crisped, browned edge, adding a new dimension of texture and flavor to the dish. Thing is, be careful to keep tossing once in a while, before the rice begins burning!
My favorite of these bowls comes topped with unagi, or freshwater eel, at $11.45:
Usually, they'll chop and mix this bowl for you table-side, but you know me, I had to get a few shots in first. In no time, this is what the same bowl looked like afterwards, first in its wooden encasement for your own protection, and then, close-up:
As you can see, the rice is toasted nice and crispy, perhaps a bit too crispy, even. But there was something missing here, something that made this dish much less enjoyable than what I remembered experiencing before. I just couldn't quite put a finger on it. What, pray tell, was it...???
Oh, that's right! Where was the dashi broth??? I guess once upon a time, they used to include it with your ishiyaki bowl, but these days, according to our kind waiter, they only include it upon request! Whaaaa? I wish I could have thought of it earlier, but I was almost finished by the time it came to mind! The broth, added intermittently, really does makes a huuuge difference, as it not only adds extra flavor, but also serves to moisten the blackened rice, which can get over-crisped and hard, as it did today. Plus, with all that heat, the moisture within the unagi and rice just seemed to completely evaporate and dry-out, resulting in a completely different dish; a mere shade of its original glory! Bummer's! Yes, I did have to learn the hard way, but if you're ever interested, make sure you learn from my mistake, by all means!!!
Looking past this major mishap, we finally arrive at one last dish before departing. Regarding desserts, yes, there are a few. But that's not what you need to know. What you need to know is not plural, but single. Meaning, if it's desserts you're after, a visit to Shokudo is hardly complete without an order of this lovely stack:
Yes, the honey toast from Shokudo is a winner. The only way you could possibly not enjoy this stack is if you don't care for honey - and even then, you still may enjoy it, as I myself am not a particularly big fan when it comes to the taste of honey. The only other ways you won't appreciate the dish is if you don't like pillow-soft, moist, white, aromatic white bread, lightly grilled to perfection, or (eeeks!) vanilla ice cream - in which cases, I am truly, truly sorry - for either one, especially the latter, that is just so completely wrooong, I don't know what to say!
The thick slices of beautiful white bread are first slightly grilled, then cut into cubes and placed back into the stack for easy devouring. I must say, though it was delicious, it was really, really sweet, so in the end, I couldn't eat but about half of it. The version above is the base model, containing only ice cream and drizzlings of honey, but you can also get chocalate, caramel, cinnamon, strawberry, or azuki beans, in addition. A good way to complete your meal, for sure.
Thumb's-up on Shokudo? Yeah, I'd say so, particularly on the pupu side.
Hope you're all enjoying yourselves this Holiday season!
Take care, and Aloha till next time!
Aku
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