Saturday Lunch at Asahi Grill

This past Saturday me, my girlfriend and a couple friends of ours wanted to have lunch at California Rock ‘N Sushi, but having not checked the hours online or calling ahead, we were disappointed upon arriving there to discover they were CLOSED! What the heck? How can a restaurant be closed for lunch on the weekend?! My gang, save for me, all work in the food and beverage industry and  don’t understand that, but whatevahz. There’s certainly plenty other fish in the restaurant sea that we were more than happy to give our business to.

So we ended up a block up Ward Avenue across the street over at Asahi Grill, a.k.a. Kapiolani Coffee Shop. Asahi Grill is a casual, affordable, family-friendly, localized Japanese restaurant open for breakfast lunch and dinner. Think of it as a diner with an asian twist and that’s pretty much what you’ll find here (Triple D oughta’ pay them a visit next time).

Getting right to it, the Pork Chops hit home with childhood memories for Diner J, so he decided on giving that a spin…

Asahi Grill – Two Pork Chops with two scoops rice and one scoop mac’ salad. $8.75

Hey, why not? When you’re gonna’ have comfort food, have it right and go all the way. Therefore, accompanying his Pork Chops was a side of fries…

With so much to choose on the menu, Diner CV becamed stumped on what to choose and ultimately played it safe, ordering the small bowl of Kapiolani Coffee Shop’s signature dish, the Oxtail Soup…

Asahi Grill – Small Oxtail Soup (includes side of rice) $10.50

Thinking just soup might not be enough, Diner CV also ordered a Teriyaki burger and fries to go along with it…

Asahi Grill – Teriyaki Burger & Fries. $5.00

See, we’re here for comfort food, not Jenny Craig. lol

My girlfriend Diner EDC chose what I would have chosen, had I not chose what I chose, which is the Grilled Salmon and Shrimp Tempura Combo…

Asahi Grill – Grilled Salmon and Shrimp Tempura combo (includes miso soup). $14.95

The included Miso Soup (with somen noodles in it) and Tentsuyu (Tempura dipping sauce)…

Asahi Grill – Miso Soup (with somen noodles) and Tentsuyu (included with Japanese lunch and dinner entrees)

Finally, continuing my ramen and saimin kick, on this visit yours truly decided to try their Oxtail Ramen, which was actually more like Oxtail Saimin…

Asahi Grill – Oxtail Ramen (actually more like Oxtail Saimin) $8.95

Let’s have a closer look at my Oxtail Saimin, which is what I’m going to call it from now on…

Plenty of Chinese Parsley and Green Onion, which is always nice and certainly brings plenty of added flavor and texture to the party. The server tells me the broth is the same broth as their famous Oxtail Soup, so I’m down with that. Let’s try it…

Well this definitely ain’t no Japanese ramen broth, nor is it local style samin broth. It is what is, which is Oxtail soup broth, and a mighty fine one at that. I still say The Alley Restaurant in Aiea Bowl and Pho Bistro 2 s-s-s-slightly makes a better Oxtail Soup, but KCC’s is certainly up there in the top three. What makes this saimin is the noodles added in it…

As seems to be the case at most restaurants on Oahu, Sun Noodle is the supplier here, which in this case as confirmed by my server aren’t ramen noodles, but saimin noodles. And they were cooked perfectly, not being “saimin-soggy” at all, but still retaining good chew to it. And there’s no question Sun Noodle has the right recipe when it comes to flavor.

What’s nice is these saimin noodles actually compliment the oxtail soup and don’t detract from it. The broth is too mild to flavor the noodles, but if you slurp noodles and sip broth consecutively, they both taste really ono together. I’m diggin’ this bowl of Oxtail Saimin. It works. In fact, it works even better than the one at New Violet’s Grill, thanks to KCC’s far superior Oxtail Soup it’s based on.

Let’s try some oxtail…

You know what comes next, right? Oh yeah, dip ‘dat buggah in da’ grated gingah and shoyu sauce…

Notice a piece of meat pulled right off that bone. Also notice soft, melting marrow in the center of the bone. That’s flavor town right there, baby. Add to that the powerful, piercing flavor of the fresh grated ginger and shoyu that really brings out the beef and you have flavor CITY my friends! So broke da’ mout’ ono, I’m drooling just writing about it here.

And I thought since the Oxtail Saimin is considerably cheaper at $8.95 than the Oxtail Soup ($10.50 small and $12.95 regular) that they would skimp on Oxtails, but was happy to discover they included 5 oxtails in it. Five! Check out this giant piece…

You know you want that. I sure do, again. Someone needs to can or package frozen Oxtail Soup so folks like me can buy some for having any time of day.

Summing it up, Kapiolani Coffee Shop’s (c/o Asahi Grill) Oxtail Saimin was fantastic and priced right, easily deserving 4 SPAM Musubi. Highly recommended. Would I call it the best saimin on the island? No I wouldn’t. But I would call it one of the best Oxtail soups on the island that happens to have excellent saimin noodles in it.

As for the pork chops, oxtail soup, teriyaki burger, fries and shrimp tempura ‘n grilled salmon combo’, everyone was very satisfied with their food, giving an overall 4 SPAM Musubi on every dish, except the Teriyaki burger, which gets a 3. I got to try a slice of Diner J’s pork chops and thought that was fantastic. Simply pan-fried with just salt and pepper, yet it was very tasty and tender. Dip ’em in ketchup, ’nuff. Ono just like that.

Service was also quick and friendly, with our entire order arriving within 10 minutes of being placed and water glasses kept topped throughout the meal. The only challenge was parking, as their small lot was full when we arrived around 2pm, so we ended parking down the street and walking up.

Asahi Grill
515 Ward Avenue
Honolulu, Hawaii

Tel. (808) 593-2800

Business Hours:
Monday – Friday 6:30am to 10:00pm
Saturday 6:30am to 11:00pm
Sunday 6:30am to 10:00pm

Breakfast Menu
Lunch Menu
Kapiolani Coffee Shop Specialties Menu

The Tasty Island rating:

(4) Excellent. Worth another visit or purchase.

Related links:
• Oxtail Soup at Asahi Grill – The Tasty Island
• Asahi Grill – Yelp user reviews

Things To Do
Honolulu

Kalihi Eats: Pancakes & Waffles

Several Fridays ago we decided to have breakfast for lunch at the new Pancakes & Waffles in City Square Shopping Center in the heart of Kapalama, Kalihi, a.k.a. “The center of Hawaii’s food  universe”, a.k.a. “God’s Country”. I for one LOVE breakfast food and can eat it any time of day. Portuguese Sausage, Eggs and Rice for dinner? Shoots, hook me up! Breakfast Cereal for a midnight snack? Make me a bowl, please.

As always, first let’s check the place out…

Pancakes & Waffles is located in the stand-alone strip building on the makai (ocean side) end of City Square Shopping Center, across from Young’s Fish Market, Utage and Sugoi’s.

Apparently the word is out, as several fellow Yelpers mentioned this place being packed with a crowd on their visits. Which held true, as when we arrived, every table had been taken, yet thankfully one group had just left and we scored a place to sit.

There’s seating throughout the establishment that’s on a first come, first serve basis…

The way the “system” works here is you go up to the service counter and place your order, to which you are given a number in a table stand. From here you find a table (or preferably have someone hold one for you while you take the order) and place the number on your table. A food runner will then bring your order to your table when it comes out. Fountain drinks are self-serve, while they also have refrigerated bottled beverages, hot coffee, tea and cocoa.

Without further ado, here’s the menu (click image to enlarge to full legible size)…

Must say, that’s quite a spread. What’s interesting is the variety of ethnic options, including Portuguese Vinha D’alhos (Vee’na Doash), Japanese Azuki and Korean Kal Bi. Then they throw in the Southern twist with Fried Chicken and Waffles. Gotta’ love that! In fact, in hindsight, I wish I had ordered that, which I’ll get to in a bit.

Getting to our order on this first time visit, Diner A decided to try their Fried Rice Loco Moco…

Pancakes & Waffles – Fried Rice Loco Moco: Brown gravy all over homemade hamburger patty and delicious fried rice, then topped with two over-easy eggs. $6.95

Here’s a peek beneath the egg at the burger patty…

Diner E decided to try their Hamburger Patty and Eggs, which includes a short stack of Pancakes, while backing that up with a side order of fried rice…

Pancakes & Waffles – Hamburger Patty and Eggs with Short Stack of Pancakes and side order of Fried Rice.

Wow, I’m energized for the day just looking at all that! Either that, or ready to fall back asleep. lol

Here’s a closer look at each dish…

Finally, yours truly decided to try the P&W Special…

Pancakes & Waffles – P&W Special: Three egg omelet with ham, Portuguese sausage, tomato, onion, bell pepper, mushroom, potato, cheese and hollandaise sauce. Serve with short stack pancakes. $8.95

Talk about everything, including the kitchen sink! What swooned me was the mushrooms and the hollandaise sauce. Can’t go wrong with those two ingredients sharing the same plate!

Three egg omelet? Check. More eggs in the form of egg yolks and butter made into a sauce and poured on those three eggs? Triple bypass surgery check…

Let’s peek beneath the hood…

Aaaahhh…oooooohhhh…aaaaaahhhh, ooey-gooey, melting cheese all over that. This has got to be good. Upon trying it though, I found it a little over the top, which shouldn’t be a surprise. There’s really just too much going on here. No question very tasty, but simply over the top. Also, the Hollandaise sauce wasn’t anything spectacular, not tasting particularly buttery or rich, but more just adding thickness to the overall texture of the complex omelet ingredients. While I think the ham and Portuguese sausage was overkill as far as meats are concerned, as they sort of canceled each other out. Either one or the other would have been better.

Still, don’t get me wrong, overall it was a delicious omelet, and I’ll give it a very good 2 SPAM Musubi (equivalent to 7 out of 10 stars).

Now let’s try the pancakes, which are included with the omelet as one of the starch options to either rice, toast or home fries…

A side cup of aerated butter is brought along with each order of pancakes, while artificial Maple syrup (Mrs. Butterworth type) is provided in a squeeze bottle at each table.

Eh, they’re OK, but not the greatest pancakes in I’ve ever tasted. They’re not as fluffy and delicate as I had hoped, but a little more dense and chewy. Not on the extreme bad side, but enough to notice that. From what I hear, the benchmark pancake place is Liliha Bakery, which I have yet to try and confirm that claim. Still, this is a decent pancake and certainly a good value, considering you get three with your eggs and choice of meat or other accompaniments.

What I wish I had ordered in retrospect after observing those around me was the Honey Buttered Fried Chicken and Waffle. With that you get three HUGE HONKIN’ pieces of fried chicken on a waffle and smothered with Honey Butter Sauce. I tell you, it looked soooo ono! EVERYONE (4 people) on a table across from us had ordered that, so it’s gotta’ be good. Next time fo’ sho!

As for Diner E’s plate, he pretty much enjoyed everything enough to give his “Saimin Kaukau approved” 3 SPAM Musubi rating…

He noted the fried rice flavor was spot-on, but the rice was a bit undercooked and stiff.  Yet he still enjoyed it enough to finish all of it, which says it all.

Finally, Diner A really, really enjoyed his Loco Moco, noting the brown gravy was “onolicious”, with plenty of depth and character, while his Fried Rice was cooked more thoroughly than Diner E’s was…

He also gave a big thumbs-up to the homemade burger patty, noting the nicely seared edges and moist, yet thoroughly cooked doneness of the beefy-tasting ground beef, thank you very much. With that, he gives his Fried Rice Loco Moco a resounding 4 SPAM Musubi, adding that he’s eager to bring his family here one weekend for breakfast or brunch.

Pancakes & Waffles
1284 Kalani Street
Suite D100
Honolulu, Hawaii  96817

Tel. (808) 877-7770

Business hours: 6:30am to 2:30pm daily

Pancakes & Waffles menu (<—download PDF document; 1 page)

The Tasty Island rating:

(3) Very Good. Considerable of another visit or purchase.

Things To Do
Honolulu

McDonald's Saimin

Going from one extreme example of the dish with the Oxtail Saimin from Violet’s Grill, we find ourselves at the other side of that spectrum with Saimin from McDonald’s.

Yes my friends, you heard right, McDonald’s Saimin. In fact, three people double-took me when I told them I had saimin from McDonald’s for lunch. “Since when did they sell saimin?” is what most of them asked. Actually, as far as I can remember, come to think about it.

According to Wikipedia (yeah, I dig real deep for information, don’t I?), there’s quite an interesting story behind McDonald’s Saimin which goes like this: “[Foodland founder and first Hawaii McDonald’s owner Maurice] Sullivan invited executives from McDonald’s corporation, including owner business tycoon Ray Kroc,  for dinner at two family-owned, “hole-in-the-wall” saimin stands in Honolulu. They ate at Washington Saimin and Boulevard Saimin. That night, Sullivan convinced Kroc to expand McDonald’s menu for the first time in its corporate history to include a local “ethnic” food. Researchers worked extensively with Washington Saimin to develop a recipe for McDonald’s Hawaii. Sullivan secured deals with a local saimin noodle factory, fishcake supplier and a Japanese company, Ajinomoto, to manufacture a special soup base.”

If this is true, then it looks like all those McDonald’s out there in the world serving the likes of McOz Burgers, McAloo Tikka Burgers, Maharaja Macs and other region-specific ethnic specialties can thank Boulevard Saimin and the late Washington Saimin for the corporation’s open-minded philosophy when it comes to their menu.

Saimin isn’t the only regional ethnic specialty for McDonald’s Hawaii either, as there’s been a number of experiments and mainstays. The Taro, Haupia and Mango Pie were all great, while there’s no denying that McDonald’s Hawaii breakfast menu item — McDonald’s Portuguese Sausage, Eggs and Rice — is here to stay for the long run. Good stuff!

Yet we’re here for McDonald’s apparently ambiguous Saimin, where for this, of all their numerous locations around the island, I chose the restaurant in Hawaii Kai Shopping center (Safeway, Longs, The Shack) to hook me up…

In case you still don’t believe me, ‘Saimin’ is right there in black and white on the menu board…

Probably the reason many folks don’t realize saimin is on the menu is that their eyes are too fixated on the french fries. While for those who don’t even know what ‘Saimin’ is is, they must be thinking “What are Saimin French Fries?”. lol

While I couldn’t get an exact size of the container from any of McDonald’s employees, including the manager, it’s pretty big, where I’m guessing at least 24 fluid ounces, yet possibly larger than that….

The McDonald’s Hawaii logo is neat, yet it would have been nice if it said ‘McSaimin’ or simply ‘McDonald’s Saimin’. A pair of chopsticks intertwined between the Golden Arches also would be a nice ethnic touch to the logo.

While I’m on a marketing roll, since fast food joints embrace the combo and value meal menu concept, another thing McDonald’s Hawaii might want to consider is creating a ‘Saimin Value Meal’, which would include a regular or teriyaki burger and/or fries, which is a combination popular with the locals. So popular, Zippy’s has a similar Saimin, Teri Beef Sandwich and Drink combo’ on their menu.

Currently McDonald’s is promoting their 1/3 Pound Angus Burgers, where one of them is a Teriyaki Angus Burger, but that was way too much burger for me on this sitting.

So I created my very own McDonald’s “Saimin Value Meal”, adding a McDouble Burger (2 regular patties and 1 slice cheese) and small fries off their Dollar Menu…

McDonald’s unofficial ‘Saimin Value Meal’: Saimin ($2.89), McDouble Burger ($1)and Small Fries ($1). $4.89 total. (drink purchased elsewhere).

Like the ready-to-serve S&S and Okahara store-bought brands, McDonald’s Saimin looks to be preassembled and kept refrigerated until time of service. Simply add piping hot water, stir in broth packet and serve.

Now looking at the broth, I’m a little concerned, as it appears rather “light”…

In here, you have the standard saimin garnishes, including Kamaboko (fishcake; the pink and white “swirly” thing), Nori (roasted seaweed), Charsiu (Chinese roasted pork; red colored) and tamago (egg omelet).

After a moment of reflection (as if any fast food deserves that), I go in for a sip of the broth…

See how light that looks? Well not surprisingly it tasted light, as in watery. Very watered down. Too watered down. As if they took one of the Ajinomoto packets intended to make one bowl and made five bowls out of that. The flavor profile has a subtle hint of shrimp and dashi, with shrimp being more pronounced than dashi. Yet like I said, way, way too watered down. Almost like I was eating plain noodles in boiled water. I tried stirring it, thinking maybe the dashinomoto wasn’t mixed thoroughly, but that didn’t help.  Shrimp-flavored hot water is the best way I can describe this worst example of saimin broth I’ve had in recent memory.

Let’s try the noodles…

A little soggy and heavily starchy. Essentially it tasted like “institution” noodles; something you’d get a school cafeteria or perhaps a prison. Definitely not what I’d expect from a true Saimin stand, which is supposedly where this recipe came from.

The very thin slice of kamaboko was also soggy, which was a bit weird, while the charsiu was tough and bland; yet I suppose that toughness was a plus in contrast to the texture of the noodles. The sliced egg omelet strips were also soggy and bland, continuing to detract and not help this sad bowl of saimin out at all.

This saimin was so “sad” I only could eat half of it, throwing the rest out. I hate to waste food, but I just couldn’t take any more of the “shrimp water” flavor of the broth and starchy-soggy, characterless noodles. Not good. So not good.

With that, McDonald’s Saimin doesn’t even make 1 SPAM Musubi, heading into MINUS territory. Either I just had a “lemon”, or they need to seriously reevaluate their Washington and Boulevard Saimin-sourced recipe.

As for the McDouble, it’s actually quite tasty and satisfying. The single slice of melted cheese is what makes it. I do notice though that it’s quite SALTY. To be exact, the McDouble packs in a whopping 390 calories, 19 grams of total fat, 8 grams saturated fat (42% of the daily value) and 920 milligrams of sodium (38% of the daily value). Wow. Of course that’s to be expected of cheap, processed food, which I try to keep to a minimum; emphasize TRY.

What can I say about McDonald’s Fries. Of all the fast food chains, in my opinion, they’re THE BEST. See, so I always have something nice to say, as with the bad (saimin), there’s always the good (burger and fries).

And to be fair, perhaps when I return to McDonald’s I’ll give the saimin a second chance and try it again to reinforce my findings.

———————————————————————————————

P.S. Going from hot (saimin) to cold,  check out my brand new “Costco-sized” refrigerator…

GE® ENERGY STAR® 25.4 Cu. Ft. Side-By-Side Refrigerator with Dispenser #GSHS5KGXSS

In the middle of renovating my kitchen, this was the perfect time to take advantage of the Hawaii Energy “Trade Up for Cool Cash” $250 rebate. The rules are to purchase a new Energy Star-qualified refrigerator in-store model at any Hawaii retailer between May 24 and June 24, 2010. With that, as you would imagine, refrigerator sales in Hawaii were brisk during this time period and the rebate forms ran out much sooner than the June 24th deadline, along with the money allocated for the rebate program.

In order for the rebate to be valid, the delivery company must stamp the form (see box on the bottom right), stating that they delivered the new Energy Star refrigerator and hauled away your old “clunker”. So yes, this was another form of “cash for clunkers”.

And boy was my old refrigerator a CLUNKER! It certainly wasn’t big enough for my weekly Costco and KCC Farmers’ Market runs, but now I got 25.4 cubic feet of space, baby! Well, of course that’s not the BIGGEST you can get, but it’s big enough for my current needs and a considerable upgrade in every sense from what it’s replacing.

Here’s a look inside…

On the refrigerator side there’s dual level lighting, 2-stack drawer freshness center, spill-proof slide out shelves, gallon size door storage and a convenient in-the-door beverage can holder.

What I like most is the side-by-side design, compared to my old refrigerator’s freezer-on-the-top style. I don’t care much for the new French Door style with the freezer on the bottom. I prefer having the multi-level shelves in the freezer the side-by-side design affords.

On the freezer door is the filtered water and crushed or cubed ice dispenser…

Here you can check the actual temperature, which is recommended to be set at 0ºF for the freezer and 37ºF for the refrigerator, or you can adjust it colder or warmer to your liking. I’m keeping it at default for maximum energy efficiency and life expectancy of the unit.

Here’s an angle view, where you can see beautiful sheen of the Stainless Steel doors…

While some stainless steels can be magnetic, this is the type that isn’t. What this is, is GORGEOUS. The quality of the brushed stainless stamping that makes up the doors’ exterior skin is first-rate and virtually FLAWLESS, and the included Cera Bryte® Stainless Steel polish really brings out its lustre and beauty. The curved extruded stainless steel handles area also an industrial work of art, as is the stainless steel bezel surrounding the ice and water dispenser.

The sides and top of the cabinet are regular steel, painted in a glossy light gray enamel to somewhat match the stainless steel door fronts. It’s here you can stick your magnets, provided the sides are exposed, which it will only be on one side in my kitchen layout.

According to the US Government Energy Guide label attached to it, this model consumes an estimated 578 kilowatts of electricity per year with a $62 per year estimated operating cost (depending on local utility rates). That’s certainly much cheaper than my air conditioner!  Perhaps from now on when  I need to cool off I’ll go hang out in my new fridge. lol

It also runs exceptionally quiet, with only a mute fan sound.

Free delivery, free haul-away, 10% off Energy Star discount, plus Hawaii Energy “Trade Up for Cool Cash” $250 rebate  and low power consumption sounds like a good deal to me.

Now to find the GE stainless steel free-standing range and microhood to match. I know Sears got ’em, but I’m gonna’ shop around some more.

Things To Do
Honolulu

Violet's Grill's Oxtail Saimin

Violet’s Grill – Oxtail Saimin

Back in February of this year, fellow Oahu food blogger Edward Morita wrote a contributing story for Metromix in the late Honolulu Advertiser titled “Who Makes the Best Saimin?“. Well, anytime you involve food with the badge “the best” tagged to it, it’s almost certain to stir up a debate.

That said, here’s the results of Edward’s Saimin comparo’:

“We initially thought rating saimin would be difficult, but as we ate our way across town, we found that the characteristics of the dashi and type of noodles made every bowl unique. Here are our picks of the island’s best saimin.

No. 7 – Old Saimin House: The dashi is on the light side and the factory-bought noodles yield a bowl of saimin similar to that of S&S saimin, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you grew up on S&S like we did.

No. 6 – Shiro’s Saimin Haven: A local favorite with a well-known history, and by far, the biggest saimin menu you’ll find anywhere.

No. 5 – Palace Saimin: No frills with eight menu items. The limited hours make it always busy, but the BBQ stick makes it worth the wait.

No. 4 – Shige’s Saimin Stand: The noodles are made in-house; they made the best fried saimin.

No. 3 – Boulevard Saimin: Best dashi and won ton. Soon to be moving to a new location on Nimitz Highway.

No. 2 – Nakai Saimin: Also uses homemade noodles; our pick for best saimin restaurant.

No.1 – New Violet’s Grill: Deceptively deep bowls. Our pick for best bowl of saimin on Oahu.”

OK, while I have 100% respect for Ed’s expertise and opinion, I have several beefs with this. First of all, he didn’t include a “wildcard”, which would be none other than McDonald’s Saimin. Yes, McDonald’s Saimin. Secondly, he left out Zippy’s Zip Min. The nerve! Lastly, or number one for that matter, he crowned Violet’s Grill’s Oxtail Saimin as “The Best Saimin”.

The reason I have a problem with Violet’s Oxtail Saimin being chosen as “the best”, is the unfair advantage it has over its competition for the very fact that it has LOADS of Oxtails in it. I mean how can you beat that? That’s like comparing a Mustang Shelby GT500 with a jacked-up V-8, tranny and suspension to a bare bones rent-a-car Mustang V-6 model with maybe perhaps a convertible top. Ya’ know?

I mean, Oxtails compared to wontons and charsiu? The latter don’t stand a chance unless they’re REALLY, REALLY good, or the oxtails aren’t done right. Or at least theoretically in my mind before even tasting it, I’m thinking the oxtails will automatically send it over the top.

As far as restaurant choices, there’s certainly a good bowl of saimin to be found at many more restaurants than the seven Ed listed. Ethel’s Grill, Ichiben, Forty Niner Restaurant, Like Like Drive Inn and Liliha Bakery, just to name a few. Of course this is only to mention Oahu eateries, yet I must at least tip my hat to Hamura’s on Kauai, Sam Sato’s on Maui and Nori’s in Hilo on the Big Island.

Well, surely time and space was limited for Ed’s story, and not to discount his efforts, I took him up on his crowning jewel, Violet’s Grill’s Oxtail Saimin, and went to check for myself if this could really be the “Saimin of all Saimins”. The noodle of all noodles, the broth of all broths, along with the toppings of all toppings that would have me walking out the restaurant a changed man. Enlighted, and perhaps becoming a Saimin Demigod.

So here I am at Violet’s Grill, an old school Okinawan-meets-local food eatery in Kapalama, Kalihi (the center of Hawaii’s food universe, a.k.a. “God’s Country”) to sample “The Best Saimin”, their Oxtail Saimin.

Their Oxtail Saimin will set you back $14.95, plus tax and tip, which is quite the chunk ‘o change to pay for saimin by any standard. Yet this IS oxtail saimin after all, and I suppose the price is justified, considering it comes as a complete meal, including a drink, salad, cabbage tsukemono and ice cream or sherbet dessert.

Arriving first at the table is my Green River drink…

Ah yes, the classic lime-flavored Green River. Remember that? Talk about “old school”! That along with the faux wood formica-covered decor at Violet’s will instantly transport you right back to the 70’s…

Arriving next on the table is the salad…

This is simply sliced cabbage for the most part, along with romaine lettuce and carrots, served with their house dressing, which tastes like a cross between French and Thousand Islands. As simple as it sounds, what makes this actually quite outstanding, is that it’s served ICE COLD, so it has this very refreshing and crispy bite to it. Especially the cabbage. Quite nice, actually! A very solid 3 SPAM Musubi on their house salad.

Then out comes the accompaniments for the Oxtail Saimin, which includes the all-important grated ginger, cabbage tsukemono and a bowl to discard your oxtail bones….

Now, as thunder and lightning strikes above, “The Bowl” has cometh….

New Violet’s Grill – Oxtail Saimin. $14.95 (includes drink, salad and dessert)

Add the shoyu to the grated ginger and we’re ready to dig in…

Anyhow, let’s start this tasting session the right way by first observing the bowl. I’ll do this on a spiritual level like I do with Japanese Ramen.

There’s certainly a generous helping of Chinese Parsley (Cilantro) on there, which I love. Good sign so far.

OK, first let’s try the broth…

I asked my server/sister of the owner how the broth was made, and surprisingly she divulged quite a bit! She said there isn’t any star anise in it, which is typical of local style oxtail soup, while there is some dashi, but most of its flavor comes from the long simmering of the oxtails themselves, which is exactly how it tasted. It didn’t taste like saimin broth at all, but more like a toned-down oxtail soup broth. When I say toned down, I mean in comparison to the ULTIMATE bowl of oxtail soup I had at both Pho Bistro 2 and The Alley Restaurant at Aiea Bowl.

Now let’s try the noodles…

Like most of the ramen shops around town, Violet’s sources their noodles from my favorite, the one, the only Sun Noodle Factory. With that, the noodles were cooked perfectly, being more on the firm side than the soggy side, which some saimin places seem to prefer making it the latter way.

OK, time to put my carnivorous hat on and eat some oxtail…

Flavorful, succulent and fall-off-the-marrow-ee-bone tender? Check, check and triple check. Now  here’s where oxtails get kicked up notches beyond mankind…

That’s right my friends, you dip da’ buggah’ in da’ grated ginger and shoyu sauce. Whooooo da’ winnahz! I swear, you could dip your shoe in this stuff and it’d probably taste great.

Seriously though, that simple-yet-magical combination of shoyu and the intense ginger flavor really emphasizes the “umami factor” of the oxtails. We’re talking serious “Umami-liciousness”. So, so good. Om nom nom nom nom NOM!

As mentioned earlier, $14.95 is a hefty price for saimin by most standards, yet for that, they certainly don’t skimp on portions of oxtails…

That sure is a heaping helping of succulent, fall-off-the-bones oxtail meat. In fact it was so tender, I had a tough time transferring them from one bowl to the other without falling off my chopsticks. Of course I did this just for this photo, then put the oxtails back in the soup. They need to be there for the flavor!

Also in the swimming in the bowl were strips of Konnyaku and slices of Shiitake Mushrooms, which the mushrooms contributed somewhat to the flavor of the broth.

So the bottom line here is that this tasted more like a very good bowl of Oxtail Soup that so happens to also have saimin noodles in it, than a “jacked-up”, excellent bowl of saimin that has oxtails in it.

Honestly for me, the oxtails doesn’t match with the saimin, and takes away from it more than adds to it. You suddenly forget it’s saimin and your brain focuses almost entirely on gnawing on the oxtails one by one. Yet don’t get me wrong, they were mighty fine pieces of oxtail, in one pretty good soup, that again, just so happens to have saimin noodles in it. While overall, I’m not so fond of the beef being the foundation of the saimin broth, where normally it’s either pork or seafood. For me that’s just plain weird.

As it turns out, as far for the sake of this being saimin, the oxtails became more of a disadvantage than an asset, no pun intended.

That said, I give Violet’s Grill’s Oxtail Saimin 3 SPAM Musubi. It’s a very good Oxtail Soup with Saimin noodles in it.

I still say as of this writing, of all places, Zippy’s Zip Min is THE BEST saimin on Oahu. It’s saimin to the core. Local all the way, with the perfect broth (that TASTES like saimin broth) and noodles, along with an incredibly delicious array of simple-yet-proven toppings that compliment the overall dish. All at a price that makes saimin what it should be: cheap, comforting and delicious.

Zippy’s Zip Min – A signature favorite! Special menu recipe with noodles, wun tun, breaded shrimp, choi sum, fish cake, dried seaweed, egg, sweet pork and green onion. $8.25

Good God, I could SO go for a bowl of that right about now. Looks sooo ono.

While I wasn’t “blown away” by Violet’s Grill’s Oxtail Saimin (a.k.a. Oxtail Soup with Saimin noodles in it), I was certainly AMAZED by their INCREDIBLE Okinawan Pig’s Feet Soup…

Violet’s Grill – Okinawan Pig’s Feet Soup

Good Lord, I could SO go for a bowl of that right about now as well! Om nom nom nom nom nom NOM!

Rounding out the complete Oxtail Saimin meal at Violet’s Grill, I’m brought my Rainbow Sherbet dessert….

I tell ya’, this place sure knows how to transport you back in time, as I haven’t had Rainbow Sherbet in AGES! I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a candy stand in there that sold Astro Pops and Horlicks Malted Candy Tablets. Remember those? Classics! Well anyhow, the sherbet was certainly a nice and cool ending to a hot soup lunch.

New Violet’s Grill
Kapalama Shopping Center (across the street from City Square)
1210 Dillingham Blvd.
Honolulu, Hawaii  96817

Tel. 841-8535

www.NewVioletsGrill.com

Business hours:
Open daily 6am to 10pm

The Tasty Island rating (on Oxtail Saimin):

(3) Very Good. Considerable of another visit or purchase. (Supah’ Ono!)

Related links:
• Who makes the best saimin? – Honolulu Advertiser/Metromix
• Kalihi Eats: New Violet’s Grill – The Tasty Island
• Time for Zip Min – The Tasty Island

P.S. Diner A just eMailed me these photos of a car he sighted in a parking lot with  SPAM vanity license plates!…

Now that is AWESOME. I wonder how many people have offered this person money to transfer the name over at the DMV to their cars. What’s kinda’ funny is the Hello Kitty sticker on the side. It’s rather disturbing, actually. lol What I would do is put the word “Musubi” in the bottom part of the license plate frame.

Things To Do
Honolulu

Happy Father’s Day

Grindz of the Day: Chun Wah Kam, Blvd Snack, Korean B-B-Q Corner, Zippy's, Toru's and AC's

Starting off today’s “Grindz of the Day”, we have some onolicious dim sum from Chun Wah Kam, including steamed Charsiu Manapua, Pork Hash and Pepiao.

Let’s have a closer look…

Time for a filling check…

Well, that manapua looks a bit skimpy on the Charsiu, but not this one…

Let’s check another one…

and another one…

One more….

I must say, Chun Wah Kam’s Charsiu filling is excellent, and I like theirs better than Libby’s, but I still say Libby’s has the best steamed bun. It has the perfect texture. Chun Wah Kam’s baked manapua is excellent though. Especially if you get it fresh out of the oven.

Moving on, we have some tuna and california sushi rolls, along with a set of gyoza from BLVD SNACK on Dillingham Blvd., across the street from HCC…

These wonderful sushi rolls are just a $1 each! The sushi rice is prepared perfectly here, and they taste so fresh!

BLVD SNACK’s Gyoza set…

Next up, a Kalbi plate from Korean B-B-Q Corner in Iwilei, next door to the Suzuki motorcycle dealership…

A closer look at the banchan…

Also from there, a Korean BBQ Chicken plate…

How is it? I give the Kalbi plate 2 SPAM Musubi, noting that the Kalbi needed more sauce. It was reasonably tender though and had good char-grilled markings on it. The banchan was very good; especially the Korean style potato salad. “Yum” to that!

Diner A gave his Korean BBQ Chicken plate 2 SPAM Musubi as well, noting it also needed more sauce, while the chicken was close to the point of being overcooked, yet juicy and tender in some parts. Really good here, while not so good there, if you know what I mean.

Next up a mini no-bean Chili & Chicken plate from Zippy’s…

I don’t know why, but of all the “Grindz of the Day” dishes shown so far in this post, this Chili & Chicken mini plate photo is the one that’s making me REALLY HUNGRY right about now! Imagine this plate greeting you at the table after a long day out at the beach. Talk about CHOW TIME!

Moving on, this tray of Inari Sushi was made by our friend Toru, and I must say, while I’m not an Inari Sushi fan, this was probably the best example of it I’ve every had in my life…

The rice had an interesting mixture of “stuff” in it, which I don’t know what it was, but it tasted AMAZING. Especially with the Sushi Shoga (sweet pickled ginger; that pink stuff in the container). I hope he’s willing to give me the recipe for it.

Finally, we have this Strawberry & Whipped Cream Birthday Cake Diner AC made for a coworker several weeks ago…

Our coworker just turned 5 years old. I’ll be 10 tomorrow. lol!

The cake was delicious.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Things To Do
Honolulu

Cut for Chicken Hekka

Chicken Hekka – Photo courtesy of Champuru.net

I did some grocery shopping at Foodland Farms (their new surname) in Aina Haina last weekend, where in the meat department, I came across a tray of chicken parts named “Island Chicken Hekka”. Which struck me on several fronts: first that it’s been a while since I’ve last had Chicken Hekka; and second that, well, that’s quite a specialized cut!

I mean, what supermarkets beyond Hawaii would you find cuts of chicken designated specifically for Chicken Hekka? California? Doubt it. New York? No way.

What’s more odd, is that this tray of “Island Chicken Hekka” (looks like they crossed-off “Island” because the chicken isn’t locally produced) is simply randomly-cut pieces from various parts of the bird, including the wing, breast, back and wherevahz.

Which must mean whoever is the manager or butcher of Foodland Farms’ meat department is basing this off their own personal Chicken Hekka recipe. Where at this point you might be asking, “What the heck is Chicken Hekka?”

Well, doing some quick “Google Fu’ing”, according to the late and great Honolulu Star Bulletin, “Hekka is a sukiyaki-type dish of plantation origin that consists of chicken and vegetables.” Sounds about right. I highly doubt anyone in China, Japan, the Philippines or Portugal have heard of “Chicken Hekka”. Heck, it just may have been named “Chicken Hekka” by the very meaning of “Chicken with whatever the HECK else thrown in with it”.

Really, it is though. Take a look at this recipe, courtesy of Sam Choy:

Chicken Hekka
Sam Choy

• 2-1/2 pounds chicken thighs or breasts, cut into strips
• 3 tablespoons macadamia nut oil
• 1/2 finger ginger, minced
• 2 cans bamboo shoots, sliced
• 1 bunch green onions, cut saimin-style
• 1 round onion, cut in half moon slices
• 3 medium carrots, julienned
• 1 package pre-sliced shiitake mushrooms
• 3 stalks celery, julienned
• 1/2 bundle watercress, cut into 1-inch lengths
• 1 block tofu, cut in 1-inch cubes
• 5 bundles of bean thread

Marinade:
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup macadamia nut oil
• 2 tablespoons mirin
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 1/4 tablespoon white pepper
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar

Sauce:
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup chicken broth

Combine marinade ingredients and marinate chicken for 30 minutes. Slice vegetables, mix and set aside. Blend sauce ingredients and set aside. Brown chicken in marinade and 3 tablespoons of macadamia nut oil to which you have added the half finger of minced ginger. Add all vegetables and cook for 1 minute. Add sauce and bean threads and simmer on medium heat for 5 minutes.

That’s certainly lots o’ stuff in there.

Now check out my mother’s recipe:

Hilo Style Chicken Hekka (can use beef too!)
Mom

• 2 lbs. boneless chicken, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 bunch watercress, roughly chopped
• 1 large round onion, sliced
• Green onion, chopped for garnish
• 1 block tofu, cut into 1″ cubes
• 1 can bamboo shoots (5.5 oz.)
• 1 can mushrooms (4.5 oz.), reserve liquid
• 2 bunches bean thread noodles (long rice)
• 1/3 cup shoyu
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup beer
• 1 tsp. salt

Heat oil in deep pan or wok, then add chicken, shoyu, sugar, beer, mushroom liquid and salt. When chicken is cooked through, add tofu, watercress, sliced onion, bamboo shoots, mushrooms and bean thread noodles and cook until until bean thread noodles are al dente. Garnish with green onions, then serve with hot rice.

I’ll make this recipe later after my kitchen is finished with its renovation, which is currently under way.

Cuts for Chicken Hekka? Check. Yet there’s other asian-inspired specialized cuts of meat in our local supermarket as well. At Don Quijote and Marukai, you’ll find boneless pork chops cut thin and labeled for Tonkatsu. For beef, of course we have short ribs labeled for Teriyaki and Kal Bi. There’s also very thin cuts of beef labeled for Sukiyaki…

What I have yet to see here in Hawaii supermarkets is beef labeled specifically for Beef Bourguignon, Daube or Stroganoff. All three of which sounds good right about now!

Travel Tips
Honolulu

Gomaicihi's Char Siu Shoyu Ramen

Gomaichi or Goma Tei? That IS the Question. Why? Because rumor has it that the owner of Gomaichi was once a partner with Goma Tei, with the latter who started his or her own shop, spinning off the same recipes to boot. Or something to that effect, but don’t quote me on it.

So much for investigative reporting on this blog, but I do strive to get better at it, when time permits. Lately I’ve been constrained.

First let’s check the place out…

Gomaichi is located on Ke’eaumoku (Koreamoku) street, nextdoor to Green Papaya Vietnamese Restaurant (another place I need to visit). Parking is strictly on the street (where I parked), or like many Yelpers confess, they park across the street in Walmart’s parking lot. Just walk towards the store like you’re going to shop there, then hang a left and head to Gomaicihi. lol

This is one mighty strange looking “immortalized” bowl of ramen in their window….

Typical of most ramen shops, Gomaichi is furnished with a centrally-serviced bar height counter wrap, along with individual tables on the side…

Gomaichi’s menu…

One (of two) of my servers mentioned that a popular ramen style with the ladies is their Zasai Sunghonmen…

While also pointing out that the fellahz all go for the Tantanmen…

But nah, pass. I tried the Tan Tan Ramen at Goma Tei, and it wasn’t my style. Too “out there” (unconventional) in my opinion.

Again sticking by my guns, for this first-time visit at Gomaichi, I decided to try their Shoyu Ramen…

Gomaichi – Char Siu Shoyu Ramen. $8.36

Gomaichi was notably empty of customers on this pre-peak dinner time 5pm visit, so it gave the place a sense of solitude. Solitude I could use to further enhance my “religious experience” in attempting to absorb and envelop every sense of spirit from this bowl of ramen. Could this be that “Zen moment”? The awakening? The enlightenment? “The bowl”?

Let’s now find out. Hai, itadakimasu.

First, let’s taste the broth…

According to one of my servers, the broth is chicken-based, with no pork at all, yet she didn’t know (or wouldn’t divulge) much else about it beyond that. Had I not known it was chicken, like Menchanko-Tei’s Kokuzu Shoyu Ramen, I would say Gomaichi’s Shoyu Ramen broth simply tastes “meaty”, as if it could have been made a combination of chicken, pork and beef.

Yet what struck me most about the broth’s flavor profile is that it didn’t taste “Japanese”, but more Americanized. Like a really, really, really good example of Nissin® Cup Noodle®, for lack of a better way to put it. lol. Seriously, that’s how it came across to me! It had a good balance of saltiness, while thankfully not having any sweet undertones, which I always appreciate. The globules of fat slicking the surface added silkiness, yet overall, the depth and complexity factor wasn’t there. Don’t get me wrong, it tasted good, but not “Japanese good”. More just “soup good”. Ya’ know?

With that, their offpsring competitor, Goma Tei, still has the best Shoyu Ramen broth I’ve had yet in recent time here on Oahu, whereas I give Gomaichi’s take on it 2 SPAM Musubi.

Now let’s sample the noodles…

The noodles’ profile is slightly thinner than usual, while it also had a pronounced more “eggy” flavor it, which brought the dish back to being “Japanese” again, and I’d say somewhat of a redemption. Yet that was slightly negated by the fact that they were cooked a little beyond al dente in the Japanese sense of being on the firm side; these were a little soft.  It didn’t take on much of the broth’s flavor either, which is probably more attributable to the broth than the noodles itself. Overall flavor in and of itself? Great. Texture? Good. 3 SPAM Musubi for the noodles.

Now on to the Char Siu (notice the spelling)….

Notice how the center part of this Char Siu slice is missing, which simply explained, it fell out while I held it up. It’s THAT tender. In fact, right after I snapped this photo, the rest of it fell apart and back into the bowl. It’s rolled-up pork belly just like at Goma Tei, except Gomaichi’s Char Siu is considerably thinner-sliced. Like about 1/8″ to be exact, compared to Goma Tei’s which is sliced about 5/8″. Over half an inch!

I was somewhat disappointed with the quanity, slice-wise, where being so thin, they could have included more than just three! I mean, this IS Char Siu Ramen, isn’t it? If you ask me, this looked more like Shoyu Ramen, where I almost was going to confirm with my server whether this was indeed “Charsiu Shoyu Ramen”, but didn’t bother and just went with it.

Being rolled-up pork belly, the fat-to-meat factor is right on point. Yet seasoning wise, it was about middle-ground and needed more of the shoyu/mirin/sake/ginger penetration than it had. Overall though, I really enjoyed it. Rubbing it in again, while Goma Tei’s Char Siu gets 5 SPAM Musubi, Gomaichi’s Char Siu gets 2, where it would have been 3 based on flavor and succulent tenderness, but got deducted a point for portion. Only 3 thin slices? Pu-leeez.

What else is left? Nothing! No menma! Ack!!!!!! What the? According to my server, Menma is included in the Tantanmen and Sunghonmen, but not the Shoyu Ramen. What?!!!!!! Remember I mentioned that the broth didn’t taste “Japanese”? Well, that’s a big reason for that, as the menma is a key flavor component in that regard.

Which has me thinking, from now on, I’m going to make it a point to ASK before ordering whether my ramen will have menma in it. If it doesn’t, I’m ordering one that does. If they don’t have it, I’m walking out, because as far as I’m concerned, Japanese Ramen is NOT Japanese without MENMA IN IT!

OK, rant over.

Well all there really is left is the green onion, which I have to ask: why can’t ramen shops here in Hawaii embrace using thin slivers of only the white stalk of the larger Japanese green onion? That’s how it’s served in Japan, so what’s so hard about doing it here?! And don’t tell me cost, because you can buy Japanese Negi at KCC Farmer’s Market at a very reasonable price.

OK, rant round two over. lol

Other than that, we have the remaining broth and remnants of noodles and char siu…

One reader suggested that I include my hand in the photos to give scale of the foods’ service size. Well, I must also note, the bowl size at Gomaichi is on the small size, if this is any indication…

My hand spans 8-1/4″ from thumb-tip to pinky-tip, where you can see it dwarfing the bowl’s diameter. Still, regardless of bowl diameter, it was still more than enough, where I didn’t even need Gyoza on the side to fill me up, nor was I in the mood for Gyoza, which is why I didn’t order any on this visit. At $4.78 for five pieces, it’s not exactly a bargain either. I’d get it to share with someone, but since I was on another solo mission, no need.

Speaking of prices, like several other ramen shops I’ve reviewed recently, Gomaichi is CASH ONLY. No checks, debit or credit cards accepted.

Aside of it’s lack of “Japanese-nis”, I thoroughly enjoyed my Shoyu Ramen at Gomaichi “Japanese Noodle Restaurant”. Enough so that I “polished” it…

Cup Noodle® certainly ain’t got nothin’ on it.

Being super-slow (I was one of 3 other guests in the entire joint), service was of course very attentive and friendly, while my order came out within minutes of being ordered, only taking as long as it would to boil the noodles. I like that.

I’ll certainly return again to try that Zasai Sunghonmen. Spicy, sour and menma in it? Sound very interesting.

Gomaichi Japanese Noodle Restaurant
631 Keeoumoku Street (across Walmart, nextdoor to Green Papaya Cafe)
Honolulu, Hawaii  96815

Tel. (808) 951-6666
www.rikautsumi.com/demo/gomaichi

The Tasty Island rating:

(2) Good. I’m glad I tried it.

Related links:
• Gomaichi: Sesame & Sour – Rameniac
• Gomaichi – Yelp user reviews

Things To Do
Honolulu

Menchanko-Tei's Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen & Hakata Ramen

I knew it wouldn’t take long before I’d be back at it again, savoring my ichiban favorite comfort food on earth, Japanese Ramen. Still bent on my quest to find “The Perfect Bowl” right in my back yard, after sorting through the many positive reviews about the place on Yelp, I decided to try the offerings at Menchanko-Tei.

Menchanko-Tei is located in the heart of Waikiki in the now infamous Waikiki Trade Center on Kuhio avenue, with notable neighbors including The Shack, Zanzabar, and upstairs, Black Diamond Nightclub (formerly Fashion 45).

‘Menchanko-Tei’ is actually the namesake of their signature dish, the Mechanko, a sort of noodle stew which appears to be a spin off Chankonabe, a dish made especially for Sumo wrestlers.

Yet they also serve several styles of Ramen, including Kikuzo Shoyu, Hakata (pork), and Zabu-Zabu (cold), which I’ve recently tried the Kikuzo Shoyu and Hakata Ramen. To my delight, they also serve Oden as well, which I’ll get more into in a bit.

As always, first let’s check the place out…

There’s a private room in back, which is furnished much more elegantly, and appears to be intended for VIPs such as myself. lol

There’s also a bar where you can walk right in and seat yourself…

Since I was on a solo mission on both visits, I sat at the bar right under that “Tonkatsu” light. Which I think is a sign that I need to return here to try their Tonkatsu, as that’s another dish served here that Yelpers all rave about. Yelpers also speak highly of their Menchanko, which I’ve got on my high priority list of dishes to try as well.

Speaking of dishes, let’s take a look now at Menchanko-Tei’s very extensive menu…

This is as Japanese as it gets folks. The only thing that’s missing is sushi and tempura, but no problem, as we can that just about everywhere nowadays.

Notice there was a section dedicated to Oden, which according to Wikipedia is “a Japanese winter dish consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon radish, konnyaku, and processed fish cakes stewed in a light, soy-flavoured dashi broth. Ingredients vary according to region and between each household. Karashi (Japanese mustard) is often used as a condiment.”

Here’s Menchanko-Tei’s Oden station…

I learned to love Oden after having being hooked up by the stuff from my late aunty Betty Sakamoto, who so graciously taught me how to make it. Really easy, as the Oden-nomoto does most of the work. See this link to learn how to make your own Oden.

As you see on the menu, Oden selections are sold ala cart for $2.25 each: fried fish cake (satsuma age), white radish (daikon), Japanese yam potato jelly cake (konnyaku), mochi in fried tofu pouch (atsurage), tubular fish cake (chikuwa), fried tofu (agedashi dofu), beef tendon (gyu-suji) and boiled egg (tamago).

Here’s the server dishing up a few servings of Oden for her table guests…

Notice the dollop of Karashi mustard on the side of the deep dish. Also notice they don’t drown the ingredients in broth, but only serve a little for moisture and flavor. When I make mines at home, I drown it, as I’m a “broth-ee” kinda’ guy. lol

Now here’s my bowl of Oden…

Menchanko-Tei – Oden with agedashi dofu (fried tofu), konnyaku (Japanese yam potato jelly cake) and tamago (boiled egg), with Karashi mustard condiment. $6.75

In typical Japanese form in always paying attention to detail, they even brand their agedashi dofu (fried tofu) with their name. Neat-o!

In retrospect, instead of the tamago, I should have gotten the gyu-suji (beef tendon), as my Shoyu Ramen already had a boiled egg in it.

This is one hunkin’ chunk of fried tofu…

And this is one hunkin’ chunk of Konnyaku (Japanese Yam Potato Jelly Cake; what a mouthful!)…

How is it? Oishii. Very good. The broth is mildy sweet and katsuobushi-ish just like Oden should taste. Admittedly I think Aunty Betty’s recipe tastes better, thanks to the konbu maki and pork-stuffed aburage, but this works for me.  Only the price is a bit high. Each ingredient should be closer to a $1 each, not over $2. Not factoring the price — which I should, but I’m not, because after all, this is Waikiki — I’ll give it 3 SPAM Musubi.

Now on to the main attraction, the Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen…

Menchanko-Tei – Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen. $8.95

I first take a moment to connect with it. Observe it. Smell its essence. Realize its ichinen sanzen. Tamashii. A religious experience. Yes my friends, ramen can be that deep.

I observe closer…

Ah, oishisou, nei.

Hai, itadakimasu (let’s eat!)…

How’s the broth? Oishii. Very, very good. It’s complex, bold and “meaty”, yet I wouldn’t necessarily say “porky”, but  simply “meaty”.  There’s a hint of sweetness to it, which is the only thing I don’t care to taste in my ramen broth. Other than that, thumbs-up.

According to the menu, Menchanko-Tei was founded in 1980 in Hakata, Japan by Akihide Yonehama, who created all the noodle and menchanko recipes based upon years of culinary experience. Hakata is located in Fukuoka on the southern island of Kyushu.

With that, not surprisingly the Kokuzo Shoyu broth here tastes quite different than the style I’m familiar with from Tokyo’s Ginza district, which is far up north on the main island of Honshu. To which, like all the other Shoyu Ramen broths I’ve judged in the past, I can’t expect this one to taste like Ginza Ramen, because it’s not. Yet this one stood out as being uniquely GOOD. Some of the others had their own character for sure, but weren’t good. This one thankfully is EXCELLENT. Different, but exellent.

Now let’s try the noodles, which again are sourced from Hawaii’s own Sun Noodle Factory…

Perfectly cooked in the Japanese style of being on the firm side. Yosh! The silky coating of the noodles also took on some of the flavor from the meaty broth, which added some excitement to the slurpfest.

Next let’s sample the charshu…

Nice. Very nice. Good balance of fat to pork meat, with a flavor-packed outer edge that carries right through to the center. It’s also super succulent and tender. If they had a Chashumen version of this Shoyu Ramen (more slices of pork), I’d certainly opt for that. This place seems pretty flexible, so I’m sure if you asked for that they’d do it.

Well look what we have here… my favorite, Menma!…

My server didn’t know where they source their menma from, but I found these larger and deeper in marinated flavor than the Yamachan and Shirakiku brand I’ve bought at Marukai. Menchanko-Tei’s is slightly better.

Rounding out the rest of the garnishments, there’s half of a boiled egg (tamago), fish cake (kamaboko), green onion (negi) and dried seaweed (nori).

Rounding out Menchanko-Tei’s Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen, I give it a uniquely delicious 4 SPAM Musubi, thanks to the depth and overall flavor profile of the broth, perfectly cooked noodles, and excellent charshu and menma.

Getting “crafty”, I decided to try combing my Oden with my remaining Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen broth (when nobody was looking, of course. he he)…

You know what? Not bad. Not bad at all. Which has me thinking, they should create an “Odenmen” – a hybrid of Oden and Ramen, where instead of the usual ramen toppings, they put in various fishcakes, mochi, tofu and beef tendon. Actually, I wouldn’t doubt somewhere in Japan this already exists.

Ah, oishikata. Onaka ipai desu. (that was delicious. I’m stuffed). Oden AND Ramen in one sitting? You’d be stuffed too!

I enjoyed their Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen so much, I decided to return the very next night for an encore, this time trying their Hakata Pork Ramen…

Menchanko-Tei – Hakata Pork Ramen. $8.95 (and glass of Kirin draft biru. $5.50)

Ah yes, nothing like an cold, cold glass of Kirin draft to go with a bowl of ramen. Fantastic combo!

So here we have Menchanko-Tei’s Hakata Pork Ramen, which as you see the broth looks very creamy. It also appears to be thick in viscosity like Tenkaippin’s Kotteri broth, but it’s not. Yet it does have a little more body to it than the Shoyu ramen.

Time again to observe the ramen. Feel its ichinen. Its tamashii…

Oishisou, nei.

OK, hai, itadakimasu! First let’s have a sip of this creamy-looking Hakata pork broth…

Ah, oishii! Sugoi! OMG, I. AM. DIGGIN. THIS. It actually does taste creamy, but in a porky way. Not that that sounds enticing, but one sip and you’ll understand where I’m coming from. There’s also a slight hint of sesame flavor from the goma seeds, but it’s very subtle, thank goodness, as I’m not a big fan of sesame-flavored ramen (Goma Tei’s Tan Tan Ramen is that).

While the Hakata pork broth already has plenty of character on its own, putting an exclamation mark on its expression, you’ve got Beni Shoga in there…

Beni Shoga are slivers of red pickled ginger flavored in the acidic style of umeboshi (the red plum commonly found in musubi). With that, it adds a pronounced undertone of ginger with an acidic kick to the broth. All-in-all, a very appealing marriage of flavors between the creamy pork and bite of the ginger, coming together in unctuous decadence. AWESOME.

Let’s try the (Sun) noodles…

Once again, like the Kikuzo Shoyu Ramen, the noodles in my Hakata Pork Ramen were cooked perfectly, with just enough firm bite to them. They also took on the flavor of the creamy Hakata pork broth just enough to keep the party going.

Let’s try the Charshu…

These slices were a little leaner than the ones I had in the Shoyu Ramen the night before, yet still equally succulent, tender and flavorful. Winner.

Like Yotteko-Ya’s Paitan Ramen, Menchanko-Tei’s Hakata Pork Ramen has Kikurage (Wood Ear Mushroom) in it…

The best way I can describe the flavor of Kikurage, is that it tastes like an “earthy” kombu. Whatever it’s doing, I’m sure it’s playing a part in the overall flavor of the EXCELLENT Hakata pork broth.

I love boiled egg in ramen…

However, one Yelper mentioned that he or she wished the Hawaii ramen shops had the “delicious hardboiled eggs with a orange/red yolk that is silky smooth” that they use in Japan, but so far he or she hasn’t found that here. I know which one their talking about, and it indeed has a much better flavor the eggs we have here.

I took my time sipping every last drop of Hakata pork broth from the bowl…

Summing it up, I give Menchanko-Tei’s Hakata Pork Ramen a unique and well-executed, porky-creamy-beni-shoga-laced-oishilicious 4 SPAM Musubi.

Their Hakata Pork Ramen is one of their signature dishes, as you see they have it immortalized in plastic in the display case in front…

Yet the real star of the show is their Motsu Menchanko, which they also have immortalized in plastic on display in front…

Immortalized Oden…

The service on both of my visits was EX-CEL-LENT, where overall, I’m giving Menchanko-Tei a well-deserved 4 SPAM Musubi, and I’ve only scratched the surface! I can’t wait to go back and try the Motsu Menchanko and their highly praised Tonkatsu!

Menchanko-Tei
Waikiki Trade Center
2255 Kuhio Avenue
Honolulu, Hawaii  96815

Tel. (808) 924-8366

The Tasty Island rating:

(4) Excellent. Worth another visit or purchase. (Winnahz!)

Related links:
• Menchanko-Tei – Queen of Ramen blog
• Some Menchanko Evening – Honolulu Weekly
• Menchanko-Tei – Yelp user reviews

P.S. Another gorgeous beach day in Hawaii nei…

Grindz of the Day: Byron's Drive-In and Toshi's Delicatessen

This past Aloha Friday (yesterday), Diner A and I ran an errand in the airport area, where for lunch, we decided to check out the grindz at Byron’s Drive-In.  This place has been a landmark here for decades, where interestingly, come to find out,  is the last remaining in the legacy of  restaurateur Andrew Wong, who has since passed…

Here’s the takeout menu, which includes most selections, except for a few more “specials” and miscellaneous goodies posted on the window in front…

Byron’s Drive-In’ daily specials for June 2010…

Also for your convenience, here’s a download link for the PDF of Byron’s Drive-In’s current menu (2 pages).

While I admittedly haven’t eaten here for some time now, it always amazes me how crowded the place gets every time I drive by, and today was no exception…

It got even more crowded than that after I snapped that photo.

There’s ample seating…

and games, too!…

So anyhow, getting to our “Grindz of the Day”, Diner A decided to sample “Byron’s Mix”…

Byron’s Drive-In – “Byron’s Mix: Teriyaki Beef, Teriyaki Chicken, Chow Mein Noodles, Mac’ Salad and Rice. $8.75

The verdict? Diner A gives it 3 SPAM Musubi, noting the tasty sauce and tasty charred edges on the meats. Oh-right!

I decided to sample one of their “signature” items, the Avocado Deluxe Burger and Onion Rings….

Byron’s Drive-In – Avocado Deluxe Burger ($5.25) and Onion Rings ($2.25)

Notice the classic “local style” mustard-mayo’ sauce just oozing over the edge of the bun bottom. Oh-right!

A better angle…

As always, the cutaway view…

The verdict? The thick slices of avocado were fresh and perfectly ripened, and added a nice “fattening” component to the already fattening burger patty. lol While the crunchy, zesty slice of white onion and acidic tomato added great contrast to them “fattening” stuffs. Then you have more fat comin’ at ya’ in the form of the mustard-mayo’ sauce. Can’t go wrong with that! While the ketchup on the top part of the bun brought it all together.

Complaints would be the bun, which could have been a little fresher, as it tasted like “2 day old bun” lol, while they also didn’t toast the insides, which is a critical factor (that it IS toasted) in how I judge a burger. Also, the burger patty was cooked on a flat top griddle (ugh), yet thankfully wasn’t dried out and still had decent moisture in it, while the crust was, well, FRIED.  Overall nothing really in and of itself worthy to write home or here about.

Yet that “local style” mustard-mayo’ sauce — which can make car bumpers taste good — along with the combination of ketchup, fresh veggies and avocado made it an overall very satisfying burger experience. Enough to give it 3 SPAM Musubi.

As for the Onion Rings, very nice. It had a Fish ‘n Chips type batter that’s airy inside and lightly crispy on the outside. The onions itself were regular whites, being not notably sweet, yet adequately flavorful to stick out within the batter. 3 SPAM Musubi for their Onion Rings as well.

I was gonna’ order their ‘Spicy Ahi Casserole’, which they tout as being a famous dish from the late ‘n great Andy Wong’s Orson’s Restaurant, but changed my mind at the last minute, preferring something more “sandwich-ee”. The Spicy Ahi Casserole was described as being baked with celery, onion and mayonnaise. No cheese? As odd as it may sound, tuna and cheese can be very good friends!

Anyhow, what was interesting was that, along with mostly blue and white collar workers waiting  in line, mixed in the crowd were also a group of mainland tourists who looked like they just off the plane. What a way to start your Hawaii vacation: grab a plate lunch at Byron’s Drive-In! Guy and the “Triple D” folks really should consider this place on their next Hawaii visit. Classic.

Next up we have an Okazuya plate that Diner “Uchinanchu” E picked up early yesterday morning from Toshi’s Delicatessen in Kalihi, a.k.a. God’s Country, a.k.a. “The Center of Hawaii’s Food Universe”. lol But in this case, what’s just as important as the food itself , is how it’s presented! You may recall several months ago, I did a write-up titled “Plate Lunch Presentation 101”, where I explained the various modern and old school methods used to pack a plate lunch.

I for one appreciate and prefer “old school” methods, and thankfully Toshi’s Delicatessen is one of the few remaining that adheres to the practice of wrapping their ROUND PAPER PLATE in BUTCHER PAPER…

It’s like a wrapped gift of oishiliciousness.

Now we shall commence with the unveiling…

Ooooh…aaaahhhhhh….ooooohhh…aaaahhhhhh.

Unwrapping that, we have this…

What the? Balut? Hah? Oh, oops, sorry, wrong pic. LOL!

In this next “sequence”, notice the parchment paper liner. Part of the “romance” of this part is pulling it off, where you get some of the food stuck to it…

This is the part when, if no one is looking, you put the parchment paper up to your mouth and try and nibble off every last piece of shoyu long rice noodle stickin’ to it. lol

Finally, presenting Toshi’s Shoyu Chicken, Chow Funn, Shoyu Long Rice and Nori Musubi Okazuya plate…

Toshi’s Delicatessen (Okazuya) – Shoyu Chicken, Shoyu Long Rice, Chow Funn and Nori Musubi. $6

The verdict? Diner “Saimin Kaukau” E gives it 3 SPAM Musubi, which would be the equivalent of 4 or 5 SPAM Musubi for you and I. I must say, he gave me a sample of the chow funn to try and it is TOTALLY ONO. I hate to admit it, but this might just beat the reigning champ, St. Louis Delicatessen (Okazuya). I think Toshi’s has even more flavor, yet remains subtle enough to remain silent, yet effective, if you know what I mean.

Well, that’s it for today’s Grindz of the Day. Toodles!

Almond Joy Pieces vs. Coconut M&M's

In case you’re going to ask, no, the “ramenathon” hasn’t finished. Not yet. We’re just taking a break, or better said, “an intermission”.

Authentic Japanese Ramen is is such a savory and “Umami-ish” dish…err bowl, that taking some time off from it with the what should be a wonderfully sweet and exotic, tropical-themed combination of chocolate, coconut and nuts, doesn’t sound like a bad idea. At least me thinks not.

Which brings us here today to compare Hershey’s fairly new Peter Paul offspring, aptly named ‘Almond Joy Pieces’ against Mars ‘Coconut M&M’s’, which I’ve already recently reviewed on this blog.

Getting right to it, let’s have a closer look at Almond Joy Pieces, starting with the packaging…

“Pieces” don’t stop with Almond Joy, as you see they’ve also got York (Peppermint), Hershey’s Special Dark and the original Reese’s Pieces…

Notice the Almond Joy Pieces label artwork is pretty much copied-and-pasted from Peter Paul’s original (albeit modernized) Almond Joy chocolate bar wrapper label…

Unpacking it, here’s Almond Joy Pieces (on the left) and Coconut M&M’s (on the right), side-by-side, with a US quarter in the shot to provide scale in size…

Witness the color-coordinated themes going on here. First of note is that, unlike the last bag I bought, this time around, Coconut M&M’s included the GREEN COLOR!  Yay! Which obviously is supposed to give you a psychological reminder of: green = coconut tree leaves; brown = coconut shell/husk; and white = coconut “meat”. Roger that.

Then we have Hershey’s Peter Paul Almond Joy Pieces, sporting primary blue, tan and dark, dark brown color (which looks almost black in these photos, but they aren’t; they’re dark brown).

Interestingly, the blue Almond Joy Pieces tastes like “blueberry chocolate”, the tan ones tastes like “salmon chocolate”, and the dark, dark brown ones tastes like “hamburger steak chocolate”. Not! But hey, you gotta’ admit, that DOES sound intriguing, to say the least!

As always, let’s cut them in half for a cross-section view…

A closer view of the Almond Joy Pieces…

While here’s a closer side-by-side comparison of the size difference between Almond Joy Pieces (blue) and Coconut M&M’s (green)…

So what’s the verdict, comparing Hershey’s Almond Joy Pieces to Mars Coconut M&M’s? It really is a toss-up. A toss-up! Looking at the “specs” on paper, I thought hands-down, Almond Joy Pieces, with it’s REAL Coconut flakes and tiny chunks of REAL almonds would BLOW AWAY the artificially-flavored Coconut M&M’s. But it didn’t.

What turned out being the advantage for M&M’s was their SUPERIOR, BOLDER TASTING CHOCOLATE underneath the candy-coated shell, which probably may be biased on my part, being that I’m much more familiar with that brand due to availability (thank you Mr. vending machine. he he).

Speaking of candy-coated shell, I found that the most confounding part of this comparison, as its sweetness and hard, crunchy texture complicated my perception of what I could make of what was inside of it. Yet, of course it’s very much appreciated, lest these little morsels of chocolate ‘n “stuff” be relegated to melted oblivion with nothing to show for. As for thickness of the candy coating, I’ve read some complain that the one on the Almond Joy Pieces was too thick, but I actually found the one on the M&M’s to be more so in that regard. Yet none were worth complaining about, and were equally both an asset than a burden.

As for the Almond Joy Pieces, the real coconut flakes and tiny chopped pieces of almonds were appreciated, yet it seemed rather inconsistent, as if the almonds and coconut flakes weren’t evenly mixed in. Which ultimately means, from bite to bite, it didn’t scream out “I’m Almond Joy!” nearly as much as I had hoped. Also, the milk chocolate “core” it’s all mixed in, while “milky”, isn’t nearly as good in my opinion to M&M’s chocolate candy core.

On the other hand, the Coconut M&M’s, while having a far superior chocolate inner-core and tasting more consistently, albeit more subtly “coconutty”, still had that artificial flavor and lack of texture that the Almond Joy Pieces otherwise exemplified.

Who do I pick as the winner? All factors considered in this review, I say it’s a tie. If I had to make a firm decision between the two, I’d go with Almond Joy Pieces, only because of the almond nut pieces. If it didn’t have that, the coconut flakes weren’t enough on its own terms to carry it to the winners’ circle, and hands-down (and not melted in my hands) the M&M’s, with its slightly larger size and much better-tasting chocolate and consistent, yet subtle (albeit more artificial) coconut accent would walk away with the trophy.