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Post by whitecrane on May 15, 2024 16:47:03 GMT -5
I'm creating this thread as a place we can all share our experiences with Hawaiian cafes, street, and snack food finds on the island of Oahu. I think everyone who goes to Aulani spends some time off property enjoying the local cuisines offered. Especially those close to Aulani.
Island Vintage - This is a double whammy. Island Vintage Coffee is a very popular, and high quality coffee shop. There was a location across the street from Aulani, but now it is a Starbucks. This location just opened in Kapolei Commons Shopping Center (the nearest Target to Aulani). Not only do they serve excellent coffee, but they also serve Island Vintage Shave Ice. The same menu as the one outside Royal Hawaiian Center on the Waikiki strip. This is by far our favorite Shave Ice. Fresh fruit toppings, and all served on top of a scoop of macnut ice cream, or soft serve of your choice. Highly recommend this as a cafe or to-go spot. For coffee or for desert. Both are fantastic and a nice alternative to Sbux.
Island Glazed - If you're willing to drive a distance for Hawaiian staples like Leonard's Malasadas or Liliha Bakery this place is fair game for you. These are hands down the best donuts I've ever had. Light and fluffy and with island inspired tropical flavors. We always bring a dozen back to the resort. This time, we got some nods from the concierge that we found, "the good donut spot."
Well, that's all I have for today. I hope we can make this a thing where we share our unique finds on Oahu with one another in one comprehensive thread. I will try to make an effort to pop back in more often as we plan to go one more stays at Aulani in the future.
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billo
One Bedroom
Posts: 203
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Post by billo on May 16, 2024 8:16:46 GMT -5
It's not Hawaiian themed, but we went to Hot Pot Heaven in Kapolei and enjoyed it very much. Nothing fancy, just a little place in a strip center.
When driving into the Kapolei/Aulani area, we passed a bunch of food trucks we could see on the north side of the highway, stopped and got some good food. No clue of the names of the trucks.
We tried to go to Helena's Hawaiian Food, one of those James Beard type restaurants but all Hawaiian food. They didn't take reservations and there were about 150 cars filling every crevice within 500 feet of the place so we left. I was bummed.
Not sure we'll go again, but any recommendations are nice just in case.
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Post by johnb on May 16, 2024 9:27:07 GMT -5
We'll be at Aulani two weeks from today. Here are our food/dining plans. I'll update with thoughts/comments after our return. Alicia's Market AliciasLeonard's (the stand in Waipahu) Mountain Magic Shave Ice (near the Leonard's stand) Monkeypod Kitchen Maguro Brothers in the Maunakea Market MaguroRoy's Ko Olina KCC Farmers Market KCCThe Pig and the Lady Pig and LadyMina's Fish House Mud Hen Water |
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Post by johnb on May 23, 2024 16:43:07 GMT -5
Cross Maguro Bros. off the list. They're going to be closed during our trip.  We're looking for another Chinatown lunch option. |
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Post by johnb on Jun 9, 2024 14:52:01 GMT -5
We returned from our San Diego/Aulani/Phoenix trip yesterday. I'm going to cover where we ate in pieces...
San Diego:
Lunch--Oscar's Mexican Seafood. Ten minute Uber from our hotel (Manchester Grand Hyatt). Quick, casual, excellent Mexican seafood in a small strip of businesses. Their ceviche is excellent.
Dinner--Herb and Wood. We loved this place. Indoor/outdoor seating. Excellent service. Excellent food. Excellent cocktails. It's near the airport, so it's noisy when planes fly overhead.
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Post by johnb on Jun 9, 2024 17:39:28 GMT -5
Oahu food/dining: Thursday--flight was delayed so we missed our lunch plans (Alicia's Market); when we stopped at Foodland for water/drinks/snacks we grabbed some poke. It's very good and they have a nice variety. Dinner--Monkeypod Kitchen--it's a five minute walk (mostly downhill to the restaurant and uphill back to Aulani) from the Aulani lobby to Monkeypod Kitchen. The constant flow of people from Aulani to the shops across the street was noticeable daily (to Monkeypod and the ABC store). The restaurant is very casual, and has a little bit of everything--good apps, pizza, burgers, sandwiches, cocktails, etc. During happy hour they have live music. Service was friendly, prompt and professional. I especially liked the potstickers and kalua pork pizza. Menu: monkeypodkitchen.com/menus/Ko-Olina-Menu-Dinner.pdf |
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Post by johnb on Jun 10, 2024 12:52:25 GMT -5
Leonard's (the stand in Waipahu)--we stopped here on the drive from HNL to Aulani. Malasadas are pretty tasty. They had three filled choices (custard, chocolate and coconut) and three not filled (sugar, sweet/sour sugar and cinnamon sugar). My favorite was the haupia (coconut) filled. Friday lunch--Fook Lam in Chinatown for dim sum. Classic cart service dim sum. The waitstaff were unexpectedly aggressive in their service; rather than ask if you'd like something, they put the items on your table and if you tell them "no thanks" they take it back. It was fine once we caught on. The dim sum was great. The restaurant entrance faces River St., although their address is 100 Beretania St, so it took a few minutes to find the place. Parking in the Chinatown Cultural Ctr. garage was convenient. Friday dinner--Roy's Ko Olina--Roy's has been around for years. We ate at one of his places on Maui in 1995 on our honeymoon and loved it. They franchised years ago and from what I heard, the quality and service declined. It is my understanding that the Ko Olina location is owned by the original owners and is not a franchise location. We sat outside on the patio, overlooking the 18th green of the Ko Olina golf course. It was fun watching the golfers struggle  . I saw one good shot out of 8-10 foursomes. The food and service were great, just like we remembered from our trip in 1995. |
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Post by a1000monkeys on Jun 12, 2024 22:07:31 GMT -5
Roy’s at KoOlina has been consistently good for us. We have been at least a dozen times and I think only one of those times was just ok. All other times have been excellent.
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Post by johnb on Jun 15, 2024 11:51:11 GMT -5
One location I highly recommend is the collection of food trucks/stands in the Waikele shopping center parking lot. It's easy on/off of H1 and on the way to/from Aulani.
Leonard's Malasadas, Mountain Magic Shave Ice, Thai food, local Hawaiian food, Philippine food and bubble tea all in one spot.
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Post by johnb on Jun 15, 2024 12:04:05 GMT -5
Saturday lunch--another sampling of the poke from Foodland--ahi, octopus and salmon. The K Pop (Korean seasonings) salmon was our favorite.
Saturday dinner--The Pig and the Lady in Chinatown. This is one of the coolest restaurants we've been to anywhere (only topped by another place we ate at in Honolulu). There's a reason that this place make a lot of "must eat in Honolulu" lists. Go with an open mind. Try something that is unfamiliar. The banh xeo (which I notice on the current menu is a little different than what we had) was a really unique (to us) and a tasty app. The wings are excellent. Service, food, drinks, all excellent. We parked in the Marin Tower parking garage, which is extremely tight (much easier to park a small car than the rental SUV we had) but also very convenient to the restaurant. The restaurant also does takeout and lunch, and they have a stand at the KCC Farmers Market on Saturdays.
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Post by brp on Jun 15, 2024 12:44:47 GMT -5
Saturday lunch--another sampling of the poke from Foodland--ahi, octopus and salmon. The K Pop (Korean seasonings) salmon was our favorite. I've never been a fan of raw octopus or squid. Too much like chewing on pencil erasers. Cooked, they're great. Just not so much raw.
Cheers.
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Post by johnb on Jun 15, 2024 13:04:22 GMT -5
Saturday lunch--another sampling of the poke from Foodland--ahi, octopus and salmon. The K Pop (Korean seasonings) salmon was our favorite. I've never been a fan of raw octopus or squid. Too much like chewing on pencil erasers. Cooked, they're great. Just not so much raw.
Cheers.
It was cooked and sliced thinly, seasoned with soy, sesame, green onion and seaweed. |
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Post by brp on Jun 15, 2024 13:08:56 GMT -5
I've never been a fan of raw octopus or squid. Too much like chewing on pencil erasers. Cooked, they're great. Just not so much raw.
Cheers.
It was cooked and sliced thinly, seasoned with soy, sesame, green onion and seaweed. Ok, that sounds delicious!
Cheers.
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. I saw one good shot out of 8-10 foursomes. The food and service were great, just like we remembered from our trip in 1995.
