Are you foodie? Well, I’m not sure if I’m a foodie, but I love food. Great tasting food. I love “unhealthy food” as well. I put that in quotes because in this day in age, it seems that every diet out there alienates some type of food or macro-nutrient or considers is “unhealthy.” I do discriminate against certain foods though. I hate crappy tasting food. I also have a prejudice against restaurants that charge you an arm, a leg, and your next of kin, and then serve you a pea-sized meal. Screw them.
I have a long list of places I love to eat. Here’s Part One. I’m not sure how many parts there will be, but this is a start.
HOME BAR – SPORTS BAR AND GREAT FOOD!
This is probably one of my favorite places to eat on Oahu. I hang out here with my friends, with my family. I’m a regular. The food here is awesome, it’s fairly priced, and the portions are large. I love to order the Kalbi, Negi Toro Poke, Kim Chee Steak, and Kim Chee Fried Rice. Honestly, everything is great on the menu. This is a sports bar that is far from fancy. The seats have holes in them that are duck taped. The crowd is loud. The beer on tap is not anything fancy. But the food is great, the atmosphere is laid back. Service is fast. It’ll get busy on sports nights, but for the most part, it’s pretty easy to get a table.
Parking is a bit challenging. You’ll most likely have to valet or find parking in a cheap parking pay lot right next door. Do not park at at the shopping malls nearby. You’ll most likely get towed.
Click here to go to their Yelp link.
YAKNIKU DON-DAY – BEST KOREAN FOOD
I love Korean Food. It taste great, it’s healthy for you, it’s fun to make. This is my one of my favorite places in the world to eat (not joking) and to take my wedding couples out to dinner (when they want to hang out with me!) I usually order the Pork Belly, Kalbi, and Seafood Pancake. Then I take a slice of seafood pancake, a small scoop of rice and two pieces of pork belly that’s dipped in pepper/salt sesame seed oil (pictured right), and wrap it with a piece of lettuce. And then I stuff it in my face and ponder how anyone can create something so awesome.
Yakiniku is a Japanese word that refers to the style of eating small pieces of meat over a flame. In other words, it’s bbq for people with tiny hands. Haha. The Koreans adopted this style of eating and took it a bit farther than the Japanese.
I usually park in the Wal-Mart at Ala Moana and walk across the street.
I wrote a review about this place that you can find by clicking on this link.
TAMURAS FINE WINE AND LIQUORS – BEST WINE AND POKE!
Lets talk about about Poke. Poke consist of a raw slices of seafood, mixed with spices, and served chilled. I believe the only poke that is cooked is Taco Poke, which is Octopus. Not many people eat octopus raw (at least I don’t). At least I don’t think they do. The Poke here is number one. They also have a great selection of wine from what I’ve heard. I don’t drink wine, but I’ve heard their selection is also number one.
I love the Limo Kohu Poke here. That though, isn’t for everyone. Like any market that sells poke, they’ll let you sample a piece before you buy it. Sample what you love, buy a 1/2 to 1 pound, and sit with your wife on the beach during sunset while chowing down on this. Great poke makes sunsets better. It also makes football a lot more enjoyable.
By the way, you can’t have open alcohol on the beach. But you only get caught if you’re drinking on the beaches of Waikiki. Other beaches, they cops really don’t enforce this law. After all, what do surfers do after coming back on land? They’re cracking open a beer!
Click here to for their Yelp Link.
YOUNG’S FISH MARKET – BEST HAWAIIAN FOOD
Even though my name is Steven Young, I absolutely no affiliation with this place. I wish I did though because this place can get rather packed, and I know they make a lot of money. Haha! This is a favorite among locals and I don’t see many tourist venturing this far from Waikiki for their food. The Hawaiian Food here is great. The Lau Lau is huge! Lau Lau is your carb friendly meal that consist of streamed taro leaves, with butter fish, and pork shoulder. It’s great. They have some other great things here to eat as well. Their Char Sui ribs are filling. Everything here taste great. Don’t expect anything fancy here. It’s a big hole in the wall restaurant. I would try to come here, maybe a bit before or after lunch.