Big Island Grinds

in Aiea, Oahu

Well, It seems like I’m posting more places in Oahu than in Hilo recently. During the holidays, I visit Oahu more since a lot of my family is there. So I’m sorry that I’ve been slacking with the Big Island places!

According to Pho Viet’s sign, they claim have the “best soup in town”. A strong statement considering the amount of Pho places on Oahu, although I’m not sure how many there are in Aiea.

The restaurant is a very small, but inviting place. There was only one other family there at the time we went (which was quite late).

We started with the spring rolls (I forgot the prices, but it was ~$5).

Along with the spring rolls came a nice vinegary sauce, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, mint and some thin rice noodles. I guess you eat it like this?

Eating these were a real pleasure. The spring rolls were very light and crisp with a delicate flavor. There was not much meat filling, but it was still tasty. When eaten with everything else, it was great because of the contrast of textures and flavors.

I also ordered a large Beef & Meatball Pho (~$6). There was also a small for about $5.

I should admit now that I’m not a Pho expert (I’ve even been misprounouncing it for some time!), so it is quite hard to gauge what a good pho should taste like. With that said, I can tell you that I did enjoy this pho. Everything tasted fresh. The soup was very flavorful and had a distinct anise flavor… stronger than what I had at 1 Plus 1 Cafe or Hilo Rice Noodle Shop back in Hilo, but I liked it. The beef was served nice and rare, and the meatballs were very tender and had a good flavor. The garnishes were given very generously and the basil was very fresh.

Later, I went condiment hunting and found this:

Not sure what it is, but I think I put too much in mine. Very spicy and garlicky! Good, though.

Overall, this place was very good. The service was also friendly and attentive.

Pho Viet
99-163 Moanalua Rd Aiea
Aiea Hawaii 96701
Ph: (808) 486-7688

in Waikiki

My Mom wanted to treat Bev and her family out for a nice dinner. She suggested to go to House Without A Key at the Halekulani Hotel, saying that it was a great place to go to during sunset, with live music and hula right next to the beach.

Halekulani is a beautiful hotel. While walking through the hotel, I noticed some beautiful flower arrangements and lush green grass everywhere… it reminded me of Hilo since they had a lot of anthuriums.

Here’s one of their arrangements (huge flowers!) and the entrance to House Without A Key.

We were asked if we were here for cocktails or dinner, then led to our seats. It was a beautiful location.

Beneath a huge kiawe tree, musicians were just setting up to play. Directly behind them was Waikiki beach. There were a lot of people already enjoying their drinks and food. It was very pretty.

One thing I noticed is that the vibe here is very easy-going. The waiters gave an impression that we were welcome to stay here all night long to just “chill”, yet still, they were very attentive.

I resisted ordering an alcoholic beverage since Bev’s parents or my Mom don’t drink, so I got their signature Halekulani Iced Tea.

This iced tea looked great and also tasted great too. They used a piece of cane as a swizzle stick. Pretty cool, huh?

Bread and lavosh was brought to our table.

The bread was yummy! Crusty and soft in the middle. The lavosh was also excellent.

Here’s the menu:

The selection here was very limited, but sometimes that’s good. There were seafood appetizers, salads, and familiar American-type dishes. The prices were also very reasonable considering the view and free entertainment.

I ended up ordering the Spaghetti with Meat Sauce ($13.50) since I felt like eating spaghetti.

I was skeptical about ordering this since it seemed odd having just spaghetti in this beautiful setting by the beach, but it was actually pretty good. The sauce was fresh and homemade tasting, and the meat was very flavorful. The garlic bread was very crusty and slightly chewy (good), with a great buttery/garlic flavor. The only bad thing about this dish were the noodles, which were a little overcooked.

Bev ordered the Fresh Island Catch of the Day ($16.50), which was Salmon. So, umm, where do they catch Salmon in Hawaii?

I should’ve ordered this. The salmon tasted so good! The inside was moist, and the outside had a great flavorful crust. There was a creamy dill sauce over it too which complimented the salmon perfectly. The vegetables tasted super fresh and were all cooked just right. One of the best pieces of salmon I had in recent memory.

We were all too full for dessert, so some of us just ordered coffee.

Coffee was just ok, but it was served in a nice pot.

We all stayed until near closing time, enjoying the music from a guitar, steel guitar, and ukulele. There was also a lovely hula dancer.

I would highly recommend this place to anyone who wants to have a leisurely dinner or cocktails with a beautiful view and entertainment.

Hey, check out this Lamborghini parked right outside of the hotel!

House Without A Key
2199 Kalia Rd (At the ocean end of Lewers St, Mid-Waikiki/Makai)
Phone: 800-367-2343
Web Site

in Aiea, Oahu

I used to come here more often in the past, but have stopped going for a while… until I sampled a bite of their loco moco, I had to come back for further investigation!

Koa Pancake House has 3 locations I know of (Aiea, Waipahu and Kaneohe). They look like they are doing great since they are constantly busy, especially during breakfast. We went to the Aiea location which is right next to McDonalds.

It was about 11am and the place was packed with people eating mostly breakfast items. Lots of pancakes, waffles and eggs… I also saw lots of burgers too. The inside has a very warm koa theme with koa walls and decorations, giving the restaurant a nice mellow ambiance.

I had to order the Fried Rice Loco Moco ($5.95).

A generous portion of fried rice with ham and crisp green onions topped with a tender grilled burger, tasty thick brown gravy, and two eggs. This loco moco tasted great, but there was something different about it. The problem was that it didn’t really taste like an authentic loco moco. It might’ve been the gravy: thicker than usual, tasting more like a salisbury steak type of gravy. Good stuff, but I wish it were less thick so that it would mix better with the rice. On the plus side, they did everything else great: the fried rice was very delicious , the burger was very tasty – slightly charred, and the eggs were nicely cooked too.

Bev ordered a “Lite Bite” which included 2 pancakes, 2 link sausages, and 1 egg ($3.75). Really good deal!

The pancakes tasted good and were very light and soft… but the inside was a bit too soft to me and Bev (probably a little undercooked?). Still, it tasted good. I also wished that the outside of the pancakes were a bit crispier too, but they weren’t. The link sausages were good and crisp (tasted like Farmer John’s). Good deal for $3.75.

Koa Pancake House has good food for a great price, although not the best you can get. Service was very friendly and everybody had smiles on their faces, including the customers, who seemed all very friendly. I would probably come back again for some breakfast or try some of their lunch items.

99-115 Aiea Heights Drive #256
Aiea, Hawaii 96701
488-8805, 488-8816

Arrived late last night and resisted the urge to go straight to Curry House. Can you believe it? We went to Bravo’s Italian restaurant instead, which turned out great. I’ll get a review up when I get back to Hilo.

Now it’s morning, and I’m hoping to go to my old time favorite: Rocky’s in Waipahu. I grew up on their pancakes and fried rice ommelettes when I was little!

Also, I just had a sample of my brother-in-law’s fried rice loco moco from Koa Pancake House’s, and I must say, it was so delicious. Watch out Hilo! The gravy was dark and thick (there was even a spare bay leaf in there!), the burger homemade and tender, and the fried rice was good too. I hope to do a loco moco review there before I leave…

So much food so little time! Give me some recommendations…

Have you ever noticed that the restaurants with the strangest names have the best food?

1 Plus 1 Cafe is a fairly new Chinese/Vietnamese style restaurant located in the Waiakea Center Pavilion next to Walmart. The Waiakea Center Pavilion also holds a food court and Hilo Bay Cafe.

The inside is very nice and clean, and there is a large playful fish in a tank to greet you. It was about 11:30am, and there were about 5-6 other parties enjoying their food.

Most of the time I come here I order the Roast Pork Mein since they make some of the best roast pork I’ve ever had, and their broth and noodles are equally excellent. The roast duck is also so good here, so I ordered the Roast Pork & Roast Duck Mein ($7.95), the best of both worlds!

The roasted meats come in the soup yet the skin on both the duck and pork are still very crisp and crunchy. The meat and fatty portions of the roast pork are are so tender and full of flavor. The roast duck’s skin has a beautiful light crisp to it and is flavorful with very tasty tender meat. The meats help to flavor the well-balanced broth, which is great on a rainy day. The noodles are thin and have an “al dente” texture to them, which I enjoy. There are also some vegetables floating around, more at the bottom below the noodles. The portion is nice and big and it fills me up every time.

For dessert, Hilo Homemade Ice Cream is served here. You can choose from Green Tea, Chocolate, or Vanilla.

Hilo Homemade Ice Cream really deserves its own post, and I will post about them next time I visit their original location! I just couldn’t help ordering a Green Tea ice cream for dessert, though.

Unlike many other green tea ice creams, the green tea flavor in this one is very intense and like higher quality ice creams, much creamier. It was a perfect ending to a great meal.

1 Plus 1 Cafe
315 Makaala Street Suite 110
Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 961-6288