Big Island Grinds

I’ve posted before about Sputnik’s wonderfully soft butter rolls and delicious buttermilk rolls, but never actually went inside until recently. They are also famous for their special burgers. Looks like a research job for Big Island Grinds!

The menu was written on a dry erase board and had a small selection of plate lunches along with “Sputnik Burgers”. There were a lot of people inside, but mostly waiting for their orders, so I didn’t have to wait long to order.

The sputnik burger selection was Teri Beef, Turkey Ham, and Tuna. We chose a Teri Beef and Turkey Ham. We also ordered a chili bowl just in case the burgers weren’t enough to fill us up.

Pretty interesting burgers huh? It looks sort of like a baked manapua, but it feels much softer and the filling is spread out more evenly rather than it being all in the center. What a clever idea! It also tasted great. I think the bread made it happen — it was so soft and had a sweet “fresh baked” taste, maybe a little like sweet bread. The fillings also complimented the bread. The teri burger had a filling of finely ground hamburger with a sweet and tangy flavor. The turkey ham one had a nice strong salty ham flavor, finely chopped. Very easy to eat, but not enough! I would need 2 or 3 of these to make a meal. Bev did fine with just one though.

I must also note that these burgers also make wonderful omiyage (gifts). You can purchase them in bulk chilled to bring on the plane.

We also shared a chili bowl. It was pretty bad actually. Way too sweet — it tasted like sweet relish mixed with meat and beans. It also had way too much rice and just a thin layer of chili. I hate it when places make the chili to rice ratio like 1 part chili 10 parts rice.

While waiting for our order, most people were ordering their plate lunches. They seemed pretty popular. I would come back again to try their plate lunches and definitely come back for more Sputnik Burgers and Butter Rolls! Be warned though, the butter rolls are only available on Friday.

Sputniks
811 Laukapu St. B-10
Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 961-2066

We stayed over for a night in Kona for the long Labor Day weekend, and it was so nice! The beach, sunsets, and all the people… it reminds me of Waikiki a little bit, but less crowded.

There were also canoe races at Kailua Bay, which my friend told me is the biggest canoe race in the world. Even Japan was there representing with their flag hanging from the back of their canoe!

We wanted to watch the race and we were hungry too, so we chose to have burgers and beer at Splasher’s Grill. They had a perfect view of the race. The burgers also looked very good and juicy.

We ordered two Big Splash Burgers and I had a Fire Rock Pale Ale (so yummy!).

The Big Splash Burger has a thick 1/2lb beef patty, sesame seed bun, 2 slices of cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickle, and a choice of fries, onion rings or green salad. Our neighbor had onion rings, and they were HUGE — would like to try those next time. This burger was so good! The patty was especially very juicy and flavorful. The toppings were all fresh, and the cheese was a nice rich cheddar. The bun was also nice and toasty. Bev loved the fries — they “stayed crispy from start to finish”.

Splasher’s Grill was a great choice if you want a good burger and fries, plus the view can’t be beat!

Check out what else we saw in Kona!

Reid, I didn’t know you had your own restaurant!!

I really wanted to go here, but never had the chance to.

On the way back to Hilo in Waimea, someone noticed me from my blog. I never expected that to happen! Whoever that was, I’m sorry I wasn’t able to talk more… my hands were full (of rice and poke from Foodland) and we were just about to leave, but it was nice meeting you… have you left a comment here before? Thanks for saying hi!

And lastly, we don’t get these in Hilo…

Splashers Grill
75 Alii Dr
Kailua Kona, HI 96740
(808) 329-9694