Black Dog Roasting on an Open Fire

Christmas is a holiday celebrated around the world.  So when you think of Christmas food, the first food that comes to mind probably isn't Filipino food.  But listening to the radio this past week, they've been playing Frank DeLima's "Filipino Christmas" pretty frequently, and somehow it gave me a craving.   I think it's that one line (to the tune of Mel Torme's Christmas Song), "Black dog roasting on an open fire.   Bagaong boiling on the stove."  Somehow Frank's resonating tenor, although menat to be humorous, captures the same warm mesmerizing quality that Mel Torme's did, and invokes the same desire for festive food.  Not that I really had a craving for black dog (something I've never actually tasted), but for Filipino food in general.

Filipino food has a bad stigma attached to it, I think.   It gets a bad rap, and people are afraid to try it because of dishes like black dog, and balut (or unhatched baby duck eggs).  While they certainly exist in the cuisine, and there really isn't anything wrong with either of those dishes (except that they defy the Western notions of what should and should not be eaten), they are not all encompassing of the entire cuisine.   But, because it lacks the popularity, Filipino food just doesn't have the prominence that Japanese or Chinese food has, even here in Hawaii.  However, it certainly is readily available if you want to go get some.

Ironically, it isn't even in Hawaii that I first developed a liking for Filipino food.   It was when I was doing work for the Department of Education in Guarm.  Being very far from home, my traveller's instinct kicked in and I really wanted to explore, especially the food scene.   For lunch, my contacts there took me to a popular Filipino fast food chain called, Jollibee.   While basically a burger joint, their flavors are definitely Filipino, and they offered Filipino favorites like palabok and Filipino style spaghetti (which is disarmingly sweet).  This naturally piqued my curiosity, and for dinner one night, I went searching for more traditional Filipino dishes, something I found at one of the little vendors at the night market in the Chamorro Village.  With Guam being only an hour flight away from the Philippines, it should be no real surprise that I found good Filipino food there.   But I figured with our huge Filipino population here, we must have similar food here.   So when I returned I promptly made a visit to the defacto headquarters for Filipino food here, Golden Coin Bakeshop and Restaurant.

Golden Coin is pretty much the definitive Filipino plate lunch in Hawaii.  What Patti's Chinese Kitchen was to Chinese food, Golden Coin is to Filipino food.   A beloved and treasured, local favorite.  Even the ordering concept is the same, with a choice of starch and 2 to 3 choices from long rows of delicious, and foreign looking foods.   However, instead of chow fun, you get pancit as your starch.   Instead of choosing beef broccoli or lemon chicken, you can choose pinakbet or dinuguan.  In fact, many of the Filipino dishes have Chinese roots.  But they all have a very distinctly Filipino flavor.

Palabok from Golden Coin

Driving past Golden Coin on King St. in Kalihi, they had a big banner advertising their palabok.   As this was one of the featured dishes at Jollibee as well, it was one of my first jumping off points for Filipino cuisine.  Unfortunately, while comfort food for the Filipinos, the palabok really didn't excite me.   It is basically a bed of very thin translucent rice noodles (much thinner than our local chicken long rice).  On top of that they drown the plate in this thick, gloppy, corn-starch laden gravy, which to me really didn't have that much flavor.  On top of that are the condiments of boiled eggs, shrimps, minced pork rinds, and some minced green onion.    All in all, it's not a bad dish.  But was pretty tame, and not at all threatening like black dog.  I can easily see how it would be great comfort food for people who grew up with it.  For myself, not having grown up with it, I found it an interesting hodge podge of toppings, but not that interesting a dish.  The gloppy, messy gravy just wasn't flavorful enough for me.

Fried Bangus from Golden Coin

The one dish that really impressed me the most in Guam, was their fried fish.   On my plate, I was basically served a whole fried fish.   When done right, all of the fins and tail have an almost potato chip like crunch to them.   So the next thing I tried at Golden Coin was their fried bangus (or milk fish).   Bangus is pretty much he national fish of the Philippines.  It is on practically every menu.   The bangus at Golden Coin was tasty.   However, it must've been a different fish from the one I had in Guam.   It wasn't fried nearly as crispy.   In fact, the skin on the fish, usually one of the best parts, was a little touch and scaly.   But the meat was very nice and white, and the bones were easy to pick out.  

Pork Adobo, Lechon, & Pancit Bihon Plate from Golden Coin

What Golden Coin does really well, is their 2-choice or 3-choice plates (the same as Patti's or Panda).  Instead of getting a chow mein, I went straight for a pancit bihon.   Their pancit also utilizes translucent rice noodles, like the palabok.   It's somewhat similar to Singapore noodles.   The best pancit I ever had, was of course, homemade by a Filipino lady who used to give us dance lessons.  Her pancit was a completely addictive, chewy texture, almost similar to pad thai.   But then, no fast food pancit could compare to her homemade goodness.  And the pancit at Golden Coin was pretty on par with any other fast food noodle.   Besides the pancit, I decided to try the quintessential Filipino dish, pork adobo.   Their adobo was, not unlike beef stew from L&L in terms of texture.  It's soft, but not melt in your mouth kind of soft.   The gravy that it sits in is almost the same consistency as local style as well.  However, instead of a tomato and carrot flavor, there's a vinegar and pepper flavor.   The adobo is pretty much the classic version of adobo in my mind.   It's the same style of adobo that every other plate lunch place that offers it, tries to achieve.   But no one captures the tenderness of beef, or the classic vinegar taste, as well as Golden Coin.

Besides the pork adobo, I really wanted to try the lechon.   I first saw lechon when watching Anthony Bourdain's adventures in the Philippines.  The whole roasted pig slowly turning on the bamboo spit, getting glazed and golden brown, with skin as crispy and addictive as candy, made me literally drool.   Mainly though, I wanted to see how it compared to Chinese siu yuk (roast pork).   Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed.  Other than a different dipping sauce, the flavors of the lechon were essentially the same as any siu yuk you would find at a Chinese fast food place.   Though they may use different herbs and seasonings, they weren't really pronounced enough to make the lechon taste different from siu yuk.   Worse, the lechon suffered from the same flaws as all Chinese fast food places.   The fat was congealed and hard, and all around unappetizing.  When you cut off the hunks of fat, the meat you're left with is decent, but a little dry and not that tender.   The skin was good though.  Always the best part really.

Roast Pork from Duck Lee

Maybe I'm just culturally biased, but I think I like Chinese siu yuk better.   Or it may be that having frequented more Chinese restaurants than Filipino ones, I just know who offers the best siu yuk and haven't yet found the equivalent lechon.   Hands down the best roast pork on the island, is the suckling pig served at dim sum at Royal Garden.   But then, that's yuu jyuu, not siu yuk, so it's a different dish.   My favorite Chinese restaurant to get just a plate of siu yuk over rice, is still Hung Won.  But then, comparing a little family restaurant to fast food is not exactly comparing apples to apples.   The best take out, Chinese fast food, siu yuk can be found at Duck Lee in the Market City Shopping Center.  If you can get it while it's still fresh and hot, it's just delicious.   The meat is nice and soft, and the skin is just perfectly crunchy.

Roast Duck from Duck Lee

Speaking of Duck Lee, the best thing that they do is their roast duck.  It's probably one of the best Chinese fast food dishes around.   Each piece is just glistening with fat, juice, and the light sauce.  The duck isn't just all bones.  It's meaty and succulent.  The skin, is not crispy, but just melts in your mouth, the same way that the skin on good shoyu chicken does.   Best of all is the sauce they glaze the duck in.  It's just the perfect blend of salty, sweet, and plum and star anise flavors.  It doesn't overpower the duck, but really brings out the duck flavor.

It's kind of ironic that this Portuguese man is able to emulate the sounds of the Filipino language so well, and was able to set off such a quest.  Then again, maybe it isn't that ironic, considering how well Frank knows Hawaii, and all of its people.  In today's ridiculously oversensitive environment of political correctness, I'm sometimes surprised that Frank's ethnic humor can still survive.   I have never been a fan of the political correctness movement.   To me, instead of stimulating respect and tolerance for other cultures as it should, it fosters an environment where it is too easy to offend other people.  People take themselves way too seriously.  In Hawaii, we've learned that being able to laugh at ourselves is the key to cultural harmony (something that a few shows, like Avenue Q, have recognized).  It's not meant to offend, it's meant to bond.  And Frank's observations are funny because they're really accurate.  Local Chinese really are thrifty to the point of excess.  Local Japanese really are like how Frank personified as Glenn Miyashiro.   The only ones who get bent out of shape listening to Frank, are the newcomers to the islands.  But they too quickly learn that, humor and food are the keys to the racial harmony that we pride ourselves so much on.

The Unsung Local Favorite

Welcome to my 75th blog entry!   For my 75th, I wanted to visit someplace really special, like John Dominis.  However, after a considerable amount of mulling, I decided to go a different route.   With the hustle and bustle of the holidays, going someplace really fancy like John Dominis would be both inconvenient and budget breaking.   Additionally, since I already did that for my 50th blog entry, I thought I would try a different approach.   I was thinking about the most iconic of Hawaii foods, the kind of food that local people really miss and crave when they're on the mainland.  The one that kept popping into my head, seemed so boring to talk about, and yet it really is conic of Hawaii.   Perhaps the most local local place I could think of.   So I finally settled on visiting Zippy's.

It really seems anti-climactic doesn't it?   I mean, it's Zippy's.   I might as well be blogging about how great McDonald's is.   Everyone goes there.   It's not like I'm discovering a new little secret hole in the wall or lunchwagon and letting everyone in on it.   It's Zippy's.   It's the place we all go to, when it's late, we're tired, we don't want to cook, we don't want to go anywhere fancy, we don't want to think about where we're going, it's just the default.  But that mentality, is actually exactly why I should be blogging about Zippy's.  When you're in a good relationship, like my wife and I, probably easiest trap you can fall into, and precisely the thing you don't want to do, is to start taking the other person for granted.   My wife does the laundry, does the dishes, gets the kids ready in the morning and takes them to school, cleans up the house, does the finances, and a myriad of other things to keep us going.  What do I do?  Cook dinner and take out the trash.  Somehow she winds up doing the lion's share.   The very least I can do, is make her feel appreciated and loved.  You never realize how good you've got it, until it's gone.    The same goes for Zippy's.   It's pretty much the king of local food, all of our very favorite local foods, all in one place, and it's always delicious.   But we always dismiss it as, eh "we're just going to Zippy's".   Like it's no place special.   But when you're away on the mainland, you are accutely aware of just how special Zippy's is.

Zippy's has just always been there.    I remember all the way back, when their logo was still those 9 rounded orange squares.  Zippy's is the place you run to, to grab one last bite of local food before jumping on an airplane.   Or better yet, since they don't serve food on the airplanes anymore, you take a Zip Pack with you and eat it on the plane and make everyone jealous.    Zippy's is the very first place you want to eat, the moment you've gotten off the plane, weary from jet lag and a 5 hour flight, and you just want something to make you feel better, and right at home.   Zippys is the place you go late at night after seeing a late movie and no place else is open.   Zippy's is the place you go to after a big party, where they served you very fancy food, but not a lot of it and you're still hungry, even if you're still in your tuxedoes and fancy dresses (something my wife did after Sophomore Banquet).  Zippy's is where you go when it's the wee hours of the morning and the sun hasn't even come up yet, but you need a good breakfast before going to work early.  Zippy's chili tickets (and huli huli chicken) are what just about every one of us used to have to sell as school kids for fundraisers.  Naples are one of the best things to bring a box of when going to visit a client.  From our most celebrated nights (like Thanksgiving or prom night), to our most common, everyday, tired after work, just need something to eat nights, Zippy's has always been there.   So if you're seriously going to write a blog about local food, you just can't ignore Zippy's.   It's about as local as you can get.

But besides being the uber local favorite, Zippy's really has really great food.   Okay it's fast food, but it's so much better than any other fast food you'd find on the mainland.  But Zippy's also teamed up with the famous Dr. Terry Shintani, to offer a local yet healthy diet menu.   Their food is suprisingly high quality.   I for one am always surprised at just how high quality their fish is.  It's actually really fresh mahi mahi and ahi that they serve, much better than you'd find at say a Long John Silver's.  They have such a variety too.  Besides they're the only restaurant I know of that has the regular fast food take out windows, and around the corner you've got the sit down restaurant with a totally different menu.  It's like they're 2 different restaurants stuck together at the hip.   Add on Napoleon's Bakery at just about every location, and it's like you're running a 3 legged race.   At some locations, they've even got an Japanese side, like an okazu-ya or sushi bar, and all the pieces come together like Voltron.  But the best part is how diverse Zippy's is.   You've got something from just about every culture that has touched these shores, from saimin, to bentos, to Portuguese bean soup, to oxtail soup, to Korean chicken, and yet everything they make is in perfect harmony with each other, like they're meant to go together.  All of these different cultures, these different foods, are now just our local foods, and all done just right.   So let's look at a few of my favorites.

Portuguese Sausage Omelette Sandwich from Zippy's

It's 4:30 AM, and I've got a 5:30 AM flight to Kahului to work for a day.  I need something yummy and warm to get me going, cause I'm really dang tired.  The sun hasn't even risen yet.   Few places are going to be open.  But Zippy's of course is.  So I grab one of my favorite breakfasts in the world, the Portuguese sausage omelette sandwich.  This thing is totally Portuguese.  Not only is the omlette filled with small chunks of Portuguese sausage (linguica), but they've even put it on a soft sweetbread (pao doce) roll, with some nice melted cheese.   There is nothing at all that's crunchy on this sandwich.  It's like the opposite of crunchy.  Every bite is a completely soft, warm, melty, yumminess that's exactly what I want in my tummy in the morning.  Best of all, it's only like $2 per sandwich.   2 of them are just enough for a light breakfast on the run.

Chili from Zippy's

Of course you gotta love their chili.   Southwestern chili is all about the spices.   It's all about how hot they can make it, what kind of peppers they can put into it.   It's about that earthy, almost burned, chipotle flavor.   Filipino chili on the other hand is sweet.   Unnervingly sweet.   Zippy's chili, is unlike either of those.  It's probably the epitome of mild.   It's just this perfect mild, meaty flavor.  I can't even figure out what seasonings (I shudder to call them spices), they put in it, because it's just so mild.   I doubt that anyone on the mainland would like it, as it's so mild and not what they're used to, and yet everybody on the island loves it.   We all have memories walking door to door as school kids (usually in our parents office buildings), trying to sell tickets of benefit chili.  Besides huli huli chicken or school kine cookies, they're just about the easiest thing to sell, because everyone loves it.   Ever since I was a kid, I've never even liked chili.  I just don't like beans.  I don't like the chalky, powdery texture of beans.  And yet, I love Zippy's chili.  Even the beans are so mild, and creamy in texture, I don't mind them.   That really says something.

Spaghetti & Garlic Bread from Zippy's

My wife on the other hand, prefers Zippy's spaghetti.   It's not that their noodles are freshly, hand made and perfectly el dente.   It's not that they've got a secret blend of herbs or uber fresh tomatoes straight from their garden.  It's not even in the same league as my mom's ultimate spaghetti sauce.  Their spaghetti is just regular old every day meatsauce.  Like their chili, its just all around very mild with a very simple meaty flavor.  And yet, that's what makes it so great.   It's comfort food to da max.   It's the perfect execution of a basic everyday food, that keeps you wanting to come back to it.

Chicken & Chili Plate from Zippy's

Of course, I love Zippy's fried chicken (as does my wife).   In fact, it's just about my favorite fried chicken in the world.   I really like KFC and Popeyes.  Neither of those can compare with Zippy's chicken.  For one thing, it's all thighs.  Which to me is the best piece.  No dry breast pieces.  No skimpy drumsticks.   But the meaty, juicy, thighs with the fantastic skin on them.  The skin is so crunchy, much crunchier than the Colonel's original recipie, and much more flavorful than his extra crunchy.   Yet it's not really very oily either.   It's got that Japanese fried chicken taste to it, that's completely different from the Southern offerings.  So again, I'm not really sure that people on the mainland would like it as much as we do.   But even if it costs 50% more than the Colonel's, I'd rather have a barrel of Zippy's chicken any day.  

Oxtail Soup at Zippy's

In one of my very first blog entries, I've talked about how awesome the oxtail soup is in the sit down side of Zippy's.   But it's worth mentioning again.   Their oxtail soup has some of the tastiest, tenderist, meatiest, ox tails in town.   All of the mushrooms, and the choi sum, and the peanuts, and the ginger, all work in perfect harmony to bring out the wonderful flavor of the soup.   It's just awesome.

Zip Pack from Zippy's

But the thing I love most at Zippy's, the thing that I'm compelled to order every time, is their Zip Pack.  It is perhaps the quintessential local style bento.   Everyone tries to emulate their combination, but they fall short because they don't have Zippy's awesome fried chicken, or their super fresh and crunchy mahi mahi.   It is the bento that sets the gold standard by which all other bentos in Hawaii are compared to.  It's got beef, pork, chicken, and fish all on one plate.   The crunchy takuan and the furikake on the rice are the perfect little touches to top off this great bento.   The fact that I love Zippy's chicken already puts the Zip Pack ahead of the game.  But what's so surprisingly good is always the fish.   Zippy's must have a deal with some really good fisherman, because it always surprises me how high quality the fish is.   From a fast food place, you're expecting the fish to taste a certain way, ie. processed, previously frozen, and not really associated with any real life from the ocean.   But no, Zippy's fish is flaky, moist, and tastes like fresh fish.  Throw in some spam, it's the perfect local combination.  The best of all worlds.  Something that calls to me.  Something that I crave.  Something that I must have.

You gotta give props to Napoleon's Bakery too.  Clients love it when you bring them a big box of Naples, of just about any flavor.  They're so wonderfully flaky and they disappear very quickly at business meetings.  My very favorite dessert at Zippys was always the jello cream cheese squares.   The sweet, crumbly, crust (which reminds me of the top of a french apple pie), works so perfectly with the cream cheese.   The cream cheese is so light and creamy, not at all thick and heavy like a normal cheesecake.  And the red jello at the top just makes the whole combination so beautiful to behold.   These days, I don't get to eat a lot of those, but happily Napoleon's also makes some great sugar fee cakes.   The chocolate is good, but the blueberry is particularly spongy and light, and has a delightful blueberry taste.  

Okay, Zippy's isn't exactly a profound discovery.   But sometimes, we just don't appreciate just how wonderful and local it is.   I just can't imagine a Hawaii without it.

The Purist Plate Lunches

You can't talk about local food without at least mentioning L&L.    Ignoring that elephant in the room, is like talking about American fast food and leaving out McDonald's.   It's just not possible.  L&L has become so prolific that they are starting to represent Hawaiian food to the rest of the country, the way that KFC is like the first gateway into Southern food for many people.   The big question is, are they an accurate representative?

You can't deny the success of L&L.   L&Ls not only dot our entire landscape, but they are spreading like locusts all over the mainland as well.   There are almost 300 L&Ls around the world, and that number is still rapidly growing.   I really can't say anything bad about L&L.   L&L Founder Eddie Flores, is not only one of the 2 most successful and brilliant businessmen I've ever met (the other being Victor Lim who was recongized by McDonald's corporate as one of the top McDonald's executives in the world), but Eddie is also a family friend and long time business associate.   I'm told that Eddie was even one of the first people to come visit me when I was born. We also went on a long tour of China with Johnson Kam, L&L's other founder.  So I really can't dispute how successful they are or how much impact they've had on our community.  However, I will say, that not all L&Ls are created equal.   Some are definitely better, more authentic, more local, and better tasting than others.

Back when we were in high school, L&Ls were far less prolific than they are now, and I used to keep a mental map of all L&L locations so we could quickly find the nearest one.   Hanging around UH?   Well, you can quickly duck into a secret L&L location, hidden in the parking lot behind Magoo's Pizza in Puck's Alley (actually the 2nd L&L ever).   Leaving Ala Moana?  Well turn the corner on Young Street and there was an L&L tucked away in business complex there by Shiseido.  Of course, these days, trying to remember all of the L&L locations is a daunting and pointless task, as they're everywhere you look, even all over the mainland.   Just like McDonald's of Hawaii offering saimin, Portuguese sausage breakfast platters, and the McTeri, at the L&Ls in Texas, you can choose between Hawaiian sides (rice & mac salad) and Texas style sides (like baked beans or corn). 

Back in the old days, each L&L was actually very different.   Many offered very different menu options.   As L&L was the offspring of a Filipino business man and a Chinese business man, some L&Ls offered more Filipino dishes like pork adobo, while other L&Ls offered more Chinese dishes, like lemon chicken or cold ginger chicken.   At some L&Ls the katsu sauce was thicker with a ketchup like consistency and more of a tangy taste (the more original Japanese way), while at others it was as thin as egg yolks with a sweeter taste (the way I actually prefer it).  As L&L expanded. especially to the mainland, they did a lot to standardize and homogenize the franchises.  So the chain is much more consistent now in its offerings.  This actually waters down L&L's street cred a little, as they are seen as trying to appeal to the mainstream populace a little too much.  But even with their mass standardization, they are still my favorite place to get at chicken katsu, and there are still some L&Ls that are slightly better than the others.

My wife used to work near Sand Island, and occasionally I would pick her up and take her to lunch.  When craving a good chicken katsu, we would head over to the L&L in Dillingham Plaza, behind Sizzler, by the Foodland and Pricebusters.   That L&L has all of the signs of a good L&L.   For one thing, it's not in a mall or shopping center.   The patrons are all working class, local people from Kalihi.  It's clean, but not too clean, modern, or new looking (it's got that worn out shoe look).   Best of all, it's a great sign when after placing your order, the girl behind the counter yells to the back in Cantonese "yut goh dai katsu, yut goh sai see-tiu!!".   Those are all the signs of a good plate lunch to come.

Chicken Katsu & Beef Stew Mix from L&L

The 2 dishes that I like best about L&L in general are their chicken katsu and their beef stew.   Let's face it, chicken katsu is pretty hard to screw up.   At worst, they can skimp on the chicken and you get lot of hard batter, or the batter isn't crunchy.    But the chicken katsu at this L&L is always good.  Meaty, lean pieces of chicken, and crunchy batter, and the katsu sauce is the thinner, sweeter one that I really like.   Beef stew on the other hand is easy to get wrong.   If you don't stew it long enough, the big cubes of beef can quite easily be tough and unchewable.   You could also easily get a plate with very few pieces of beef and just a lotta stew. But the one at this L&L, the meat is always quite tender, and you get a lot of beef, potatoes, celery and carrots.   The stew at L&L isn't nearly as good as the classic old Hawaiian style stew you get at Fresh Catch, but they are pretty much the gold standard, the benchmark, for modern local style beef stew, the kind with the thicker, red-orange gravy.  Some places that make this kind of stew, make it with too much tartness from the tomatoes, but at this L&L, it isn't tart at all, in fact the sweetness of the carrots shines through.

Cold Ginger Chicken from L&L

The other great thing about this L&L is that you know it's one of those classic old Chinese L&Ls.  They've still got classic Cantonese dishes like cold ginger chicken (bak cheet gai) on the menu.   In fact, their cold ginger chicken is awesome.  For one thing, it's actually cold.  Just came out of the refrigerator cold in fact.  Which is good because I hate lukewarm ginger chicken.   But unlike coming right out of the refrigerator, the chicken isn't dried out.   It's still plump and moist, and there is a lot of good white meat, not just all bones.   Some places also make the sauce with too much ginger (with big chunks or scraggly ginger hairs still sticking out).  This sauce is the perfect balance of oil, ginger, and green onion, all of which are very finely minced.   They've also got classic lemon chicken on the menu, however at other L&Ls they've reduced this great dish to fried chicken with some lemon sauce on the side for dipping (which frankly smells like lemon detergent), instead of the nice post frying, glazing bath the way it's supposed to be done (the way it used to be done at Patti's Chinese Kitchen).  So I just didn't have the heart to order it, for fear of disappointment.   But still, this L&L is much better than some of the other L&Ls I've been to.

While L&L's push for homogenization has lead to better consistency in their offerings, the biggest problem is that they lose out on the individual character and uniqueness that made all of our little plate lunch places so great.   It is the little ones that have the most flavor, because with no other ambiance to speak of, they need it to maintain their customer base.  My friend, Eric, owns a little place called LoCo MoCo Drive Inn.  They make the best deep fried crab puffs in town.   Cruncy little deep fried won tons, with a creamy crab center, they're just totally addictive. 

Pot Roast Pork with Mushroom Gravy from Regal Diner

I have also been very vocal about my favorite little plate lunch place, Regal Diner, in McCully Shopping Center.   In the past I have talked about how they definitvely have the best loco moco on the island, how they have also have an awesome corned beef and cabbage, and how   my dad is especially fond of their special mix with beef curry or beef stew.  What I haven't mentioned how much I like their super tender pot roast pork with mushroom gravy, which is second only to the supreme roast pork that used to be offered by the Kanak Attack lunchwagon.  The pork is so savory, and the mushrooms are so packed with intense mushroom flavor which bleeds into the gravy as well.  Their signature Regal Special mixed plate even has mussels and deep fried squid rings.   What other plate lunch place offers mussels or calamari on their mixed plates??    In fact, there is very little on their menu that I don't like, and after merging with Island Manapua Factory, they have even more good stuff to offer!

Honey Garlic Chicken & Fried Rice from Regal Diner

However, for the ultimate, grubby gourmet, greasy spoon, grungy, dingy, local dive experience, you have to go to a little place my dad found called, Kevin's Drive In.  The main location is in Kalihi, on King Street, one block from Gulick (next door to Ray's Cafe).  They also had one in the Chinese Cultural Plaza, right next to Nuuanu Stream, but while retaining the same menu, they changed the name to Kent's Drive Inn.   In fact, my dad used to frequent the one in Chinatown so much, that they used to call him "Ah Sook" (or "Uncle").  Whether you go to Kevin's or Kent's, you will get the real local plate lunches, that are unabashedly oily, salty, artery clogging, and super delicious.   My dad would go there to get the chili dog plate so often, that the girl behind the counter would know his order before he ordered it.  But the two items on the menu that to me that really capture how tasty they are, are the chicken steak fried rice and their pork cutlet.  

Pork Cutlet from Kevin's Drive In

Their fried rice is some of the best greasy spoon fried rice you'll ever have.  It's just filled with little bits of char siu, egg, and shrimp, and it's not afraid to be a little oily (it is fried after all).  Layer on top of that some beautiful pieces of chicken, that have the full on shoyu and oil taste.  It is the kind of chicken that L&L has made famous as Hawaiian barbecue on the mainland, but this is the real deal.  This awesome dish is only topped by their even more awesome pork cutlet.   Even though its battered and fried, the pork is still moist and tender inside.   Their salt and pepper batter is, well really salty.  And peppery.   It's not excessively salty that it's overwhelming and you can't swallow it, but it's not afraid to use enough salt to bring out the full pork flavor.   Then it's drowned in fantastic brown gravy, that you know they made themselves, because it has that oily, fresh from the frying pan quality.   Mmm, oily and salty, and so so good.  Face it, if you're going to have a plate lunch, you might as well go all the way to the dark side.

L&L has done a fantastic job of giving the plate lunch, more nationwide recognition.   But it is the little places, with their individual character and uniqueness that made the plate lunch so special to begin with.  That is the culinary heritage we need to enjoy and preserve.

Legendary Lunchwagons

I grew up visiting my dad's favorite lunchwagons and hole in the wall restaurants.   As a State worker, he was somehow always privy to all of the best little eateries and greasy spoons in town.  I was indoctrinated into the history and legacy of the lunchwagons, how they evolved from worker's lunches during the plantation days, to become some of Hawaii's best eats available only when they magically appeared.   My dad shared with me some of the best places in town, like my beloved Kanda Lunchwagon at the pier at Kewalo Basin, my favorite lunchwagon of all time, and they became some of the fondest memories of my youth.   So when I started working full time on my own, I really wanted to explore and find some of my own places.   Maybe even return the favor and take my dad to some really awesome little places that he'd never been to.

My very first day on my first (full time) job, I was just getting to know my co-workers and get oriented in my new company.  So when they decided that it was about time to grab some lunch, I followed along like a little lost sheep, trying to make friends.   Fatefully, they brought me to what I would consider one of the greatest lunchwagons of all time, second only to the Kanda Lunchwagon at the pier.   It was the Kanak Attack lunchwagon, parked in the back of a nondescript parking lot, adjacent to a strip club on Kona Street.  Now, I had seen Kanak Attack before, driving past the restaurant they used to have on Kapahulu Ave., but I had never visited them or known that they had a lunchwagon.  Naturally, I was quite excited to be trying a new lunchwagon that I had never heard of before.  Everyone ordered mini-plates, but as it was my first time and I was curious I ordered the full size, and I quickly figured out why everyone ordered mini's.  I ordered a hot turkey sandwich, and the plate was just plain huge.   Not only were there about 4 slices of bread, but a good 2 lbs of turkey, and it was stuffed with mashed potatoes and stuffing, and covered with perfect turkey gravy, with even some cranberry sauce on the side.   In Hawaii, we've got an expression, "Local boys don't eat til they're full, they eat til they fall asleep."   The ensuing nap that follows is referred to as a "kanak attack", and the lunch from this little lunchwagon was quickly living up to its namesake.   It wasn't just huge either, the turkey was just about the best turkey that I had ever gotten from a restaurant.  Of course it didn't compare to my mom's Thanksgiving turkey, but it was real slices of turkey breast, and not the pressed turkey that you normally get from a diner (like Kenny's or Like Like), and it was really tasty.

The Kanak Attack lunchwagon quickly became my favorite place to go for lunch.  Not only were their portions huge, but they were really cheap.  They remain, to this day, the only place I ever found you could get a full plate lunch for about $5 + no tax (and a mini plate for $3.50).   Often their plates were so huge, I would eat half one day, and save the other half for the next day, making them even more economical.  This of course made a huge difference for a newlywed, living on his own budget for the first time.  I quickly became a regular there.  The food there was awesome.   They were the only place I knew of that even put tuna in their potato salad, making it much more of a real side dish, than a cheap filler.   The lunchwagon had a different menu every single day, and you needed to pick up one of their printed menus for the month, to plan ahead what you're going to order.   You had to be quick, because often the best stuff would be sold out by noon.   Fridays were always Hawaiian food days.   But my favorite days were Tuesdays.   In addition to their other specials, Tuesdays would regularly feature my two favorite dishes from the lunchwagon, their roast pork, and their braised shortribs.   Their roast pork was thick, credit card sized pieces of  supremely tender pork, swimming in some of the best brown gravy I have ever had at a restaurant.  But it was their braised shortribs that were the ultimate order.   In my life, I can count on one hand the places where I have ever had short ribs that tender, among them the kal bi chim at Sorobol and teri short ribs at Suehiro's.  But while those were more Oriental tasting, Kanak's was more local tasting.  Covered in a different gravy from roast pork, but equally as delicious, I often wonder if I will ever have short ribs like that again.

Kanak's was more than just nourishment for me though, it was like a confidant.  Unfortunately, in my new job, I had a coworker that just totally had it in for me.  He would criticize, with great hostility, every single little thing that I did, to the point that I went home depressed every day.   I really wanted to quit, but as I was a newlywed who really needed to provide for his new family, I desparately tried to tough it out.  Lunch was my only reprieve from his relentless onlaught of degredation and scrutiny, and I would find myself wandering over to Kanak's, picking up a plate and hiding away on some stairs in the back alleys on Kona St.   It was my only moments of quet and solice, enough to give me back some of my composure.  Kanak's was a much needed respite and for that they would always hold a special place in my soul.  Much later, when my son turned 2 years old, I had a big picnic at the zoo for his birthday, and shared my beloved roast pork and braised short ribs with all of my friends and family, and with them some of the warm fuzzies that Kanak's gave me when I so needed it.  Unfortunately, the Kanak Attack lunchwagon has long since closed on Kona St.   They no longer have their Kapahulu location either, but for a while they were serving lunch out of the St. Louis Alumni clubhouse on Isenberg St..   That location has also disappeared, and I am not sure when or where they will magically reappear again, but when they do, I will certainly be one of the first in line.

As time went on in my office, I eventually found a working relationship with my co-worker (largely due to the patience and tolerance that I afforded him, which no one else in the office did).  I began going out to other clients and wandering around town.  This, naturally, gave me more opportunity to continue my quest for little local places.   One of the places I found, was the Tsukenjo's Lunch House on Cooke St.  A little ironically, I became familiar with their actual restaurant, and not the red lunchwagon they were famous for on Ward Ave.  But I quickly came to know what everyone liked about them so much.

Roast Pork from Tsuekenjo's

Their most famous dish is their also their roast pork.   However, unlike Kanak's which featured big tender pieces of pork, Tsukenjo's roast pork is sort of like kalua pig with gravy on it.   Of course, this gives it all of the tenderness and smokey flavor of good kalua pig, with the addition of terrific brown gravy.   It's not quite as good as Kanak's was, but at least they're always there (every day) for you to enjoy.

Shoyu Chicken from Tsukenjo's

Tsukenjo's also makes some terrific shoyu chicken.  Their chicken is smaller than the big pieces of chicken thigh that you normally expect from shoyu chicken.   But the chicken is literally fall off the bone tender.  In fact, it's somewhat difficult keeping it on the bone, as it falls apart at your touch.   But it is infused with a delicious gingery shoyu taste.   The stronger ginger taste makes their shoyu chicken stand out, and show you what's so great about Tsukenjo's.

As I began to do work for more State agencies, I found myself coming full circle, to find places that State workers like my dad, went to eat.   Perhaps the best downtown lunchwagon, is the famous, yellow, Nicky's Lunchwagon & Catering, with 2 locations, right between the State Library and Honolulu Hale, and right next to the King Kamehameha Statue across from Iolani Palace.   This little lunchwagon is where I would go whenever working downtown, and on the right days, I would pick up lunch and head over to the Iolani Palace bandstand to hear the Royal Hawaiian Band play.   Recently, I brought my wife and son downtown for just that experience.

Shoyu Chicken & Chicken Long Rice from Nicky's Lunchwagon

The shoyu chicken I had at Nicky's is more like your traditional shoyu chicken.   The mark of a perfect shoyu chicken is of course how buttery, melt in your mouth, the chicken skin is, and the one at Nicky's is up there with the best of them.   My only complaint was that they didn't put enough of the shoyu sauce over the chicken to keep it moist, and so the rice can soak up all that wonderful shoyu and oil.  But of course, I never asked for them to give it to me that way either.   Conversely, their chicken long rice has a very light, clean taste.  It is almost too bland, and doesn't have enough of the ginger or broth that makes for a good chicken long rice.  In retrospect, I would have gone for just a shoyu chicken plate, rather than the mix, but I'm just compulsive about having a little variety.

Beef Stew from Nicky's Lunchwagon

My wife ordered their beef stew, which was very generous in all of their ingredients.   Lots of tender, if a little fatty, beef.   Lots of big hunks of potato (which she loves).   Lots of tender pieces of stewed celery (which she doesn't, but which I do).   Lots of everything in fact, which is the mark of a good lunchwagon.   Not having a permanent venue, with the overhead of rent, gives the lunchwagons more room to do the food just right, with lots of quality ingredients.  This is exactly what she found in her beef stew.  For my taste though, their stew had a little too much of that tomato tartness.   It didn't compare with the salty, savory, stew from Fresh Catch, but it was tasty nonetheless. 

The lunchwagons are as dear to our culture as hot dog carts are to New Yorkers.   They serve more than just fantastic local cuisine and fantastic value.   They serve the workforce of Hawaii, with the warmth and strength to get through the work day.   They are the hidden jewels in our society that my dad shared with me, and which I was so happy to share back with him in his retirement.

Duel of the Garlic Chickens

The folks down South may claim fried chicken as a cornerstone of Southern cuisine, but in Hawaii we've got many more variations on fried chicken due to our Asian influence.   You've got chicken katsu, of course.   You've got chicken karaage.   You've got mochiko chicken, battered with mochi flour so that it's much chewier and stick to your teeth than the regular crispy batter.  You've got the classic Chinese lemon chicken, which is glazed in sweet, sticky, lemon sauce after it's been fried (and more recently that abomination, orange chicken).   You've got spicy Korean chicken, which is glazed in Korean spices afterwards.   But perhaps one of my favorite ones, is our local garlic chicken.

When it comes to garlic chicken, there are really only 2 names in town, Mitsu-ken and Sugoi.   If you ever travel to Philadelphia, and you want a really authentic philly cheese steak sandwich, you're likely to get caught in the rivalry between Pat's and Geno's. The two venues are right across from one another, and there is an intense and heated feud between them.  Each side commands legions of loyal followers who are strictly devoted to one side or the other.   Here in Hawaii, Mitsu-ken and Sugoi really don't have such a public rivalry, but the garlic chicken world is definitively split between them.

Mitsu-ken is the older of the two shops, and a very classic little hole in the wall okazu-ya.  It's right down the road from Kamehameha Shopping Center on School Street, near Gulick Ave.   If you were driving past, you'd probably miss it, except for the very long lines of faithful patrons running out the door and down the block all morning long.  Not being someone who hangs around Kalihi a lot, I first found out about the place watching Bruddah Sam and Lina Girl attacking practically everything on their menu.  Long before Bourdain or Zimmern, Local Kine Grindz was the show that would make my mouth water, and when Bruddah Sam held up 3 plates, a garlic chicken combo with roast beef, a garlic chicken combo with roast pork, and a garlic chicken combo with more garlic chicken, I figured that the garlic chicken must be good there.   Naturally, Bruddah Sam was right.  From the moment that I first tasted their garlic chicken, I was instantly addicted.

Garlic Chicken Mixed Plate from Mitsu-Ken

The garlic chicken at Mitsu-ken's has a very light crispy batter.   It's kind of like the crunch of cereal after a few moments in milk (but way before it gets to be soggy).  The bath in garlic sauce has the same effect on the fried chicken.   It's not soggy in any sense, but it's more crispy than crunchy.  Since the sauce glazes the chicken, it's much more absorbed into the chicken than if you were just dipping fried chicken into a garlic sauce dip.  It's got perfectlly balanced sweet, garlicy flavor.   It's not too strong so that it's overpowering, nor is it too subtle that you don't know you're eating garlic chicken.  It's just the right amount of sweet and garlicy that you just keep wanting to eat more of it.   You can get it in combination with any of their other goodies, or if you're like me and want some of everything, you probably want either the garlic chicken bento or the garlic chicken mixed plate.

The big disadvantage to Mitsu-ken's, is there really isn't any parking anywhere around except for 2-3 stalls right in front.   If you can't get one of those, your best bet is to drop off a passenger (like my wife for example) to stand in line while you circle around the block.  Since Mitsu-Ken has only 2 tables as well, we usually then head further down School Street and have lunch at Lanakila Park.  This gave me a great idea to have a little party, when my company, Opihi Net, celebrated the successful completion of its first year in business.  We bought a ton of food from Mitsu-Ken, and invited all of my clients to Ala Moana Beach Park for a little picnic.  For those clients that couldn't make it, I packed up boxes of garlic chicken to be delivered to their offices.  It was a rousing success, and sharing the awesomeness of this secret little hole in the wall with the awesome garlic chicken, was a great way to show my appreciation.

Sugoi is the newer of the two shops, located in City Square, by the DMV (where the old Gem's used to be).   Their name is an interjection in Japanese meaning "cool!" or "incredible!".   That pretty much accurately describes their food.  They've got a fantastic ahi loco moco, some really great yakisoba, and a terrific saba bento.  But what they've been seriously building a reputation on is their garlic chicken.   They have even been selling bottles of their garlic chicken sauce in retail, and I've even seen it on the shelf at Longs.   Sugoi also has a garlic chicken bento, similar to Mitsu-Ken's, but for health nuts like my sister, theirs comes can be substituted with brown rice.   All of which is making their garlic chicken more appealing to a broader audience.

Garlic Chicken Bento from Sugoi

Sugoi's garlic chicken is a but crunchier than Mitsu-ken's.   I'm not sure if it is that their batter is thicker, or if they don't soak it as much as Mitsu-ken, but their chicken definitely has a more substantial crunch to it.   The garlic in their sauce is also a bit sharper.   When garlic is raw, it has an almost spicy bite to it, that completely disappears after it has been cooked long enough.  Somehow the garlic sauce at Sugoi retains more of this sharpness, than the sauce at Mitsu-ken.  In general, the sauce at Sugoi's has an all around more intense flavor than the one at Mitsu-ken.   It's sweeter, sharper, crunchier, and just overall much stronger.   It's easy to see why it is gaining popularity so quickly.   Besides that, the ample parking at City Square and the two rooms full of seating area, make Sugoi much more accessible than Mitsu-ken.

Mini Garlic Chicken from Sugoi

Both Sugoi and Mitsuken have ridiculously delicious garlic chicken.   However, my own personal preference remains with the old school flavor at Mitsu-ken.   I love garlic.  I'm usually very liberal with the garlic in a lot of my cooking, and I know what a difficult job it is to find that perfect moment when the garlic is nicely browned.   Too raw, and it will have that pungent sharp bite to it.   To burned and the delicate flavor will be ruined with char.  But when it is perfectly browned, there is no sharpness to it, just a fragrant, lingering, smooth garlic flavor.  To me, that is the perfect balance found at Mitsu-ken.    Although the flavors are much more intense at Sugoi, I just like Mitsu-ken's a little more.  The more subtle, more delicate flavors at Mitsu-ken just keep you wanting to eat more and more, while the stronger flavors at Sugoi kind of bludgeon you over the head and knock you out for the count.  

Both Mitsu-ken and Sugoi have made an indelible mark on our culinary heritage with their fantastic garlic chicken.   Like the cheesesteak in Philadelphia, I hope both their garlic chickens will be celebrated, and enjoyed for generations to come.

A Ray of Goodness

What would you do if you were financially set, and didn't have to work any more?    Would you still work?  Would you still work because you felt like you made a difference to the community?    Would you still work because it gave you a sense of purpose?   Would you still work just because you loved doing it?   Would you still work just for fun?  I'm guessing that the honest answer for most people would be a resounding, "Hell No!".   I'm guessing that most people would prefer to spend their remaining days travelling, futting around the house, spending time with their grandkids, or in general just going holo holo.    But a surprising number of people I know, many more than you'd imagine, couldn't just sit home and relax.   These are the people who are the best at what they do.   The people who really produce something special.   Anyone can do a job, because they need to earn a living, but the people who do it because they really love it are the ones who really create magic. 

It sounds hypothetical, but I know of one such man.    His name is Felix.   He's an older, bolo head little man with glasses, and probably one of the nicest old Filipino men you'll ever meet.   He's the kind of guy who genuinely exudes warmth and aloha from his smile.   From what I understand, he also made quite a decent living as a realtor, so he really doesn't need to work anymore.   But it was his dream, his passion, to run a restaurant.   A good restaurant, where you could get an awesome meal for a very reasonable price.   Just the kind of place that he would want to patronize.   So that's exactly what he did.   He opened up a little local place, and named it after his son, Ray.   Thus was born, perhaps my dad's favorite restaurant in the world, Ray's Cafe.

My dad found out about Ray's, like all of the fantastic little hole in the walls he knows about, during his time as a State worker.   Like all of the secret State worker hangouts, Ray's served big amounts of fantastic food for tiny prices.  Ray's Cafe was originally on the corner of Smith and Beretania, across the park, next to where Golden Harvest Theater used to be (the place my mom would go watch and translate all of the kung fu movies for my dad when they were dating in the 60's).   Back then it was a tiny little joint with 3 tables that would be packed with firemen, police officers, and other big blalahs who could really pound all that food.   I took my wife there once when we were dating, and she was less than impressed with the ambiance (not really the kind of place you should be taking a date anyway).   Since then he's moved to Kalihi, on King St. just before Gulick Ave., to place that's doubled in size (with 6 tables), but retains the same hole in the wall charm. 

My understanding is that the secret to Felix's success, is that he's made friends with his meat suppliers, who always give him the best cuts of meat at really great prices.    Since Felix is already pretty well to do, he passes on that value to his patrons.   The result is really huge portions of really high quality food at dirt cheap prices.   This naturally leads to a fanatical following by those who know about the place, like my dad.   My dad enjoys it so much, that on Father's Day, rather than some fancy steakhouse or big sunday brunch buffet, we take him to Ray's instead.  The only drawback is, not only is it somewhat difficult to find street parking in that area, but Ray's is usually packed with all of the other local people who know about it and are trying to cram into one of the 6 tables.

Prime Rib at Ray's Cafe

Back when my dad first found out about Ray's, he used to rave about the oxtail stew (something my dad almost never raves about).  These days, it is my dad's favorite place to get his favorite dish in the world, prime rib.  Honestly, where else on the island, can you get a cut of prime rib that is the size of a mousepad, and over an 1" thick, for around $12-$15.    Not only is the slab huge, but it is perfectly cooked, moist and tender.   Sure it's not seasoned with fancy cajun seasonings like you find in the steakhouses (for 3-4 times the price).   It doesn't even come with the creamy horseradish that you get at Cattle Company.   But it's a perfectly cooked, simply seasoned, cut of meat that lets you taste the true beef flavor.  Add 2 big scoops of rice, and a salad that is easily 1/3 a head of lettuce, and you've got a really substantial meal for a great price.   For my dad, growing up in a very low income era, prime rib was seen as the epitome of food, reserved only for really special occasions.  So the prime rib at Ray's is something special that he enjoys down to the core of his being.  It is his favorite meal in the world.  Period.

Fresh Grilled Mahi Mahi at Ray's Cafe

Not a big red meat eater?    Felix has also made friends with some really choice fishermen.   He's always got gigantic pieces of mahi mahi, or ahi, or other big fish on his specials menu, for less than $10.   Again, they're not seasoned the way that you'd find a fancy seafood restaurant.   They're very simply grilled, to bring out the natural flavor of the fish.   But the texture is just perfect, tender and flaky, and never overcooked.  This is seriously fresh tasting fish.  I have never seen pieces of fish the size, the size that he serves, anywhere else. 

Bento at Ray's Cafe

My favorite thing on Ray's menu is the bento.   Can't decide between the steak and the fish?   Why not a little bit of both?    At least that's how it used to be.   A good sized piece of steak, a good sized piece of fish, some spam and a couple of pieces of fried chicken.   It was like a Zip Pack from Zippy's on steroids.  But unfortunately, I think this economy has even affected Ray's, because a few years ago he replaced the actual steak with several pieces of teri beef.   Not that the bento isn't good anymore, it's just not the one I first fell in love with.   It is still everything that a Zip Pack tries to be, and succeeds in ways that a fast food chain just can't compete with.

Steak and Alaskan King Crab Legs at Ray's Cafe

The biggest special at Ray's (when he has it), is probably his steak and king crab legs.   This is where Felix's relationship with his suppliers really shines.  This is not the thinner, Japanese snow crab, that you see on buffets around the island.   This is real Alaskan king crab, with a diameter bigger than wrapping paper tube.   The key though is the freshness.  You can always tell when you've got an older piece of crab, by how easily it comes out of it's shell.   If the shell is hard and easy to crack then it's pretty fresh.   If the shell is soft and bends (and thus difficult to open), or if the crab sticks to its shell so that you can't pull it out in one big piece, then the crab isn't the best.    The crab at Ray's not only easily comes out in one big piece, but it is still very moist and juicy, and has a really strong crab flavor.   There is no way that you could walk into a Sizzler, or any other place, and order something like that for less than $20.  

The best thing about Ray's food is the quality and freshness of his dishes.   The cuts of meat are all premium quality meat.   The seafood is all impeccably fresh and the choicest quality.  He may not be a star chef, with all of the haute techniques, but he lets the quality of the meat and fish shine on their own.   And on top of that, he gives you a huge portion and a great value.   Everything can be summed up in his lobster or crab omelettes, with really substantial pieces of lobster or crab, 4-5 eggs, and liberal use of butter.  They're huge, premium quality, and hopelessly delicious.

Imagine what the world would be like if we were all like Felix.   If work wasn't something that we toiled through because we needed to in order to survive, but something we did simply out of passion.  Based on the quality of food you get out of Ray's, I can just imagine the quality of life we would have.  That's the kind of world I want to live in.

Curry Crazy

One of my cousins from Canada came to visit recently, an naturally I took him on a whirlwind eating tour of Hawaii.  As we were passing through McCully Shopping Center, to visit my favorite little plate lunch place, Regal Diner, my cousin noticed the name Curry House.  His first thought was that the place was an Indian restaurant.  I suppose this comment shouldn't have disoriented me as much as it did.   Indians are well known for their curry worldwide, and there is even a place downtown on Bishop St., next to Remington College called Komala Curry House, which I'm still very interested in trying one day.  But my immediate reaction to my cousin was that he was so strange.   After all, in Hawaii, the first curry that you think of is Japanese curry.   Curry House is of course a part of the multi-national Japanese chain, Curry House CoCo Ichibanya.

My reaction to my cousin just underscored the difference in viewpoint between us islanders and people from the mainland.   But in truth, in Hawaii we've got many different kinds of curry.   Of course we've got the Indian curry that my cousin initially thought of.  However, to me, Indian curry (really a masala or a vindaloo) isn't the best example of curry, because they use so many different spices in conjunction with their curry, that it kind of overwhelms the curry powder itself.   While the resulting dish is outrageously delicious, it doesn't allow the curry spice enough of the spotlight.    We've also got Thai curry, Vietnamese curry, and curries from other parts of Southeast Asia.   The Thais in fact have red curry, yellow curry, green curry, and others (my favorite being Panang curry), each with their own distinct flavor.   But again, this is not the best example of curry, because the predominant taste is that of the coconut milk, the thai basil, and the chili peppers that they use.  Again, while extraordinarily delicious, it doesn't give the curry spice the center stage.   For the true curry taste, you've got to look to our beloved perfectionists, the Japanese.  

Only the Japanese aesthetic is able to recognize and bring out the beauty of a stark, singular item, such as a single piece of sashimi atop a small mound of rice.   It is this aesthetic that recognizes the flavor of the curry powder itself, and allows it the opportunity to shine on its own.   In Hawaii, we've adopted Japanese style curry, as our own curry stew, the close cousin of our local style beef stew.  Essentially the same big cubes of beef, hunks of potato, carrot and onions in the a curry based gravy instead of a tomato based one, curry stew is a favorite on plate lunches across the islands.   Alternatively, replace the big hunks of beef with some hamburger, add some peas, and you've got the hamburger curry which is usually one of the best things to get from a lunchwagon.   But while our local style curry is extremely popular, it is sort of a milder version of the original Japanese curry.  

Special Mix (Teri Beef, Hamburger Steak, & Beef Curry) at Regal Diner

For the real curry taste, the prefection in a solitary flavor, you've got to have some of the authentic Japanese curry.  The Japanese love their curry, especially young kids and teenagers.   If you've ever watched the popular anime, Inu Yasha, there is a scene where Kagome first introduces curry to the titular half yokai, Inu Yasha, with great comedic effect.   In typical anime over-exaggeration, he runs around screaming trying to wipe the burning spices from is humourously extended tongue.   But the small scene is just an example of how common curry is in Japan.  You can make it at home, with pre-mixed packages of S&B Golden Curry, something which to me completely outclasses a Hamburger Helper meal.   But if you don't know what you're doing, and you want to taste the true essence of curry, done by the masters, the place you want to go is Curry House CoCo Ichibanya.

Corn Salad at Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

When visiting Curry House, you really must begin your meal with a small salad.   Besides their extraordinary Japanese curry, Curry House is known for their two salad dressings.   Their creamy dressing is one of my favorite dressings in the world.   It is a sweet, creamy, slightly miso tasting, dressing.   Unlike vinegarettes which can be overpoweringly sour, or blue cheese or ranch dressings which can drown your vegetables in cream, the creamy dressing is light and sweet and seems to augment the natural sweetness of the crisp refreshing lettuce below.  You can even buy bottles of it to take home, but I just like having it as a cooling preamble to whet my appetite for the warm, yummy curry to follow.

Kids Curry at Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

As I've mentioned before, curry is very popular with kids in Japan.   While my son has difficulty eating the overwhelming spices of Indian curry (which makes us wonder what Indian kids eat), he has no problem with the kids curry at Curry House.   The kids curry is remarkably mild, with lots of little fun, kid friendly sides.  While mild, it maintains just a hint of the curry flavor, enough for him to enjoy.

Mixed Vegetable Curry at Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

My wife likes the vegetable curry at Curry House.  The wide assortment of vegetables, especially the hasu (or lotus root), makes for a great texture mix (nothing like horrible, textureless mix of frozen diced carrots, grean beans and corn that you get at most diners).  The sweetness of the vegetables also adds to the curry.   As my wife does also does not like a lot of spices, she greatly prefers the mild curry at Curry House to going to eat Indian curry.   However, even in their mild curry, you can taste the full flavor of the curry powder.  The gravy just seems to magnify the true curry taste, with the perfect Japanese rice gives it a warm soft body to enjoy.

Chicken Katsu Curry at Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

For me, nothing will do except the spicy curry.   Although it's spicier, the spices do not at all overwhelm the taste of the curry powder.   In fact, it's not really spicy at all to me, it's just enough to give the curry powder a little kick in beginning, something that wakes up your taste buds so that they recognize the lingering curry powder taste to follow.  In Hawaii, the combination of curry and chicken katsu has become extremely popular, from plate lunches to real Japanese food.  Curry House naturally does it the best.   There is just something about the crunchy, fried, batter of the chicken katsu as it is just on the point of softening in the warm curry gravy (it's similar to putting crunchy cereal in milk).  Although it is a contrast, it seems so harmonious.  It's probably the reason that curry croquettes and curry doughnuts are so popular at Japanese bakeries, like St. Germain or Panya.  Even the plating at Curry House is perfect.  Unlike at certain plate lunch places where they just pour curry stew all over the chicken katsu, which eventually leaves it soggy if you're taking it out to eat, the katsu is positioned so as to maintain its crunchiness while just dipping its toes into the curry for artful aesthetics.   The curry to katsu ratio is then yours to control and enjoy.   It is a fantastic combination and my favorite dish at Curry House.

If you're feeling hungry, you can also order a slightly larger portion of rice with your curry (400g instead of 300g).   The fact that they measure the weight in grams of course throws us Americans off, but suffice it to say the 400g is nicely satisfying. I remember when Curry House first opened many years ago, they had one of those eating challenges (like the ones seen on Man vs. Food).  It was I think 1000g or something like that, which was roughly equivalent to a whole small pot of rice and curry.   I guess the local blalahs could eat much more than they were expecting, because they no longer offer the challenge.  It's too bad, because I do love their curry so, that I did want to try it one day.  It's probably for the best, and I'll always have my 97 second spaghetti eating days.

Calpico at Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

When eating Indian curry, my wife always has to cool her tongue with a yogurt based Indian lassi.   Although this isn't necessary while eating the mild curry at Curry House, there is a Japanese sweet yogurt drink that just goes great with their curry.   I, of course, am referring to Calpico.  There is just something about the mild, sweet, ever so slight tang, and milkiness of Calpico that reminds me of all the wonderful Japanese candy (like Fusen gum) that we used to have when we were kids.  The sweet taste of Calpico is almost comparable to ice cream sodas or New York egg cremes, but as its not carbonated its much easier and smoother to drink.   The sweet reminder of childhood, emphasizes how popular curry is with Japanese youngsters. 

Indian and Thai curries may be delicious and have worldwide notoriety, but for the ultimate, quintessential, true curry flavor, nothing beats Japanese-style curry.  As popular as it is with the youth of Japan, we're so lucky to grow up with and enjoy it here as well.