Honolulu | Eat + Drink

This recap includes the downtown city area of Honolulu which we ventured to twice, once for dinner at Sushi ii and once for lunch at Lucky Belly, as well as the posh city streets of Waikiki Beach. We found downtown Honolulu to be relatively quiet where as Waikiki was always bustling! 

We had our best meals of the trip on this leg of our Hawaiian journey; nowhere else overall compared to the restaurant and bar scene here. 

Mahina & Son's at The Surfjack Hotel + Swim Club 

[412 Lewers Street]

Surfjack Hotel is wonderfully hip. A retro Wish You Were Here tiled pool immediately invites you into the well manicured space. Mahina and Son's is an open concept that abuts hotel lounge and sun deck. 

We started with addicting, super spicy pickled peanuts with jalapenos. If you've never had pickled peanuts they are an absolute treat. I don't remember exactly what we drank but the cocktails were on par.

We hadn't yet tried Poi (taro root) which is a major Hawaiian crop / right of passage. It worked well in the Pa'a'ai Salad with pickled Akule (big eye scad), pohile (Hawaiian fiddlehead fern) and tomato. The first main was Monchong (Sickle Pomfret) with 'ulu (breadfruit), green bean, cherry tomato and chervil. The second was Opah (Moonfish) with savoy cabbage, purplette, u'ala (sweet potato) and a mustard-bacon broth. Dessert was the Dark Chocolate Butter Mochi with black sesame gelato and mango jam.

Sushi ii

[655 Keeaumoku St] 

An omakase menu is offered (go for it!) in this unassuming strip mall nook. A parade of impossibly fresh nigiri delights from Chef Hiro: lango, kinmedai, shima aji, toro, uni, hokkiado scallop, ikura, ama ebi...with a grand finale of miso soup!

Bar Leather Apron
[745 Fort Street Mall #127]

We ubered from Sushi ii to Bar Leather Apron for a night cap. This intimate cocktail den is located on the mezzanine level of the Topa Financial Center in downtown Honolulu. It is definitely a random, hidden location and it was a little tricky to find; part of the charm for sure. They have four old Fashioneds on the menu, naturally we each got one. 

Appetito

[150 Ka‘iulani Ave]

Appetito is a chic craft pizza and wine bar, which we chose on a whim. I took just one photo of this phenomenal pizza: KING CRAB SHISHITO with avocado, shishito peppers and arugula on a cream sauce drizzled with wasabi mayo. We had a really great time here, much in part to our amazing, personable bartender, who in hindsight I recognized as professional surfer Keala Kennelly. She totally made our night.

Queen Street Cafe + Grill
[99 Kauhale St, Aiea]

Queen St Café + Grill is actually located in Aiea - the town that Pearl Harbor is in. We had lunch time to fill between our morning arrival and our late afternoon tour of the USS Arizona, so we opted to venture off campus instead of hitting up the hot dog cart with everyone else. I'm so glad we did! (Pearl Harbor has no entrance fees or parking fees so it's easy to leave and come back in one day.) The Poke Bowl Lunch at this no frills café is easily one of the best I had. You can mix and match so I had tuna and beef with pasta salad and white rice, Bob had chicken and beef with potato salad and brown rice.

Lucky Belly
[50 N Hotel St]

We stopped in Chinatown for lunch after we checked out of The Alohilani and before we headed for the North Shore. Lucky Belly was host to a decent lunch hour crowd. We sat at the bar and sipped ice cold Asahi Beers alongside delicious food. Bob had Tempura Shrimp Tacos topped with asian slaw and yuzu mayo. As for me, you know I can't pass up a good bowl of Ramen (I think this was my third so far in Hawaii!) The Lucky Bowl with bean sprouts, soft egg, wakame, sesame seeds, green onion and ginger was excellent.

The Beach Bar @ Moana Surfrider Hotel
[2365 Kalakaua Ave]

Moana Surfrider is a Westin Resort & Spa right on Waikiki Beach. This was our favorite place for cocktails - the nicest bartenders, live music, hula dancing, and you are literally steps from the sand. 

We absolutely loved the food scene in Honolulu and would give all these spots our vote of approval. 

Kailua | Oahu

We flew into Honolulu from Lihue (Farewell, Kauai) and headed to the Leeward side of the Island (east!) to a town called Kailua. Our Airbnb just a few minutes walk to Kalama Beach was incredibly underwhelming. It was teeny tiny, musty, and not what we expected based on the photos and reviews. Our hosts were the kindest most welcoming folks who greeted us with champagne and presents and thought nothing of it (like it was the best honeymoon spot and they catered to honeymooners all the time..) There were issues I won't get into with the space, but after one night sleep we knew we had to bail. 

We still enjoyed our one night and one morning in Kailua. If you wanted to check out this part of the Island, and it certainly is worth it, I'd recommend a day trip or perhaps just staying one night in passing. 

Kalama Beach is gorgeous. We took a sunset beach walk upon arrival and an early morning run the next day. I definitely felt immersed with the locals here, everyone was walking their dogs on the beach. There were good neighborhood vibes for sure! 

We had dinner at Tokaname a crowded sushi bar + restaurant where we were the only non-Hawaiians. In Kailua we truly did find a neighborhood off the beaten path, and the crowd certainly reflective of a good Japanese restaurant.

The Chashu Pork Ramen was terrific. The sake sampler hit the spot. The Yellowtail (Hamachi) Nigiri and Yellowfin Tuna Nigiri sushi were super fresh. The green tea tempura ice cream sealed the deal. 

The next morning we awkwardly bid adieu to our hosts. In search of brunch we discovered a cool couple blocks in Kailua housing trendy cafes and surf boutiques. We ate at Kono's known for their 12 hour slow roasted pig. My shredded pork buns and Bob's pork and egg biscuits were excellent. 

Our original thoughts in planning the Kailua leg of the honeymoon were to get off the beaten path - to go somewhere less touristy, perhaps somewhere up and coming? Plus, many frequent travelers warned against Waikiki and its crowds. In retrospect this seems odd to us. We love beach cities. Our dowdy Kailua accommodations inspired a change of pace and we were off to Waikiki, booking the Alohilani Resort on Hotel Tonight as we drove back into the city. 

Travel surprises you. That's what's to love!

Fuji | Assembly Row

 January 25th, 2018 was the last day working in Downtown Boston at Lafayette City Center. We are at a shiny new building in Assembly Row, Somerville. It's no DTX / Chinatown / Theater District corner, but it will have to do. 

Fuji at Assembly is here! I will miss my beloved Avana but Fuji is contemporary and fun. I stopped in for a carafe of hot sake at the bar with impressive makimono and nigiri to follow. Spicy Tempura Katsu ($13.50) w. Katsu style shrimp tempura, cucumber, avocado, spicy mayo and sesame seeds and some Toro Nigiri ($8) and I'm settling right into the new neighborhood.

Fuji at Assembly

320 Canal St

Somerville, MA 02145