(As of 2021, the bakery is permanently closed.) A few months ago, a friend posted photos on Instagram of perfect cookies and canelés wrapped in white paper from a bakery in the most unexpected place: a shipping container on the corner of an orchid farm in Waikane, a rural area in Windward Oahu. Rousselet […]
There’s plenty of food Hawaii is known for: saimin, kalua pig, pineapple, poke. Barbecue isn’t usually one of them. Which is why, as I walk through the doors of Sunset Smokehouse in the Central Oahu town of Wahiawa, I’m not sure what to expect. Originally started as a food truck parked in Sunset Beach in
When Oahu’s weather gets hot and humid, there’s only one thing on my mind: a nice, heaping serving of shave ice, soaked with flavorful syrup, drenched in condensed milk and topped with li hing mui powder. Today was no different, and to give my air conditioner a break, I grabbed my girlfriend and headed to
I do not have a green thumb. In fact, I pretty much have whatever is the opposite of a green thumb. I once tried planting basic herbs like basil and mint and failed miserably. I even killed a succulent my sister bought for me, in record time. So I was pleasantly surprised to find Waiahole
It’s obvious when Mark Noguchi walks into Palace Saimin in Kalihi on Oʻahu that he’s been coming here for decades. Practically his whole life. “I’m a creature of habit,” explains the gregarious chef, who greets everyone in the kitchen with a hug and kiss on the cheek. “If you had to kill me, I would
It’s been a few years since chef Vikram Garg, best known for overseeing the award-winning restaurants at the luxe Halekulani in Waikiki, has been back in the kitchen. And, honestly, foodies have missed him. Garg left the hotel in 2016 and joined the MacNaughton Group, a Honolulu-based real estate investment and development firm. (After all,
I spent my whole life in Hawaii—and I’m still not sure why Hilo calls shave ice “ice shave.” But folks on Hawaii Island do and they claim their ice shave is the best. Let’s back up here: Shave ice (not shaved ice) is a beloved frozen treat popular in the Islands. Similar to the snow
There’s a difference between local food (loco moco, chicken katsu, saimin) and actual Hawaiian food. If you’re craving the more traditional stuff, stop at these reader-endorsed restaurants to get your poi, laulau, kalua pig, poke, squid luau, pipi kaula and haupia fix. 1. Helena’s Hawaiian Food The James Beard Award-winning Helena’s is one of those
(Editor’s Note: As of 2022, Lucy’s Lab Creamery is permanently closed.) While the Islands are known for warm weather, especially in the summer, the past few weeks on Oahu have been stickier than usual, with temperatures reaching up into the 90s. As we wait for our beloved trade winds to return, cruise over to
A couple of years ago, a bright-purple yam from the Philippines was all the Instagram rage. Ube (pronounced oo-bae) is traditionally used to create a gorgeous pudding dessert (called ube halaya). Today, though, it has become the base flavor for artisanal desserts—from doughtnuts to cheesecakes to ice cream. It has a creamy, subtly sweet flavor—one chef
I got the last cranberry cream cheese scones, and I actually felt horrible about it. The couple at the table next to me started sneaking looks at my plate, crowded with four hefty cranberry-studded disks, shimmering with a sugary glaze. I overheard that they were hoping to snag one—or two—before they left. They had met
There are only three Hawaii restaurants on Yelp’s Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. list in 2019—and Alii Coffee is the only Island-based coffee shop. (The other two: Porky’s Kauai, a food truck, at No. 11 and Kahuku Farms, a roadside stand, at No. 63.) So we had to find out why. One
