TJ's Oyster Shooters

Oyster Shooters

$10 gets you four of these little guys.  Oyster, quail egg, cocktail sauce, tobiko, green onion.  Umami likes his oyster shooters, but was concerned about the egg.  Not to worry, it added some richness to the whole enterprise.  For those of you who don't like oysters because they're slimy, well, a cold raw egg probably isn't going to change your mind.  But fun if you're a fan.


TJ's Sports Bar & Grill
600 Kapiolani Blvd, Ste 100
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808) 545-2424

Is This Any Way To Do A Grand Opening?

One of Umami's favorite downtown lunch places, Aloha Island Grill, has closed up to tackle a bigger space in the Mililani Town Center.  Aloha, Vil and Michele, Umami'll miss you!

In their old downtown space, a new restaurant, whose name (was it "BGH?") escapes Umami's memory.  Perhaps just as well . . . *cue foreboding music* . . .

Today they were running a super grand opening special:  $4 for any regular burger or plate lunch.  The menu is fairly nondescript, so Umami opted for the Hamburger Steak.  This is what he got:

Hamburger Steak Plate

It was rather disappointing actually, a rather pedestrian pre-fab burger with equally pedestrian gravy, tasteless mac salad.  And is this really a regular size plate?  Umami misses Aloha Island Grill already!

Maybe there's some growing pains and maybe it will improve.  But Umami's not prioritizing a return trip.

For those of you who must know:

BGH?
1111 Bishop Street (Remington College Building)
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808) 545-2960

Support

Umami is impressed by 9-yo blogger, Veg.  Why "Veg?"  She says "My dad says I should myself Veritas Ex Gustu, truth from tasting in Latin but who knows Latin?  You can call me Veg."


She blogs (Site:  NeverSeconds) about her school lunches and Umami wishes he could write things like this:  

"It is quite hard to eat peas and sweetcorn without dropping them but I was very careful. The dessert is called Australian Crunch but I don't know why. The only reason I can think of is it has coconut in it unless its a traditional Australian recipe."

Unfortunately, local school officials banned taking her photos because they were misleading and distressing to cafeteria staff.


The public outcry, however, soon forced them to see the error of their ways, and Veg is back in business!  Fight the Power, Veg!  You get on wit' yo' bad self!

And, as if that's not enough, she's raising money for Mary's Meals, which is a charity that sets up school feeding projects in communities where hunger and poverty prevent children from gaining an education.  She's raised £67,000 ($105,000)!!  Umami's was so impressed, he chipped in £10.00.  Respect. 

Ka 'ike o ka Moana: The Knowledge of the Ocean

Umami was invited to submit an artwork for a show called "Ka 'ike o ka Moana:  The Knowledge of the Ocean."  The works had to be themed on "the ocean."   Here's Umami's painting . . . if you think it looks raw in the photo, it's even raw-er in real life . . .

"All Tomorrow's Parties"

It's called "All Tomorrow's Parties" because, well, Umami really likes (1) the Velvet Underground song of the same name and (2) the William Gibson novel of the same name.  And, especially, the song lyric:

"And where will she go and what shall she do When midnight comes around"

Because, eventually, midnight will come around for the oceans and, then, where will we go and what shall we do when they're gone and the painting tries to ask that (but not answer it).   Yes, Umami's really a leftist hippie environmentalist at heart.

It'll be interesting to see what other people did.

Here's the show flyer . . . reception is June 14.  There's some nice entertainment and Umami might be prowling the pupu line.  Should be pretty cool.

Ka 'ike o ka Moana:  The Knowledge of the Ocean
Honolulu Hale Courtyard
530 South King Street

Bacon Ice Cream Waffle.

This what happens when Umami watches Iron Chef . . .

Iron Chef was having a "Grill" weekend marathon, with secret ingredients like pork and hot dogs (seriously, there was a "Challenge: Hot Dog").  After watching that, Umami had to make a Bacon Ice Cream Waffle - Turkey Bacon, scoop of Hagen Daz Vanilla Ice Cream, and an Eggo Whole Wheat Waffle.  With some Blue Agave Syrup over the whole mess.   Of course, it was fabulous . . . or, as Elle would say:  "Grub-able!"

The Shack - Hawaii Kai

The View from The Deck

There's not much better than late afternoon beer and pupus, especially sitting out on a deck with a view.  6:00 p.m. Tuesday, and Umami and Elle are on the back deck of The Shack - Hawaii Kai for just that.  Happy Hour goes until 7:00, Black and Tans were $3.00, pupus were half-price and all was good.

Set of Sliders

Set of Sliders has one Swiss and Mushroom, one Bacon Cheeseburger, and one Shack Slider (with Portuguese Sausage slice).  With Curly Fries.  $12/$6 happy hour.

Potato Skins (but you knew that)

Potato Skins with Jack and Cheddar, Bacon Bits, Sour Cream, Green Onions $8/$4 happy hour.

Bucket of Wings

Buffalo Wings are messy good fun.  Umami and Elle, for some reason, thought they could eat a Bucket (16 pieces) instead of the more realistic Regular (8 pieces) on top of everything else they'd ordered.  Bucket $14/$7 happy hour.  Regular $8/$4 happy hour.

It's bar food, to be sure, but well done, well priced (total tab was $30), and, with a deck, can't be beat.
 
THE SHACK (Hawaii Kai)
377 Keahole St. #C2
Honolulu, HI 96825-3409
Tel: (808) 396-1919

Island Twist Cafe: Vegetarian Spaghetti

Vegetarian Spaghetti

Spaghetti sauce is "Tuscany," with chunks of tomato, and green and black olives.  Finished with some cheese (so it's not vegan) and green onion (which Island Twist uses as a garnish on lots of their dishes).  Also comes with some bread with tomato slices and cheese, almost a mini-pizza.  $7.50 for a good solid, light lunch.


B & D Island Twist Cafe
134 South Hotel Street
Honolulu, Hawaii  96813

Cinco de Mayo at Miguelz

For Cinco de Mayo, Umami and Elle decided to try, Miguelz, the new tapas place at Koko Marina Shopping Center.  It's in the spot most recently occupied by Just Tacos, before that, Therapy, and, way back when, an excellent Thai restaurant called Bua Khao.

Umami and Elle had walked by previously and thought the menu intriguing, so it seemed an opportune time.  And, speaking of opportune timing, turns out Miguelz was running a drink special, four tickets, redeemable for beer and/or shots, for $10.  So, some pints of Dos Equis Amber and some Cuervo shots for $10?  Not a bad start.

Tortilla Espanola

Because the menu seemed a little ambitious, Umami and Elle decided to go slow, ordering a couple of dishes just to see.  First up, Tortilla Espanola ($10), five pieces of a rather thick potato, egg, onion, classic, with a roasted red pepper coulis and aioli.  Here, the red pepper is a winner . . . Umami dredged pretty much everything through it.

Crispy Brussel Sprouts

Including the Crispy Brussel Sprouts ($12).  Flash fried to a crunch, with salt and trimmed with apples. The menu says they're tossed in homemade pineapple vinegar and with a pineapple "cream fresh," but Umami didn't register that.  It was better with the red pepper coulis anyway.

Braized Lamb

Emboldened by the first two dishes (and the Dos Equis), they moved on to the Braised Lamb ($17 (yikes!)).  The menu description sounded fascinating:  "Lamb cooked in sous vide, lamb ravioli, Swish [sic] chard, root beer foam, and red pepper coulis."  Despite the presence of the red pepper coulis (yes!), Umami thought the reach exceeded the grasp, as the dish fell just a bit short.  The lamb and ravioli were okay, but not outstanding.  Umami did think the root beer was a fun touch, but the foam wrecked the presentation.  Far better to incorporate it into the dish, maybe in the braising liquid?  At $17, Umami and Elle have tried it . . .  you don't need to.

Crema Frita

The Crema Frita ($10), however, is definitely worth a try.  Like eating a deep fried custard filled doughnut, minus the doughnut, Umami and, especially, Elle, thought it was worth the wait.  And, for some reason, it took forever for this to come out of the kitchen.  Their waitress said the kitchen was backed up, which is a little concerning since the place was pretty empty at the time.  Maybe the one big table was a problem, but still . . . 

All in all, the food is pretty good, but doesn't quite live up to the ambitions, though it may yet do so.  Couple that with price points that are on the high side, and Umami thinks they're going to have a rough time of it.

Still, Umami and Elle had a good time, their server was excellent, and there was enough there to warrant a return visit to try some other items.  And Elle will be sure to have the Crema Frita again!

Miguelz

Koko Marina Shopping Center D-105
7194 Kalanianaole Hwy
Honolulu, HI 96825
(808) 396-6100

Corned Beef Hash Loco Moco

When Umami gets grouchy, he tends to defy Dr. Lois by going for the brown and white food.  Hence, the Corned Beef Hash Loco Moco from Island Twist Cafe.

Corned Beef Hash Loco Moco

It's true, Umami seems intent on trying everything on their menu*, but that's because he's liked everything he's tried.

This one, alas, falls a little short.  Nothing wrong with the gravy, eggs, and rice, and, frankly, Umami was pretty pleased just to be eating eggs.  No, the issue here is that the Corned Beef Hash could actually use more corned beef to stand up to the mashed potatoes in the hash and to the overall flavor profile of the dish.  ("Flavor profile?"  Umami's been watching too much Food Network).

Not a bad dish.  Just . . . frustrating.  But, wait, minus the gravy, this would be an awesome breakfast . . . hmmm . . . .

*Try:  Snapper, Pork Chops, Salmon.

B & D Island Twist Cafe
134 South Hotel Street
Honolulu, Hawaii  96813

Dispatch from the Secret Menu Front: Dr. Sher reviews the Double Filet-0-Fish

Double Filet-o-Fish

Dr. Sher reports:

"Drove through McDonald's and ordered secret menu item: double filet-o-fish. Person taking the order seemed stumped by it, but when we said, "You know, a filet-o-fish with two fish filets" she said, "Oh, ok, extra patty." The extra patty costs $1. When we get to the window to pay, my friend asks what would be the best way to order this. We are told, "Order a filet-o-fish with an extra patty." That is, don't say, "Double filet-o-fish." We leave the drive-through only to discover that there is no extra patty. My friend goes into the restaurant, where they put on another filet and cheese.

Anyway, I think the bun:fish:cheese ratio is best when ordering the regular sandwich. The extra filet is not the way to go."

Umami thinks he's tried this as a limited time special before . . . maybe as a test in McDonald's Hawaii?  Anyway, he totally agrees with Dr. Sher that the extra patty throws of the balance of the sandwich.  Far, far better to just get two Filet-o-Fishes . . . or is that Filets-o-Fish?   Kinda steep, though, when they cost $3.50 a pop!


McDonald's
You don't need Umami's help to find one, do you?