Kapahulu Avenue in Honolulu has a couple places to eat that Joanie and I discovered last time we were here. I finally got away from the hotel tonight for a dinner pilgrimage, and it was a feast.
First to Ono Hawaiian Food, a small hole-in-the-wall family restaurant with 6 or 8 tables and faded pictures taped all across the walls. But it's consistently voted tops for authentic Hawaiian fare. I had the Kalua Pig dinner, which is pulled pork, lomi lomi (a salmon ceviche), pipikaulau (salt pork jerky) with onions and rice on the side. Everything was fresh and excellent. It's a place so authentic they don't even have a website. I got there near closing and as they started cleaning up for the night, the waiter was talking about why they close at 8:00 p.m. — they have to get there at 5 in the morning to start slow cooking the pork for the next day. Never any parking, I had to find a spot two streets away.
On to Leonard's Bakery down the street for malasadas — Portuguese donuts. They're baseball-sized balls of fried dough, pumped with custard and rolled in sugar. They have three flavors: "custard" (vanilla), chocolate, and the flavor of the month, which is banana. I ordered one of each, which took about 5 minutes as they ran into the back and cooked them up fresh. "Be careful, they're hot," the lady told me. I'm so glad I can drive with one hand. Nobody in their right mind should eat three, but I've been good all week. Again, another dive of a place, and again, never any parking.
I'm so full. Who knows if I'll ever make it to Honolulu again, but I'm really glad I got to visit these places tonight.
1 comment:
I'm so jealous! We love Ono's! And you got off easy, we had to park even farther. We will definitely try that bakery, it sounds fantastic! Glad you're having such a great time.
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