i have been to the hawaiian islands four times, three of the four were in waikiki, honolulu. i am not one who likes to fully get away from it all, i guess. i like people and being around those experiencing a new culture. if you are visiting hawaii for the first time, go to waikiki...the gateway drug to a getaway that's close enough to home.
this trip was different from the others, in that the purpose was to finally celebrate my marriage with a honeymoon. we got married a couple years ago, but ran out of money after the wedding was all said and done. then planned to go for our one-year anniversary, but our dear kitten got very sick and our honeymoon money went to save his life. then, i made my 2011 new year's resolution to enjoy MORE of everything i love...pampering, family & friends, and traveling...and new foods, of course! so, hawaii here we come and we're hungry!
AMERICAN AIRLINES FIRST CLASS BRUNCH
i've mentioned this before, but a perk to being part of an airlines family is the possibility of an upgrade to first class. and it was nice for the five-hour flight. the in-flight meal was put together by hawaii's own, sam choy. for starters, a delicious mimosa, then we enjoyed some silver dollar pancakes topped with macadamia nuts, honey butter, and coconut syrup. and, of course, it ended with a delicious, freshly baked white chocolate macadamia cookie and warm tropical nuts.
SAM'S KITCHEN
the first night we were looking for something authentic hawaiian. i mean, why go somewhere to eat some place you've already been and have easy access to at home? i used my yelp app to find hawaiian food nearby that was fast, easy, and delicious. sam's came up and so did their garlic shrimp. so, we walked a couple blocks over and found a cute stand with local faire. we got the highly recommended garlic shrimp, our beloved tuna poke, and some familiar teriyaki chicken. we also ordered a plantation ice tea, which was basically a pineapple iced tea with a huge chunk of pineapple inside. the garlic shrimp was definitely delicious. the garlic sauce was thick and the shrimp were plump & juicy. the poke had some great kicks of wasabi and the tuna was perfectly fresh. the chicken teriyaki was moist and flavorful. the plantation ice tea was incredibly refreshing and delicious! i think if you want to take baby steps, this is the place to start.
PUKA DOG
i am so upset that i didn't take a picture of this awesome treat, but i was hungry! when i made my list of places to eat, hawaiian hot dog was a must. first you pick you hot dog (polish or veggie) and bread (wheat or white), second the garlic lemon secret sauce (mild, spicy, hot, hot-hot), third tropical relish (mango, coconut, pineapple, banana, papaya, or star fruit) and lastly, mustard (lilikoi or guava). here's my combo: polish on wheat (actually it was IN wheat, the bun wasn't the folded kind, it was more like a pocket and the hot dog was inserted) with spicy garlic lemon sauce, mango relish, & lilikoi mustard. this was definitely tropical and so sweet. i really enjoyed it! this was a lot of fun to discover.
PARADISE COVE LUAU
party time! i highly recommend that you go to a luau when in hawaii. you get to learn a couple things about a culture through arts, crafts, & games, eat some authentic food, and watch a show with some beautiful hula dancers. there are many luaus hawaii has to offer, but this is my favorite because it's on a private beach and there's lots to do. the food is buffet style: shredded pork, poi, salad, fried mahi mahi, fried chicken, chocolate cake, coconut cake, and coconut gelee?
KEN'S IN & OUT PLATE
another photo not taken (which i've substituted with us next to a waterfall during our hike), but i'll paint a picture for you. hawaiians enjoy eating plate lunches: meat (shoyu chicken, korean kalbi, etc), a scoop of rice, and macaroni salad. it's pretty basic and easy. i did the korean kalbi and did a half plate and the husband got a regular combo plate with shoyu chicken and teriyaki beef. the meats were tender and perfectly cooked, but the macaroni salad was too mayonnaise-y for me. otherwise, a great takeout spot.
HANAUMA BAY
i love this cove! it is beautiful and, if you're lucky enough, you may come across a sea turtle. that day...we were lucky enough! we found a beautiful 4 foot-long sea turtle, we called "norman", and followed him over the coral reef for half an hour. he took us to his feeding grounds and where the other colorful fish were hiding. it is very peaceful to snorkel around and watch the sea life here.
HAWAIIAN COOKIE COMPANY
i think that these should be a souvenir in addition to the hawaiian host macadamia chocolates. the shortbread is so tasty, from kona coffee to lilikoi to coconut and pineapple. these little pineapple-shaped cookies were so good. they either come in prepacked assortments or you can mix and match your own, which i loved. they also have little bins so that you can try before you buy!
PINEAPPLE & COCONUT HUT
we really wanted to go to the dole plantation, but lost time. luckily, this little stand in the ala moana shopping center had the infamous dole whip.
the following day, i grabbed myself a coconut to drink, then eat. this was really tricky with the small hole provided, but i managed. there's nothing like drinking out of a coconut to really make you feel like your somewhere tropical.
MARUKAME UDON
our hotel was situated right across the international marketplace and when we'd walk around, we pass by this noodle house. every time we passed by, there was a line out the door...which, of course, piqued our interest. you can see the cooks preparing handmade udon noodles from the windows and we definitely needed to try this place out.
the process is easy, order your choice of udon soup, then grab what you can eat of tempura. the seating is cafeteria style, so if you can swoop on a seat, do it! but, you can't scout around until you have your food.
LEONARD'S BAKERY
if you say this "l" word anywhere in oahu...you will get serious smiles. smiles filled with the memory of the fluffy, no hole portugese donut, called MALASADAS. although there are other donuts and morning pastries offered, you go to leonard's specifically for malasadas! they're simple, either white sugar, cinnamon, or other sugar surrounds them or you can add custard, chocolate, or pineapple filling.
SAINT-GERMAIN BAKERY
i need of a close, sweet fix, we were fascinated by this bakery across from our hotel. the homemade bread looked so fluffy and the pastries so delectable. i chose to go with something pumpkin...i couldn't pass up the idea of enjoying a pumpkin treat in mid-april (fall is so far away)!
DON QUIJOTE
this is a great locals supermarket. there were a couple things i was on the hunt for that i was not finding at the abc stores...hurricane popcorn and unsalted macadamia nuts. i used my yelp app and typed in hurricane popcorn and don popped up. this place is great and was only a couple blocks from the mall. if you're looking for something specific, go to don quijote when all else fails.
YARD HOUSE
i tried really hard to eat only hawaiian throughout this trip, but our last dinner included my father-in-law, who was going to be our pilot on american airlines for our trip home the next day. the yard house holds a special place in his heart, similar to other pilots on a layover in honolulu. we opted for a meal of appetizers: lobster, crab, & artichoke dip (delicious, but the dip to chip ratio is off - not enough dip), hawaiian poke stack (yummy, it's fun to break the wontons apart), lettuce wraps (good, but be careful of the spicy sauce), korean bbq beef (everything i could ask for, totally flavorful), buffalo wings (i had a craving and these spicy guys hit the spot), onion ring tower (nice thick batter), and coconut shrimp (nice and crisp). but, you really come to the yard house for their beers, which are plentiful! not a bad dinner to end the hawaiian trip.
overall, this trip was everything i could ask for in a honeymoon...bonding, playing, discovering, laughing, and love. the food was fun to try and the people are very hospitable. here's to two years of marriage with a total of seven wonderful years growing together!
