honolulu strut -- what's good?
hungovermulatto
168 Posts
had no love for 17 degree brooklyn last week; copped a cheap ticket, and now i sit in some cafe on kuhio watching the hookers do they thing at 8am on a sunday -- they must have some broke ass pimps or maybe there's no slim charles to remind them of the sunday truce...anyway, north shore beckons...but before i bounce, is there any must see/do type stuff here in the city that's worthwhile? secret spots/events/functions/must have poke/crack seed you locals might want to put a bruddah on to?mahalo!
Comments
Helena's has THE BEST local food on the Island if not all of Hawaii. DO NOT leave without eating there. Call ahead and make sure they are open.
Helena's Hawaiian Food
1240 N School St
Honolulu, HI 96817
(808) 845-8044
Ono's also has excellent local food:
Ono Restaurant
726 Kapahulu Avenue
(808) 737-2275
Both Helena's and Ono's are the REAL DEAL old school family run places that have been around for years.
Go to Alan Wong's for some next level modern Hawaiian dishes.
Hit up some late night spots: Like Like Drive-In and Rainbow Drive-Inn.
Go to Leonard's and get hot Malasadas!
They painted the sign? For my entire life, I thought I'd never see the day. Wow. I'm going to stare at that for awhile.
co-sign on onos and add on yamas fish market which you should be able to google for. those are the only two places that i fuck with for hawaiian food mostly cos im nearby them. there's some hole in the wall place that i get sashimi from near onos but i forget what it's called and am horrible at giving directions.
as far as night shit and records, i dont even go out anymore and havent bought a record in almost a year so i cant really help with that. i wouldnt really bother going to any stores here cos they're all pretty much worthless.
It might seem like a big hassle to wait for some shaved ice but for some reason, it really is pretty damn good.
Also, if you're on the North Shore, people really seem to like the garlic shrimp trucks. To me, that's more of a "cool local thing to do" vs. a culinary necessity. I mean, it's good but I'd only go there because it's convenient rather than necessitating a special trip just to check it out.
Ono's is definitely cool. AVOID SAM CHOY'S. My friends (Hawaii-raised mind you) kept talking it up and turned out to be the worst, most overpriced meal I had on Oahu.
In contrast, we really liked Shokudo; it's this upscale-y Japanese chain (there's one of them in L.A. as well, called "Tokyo Table") that has pretty decent food and won't bust your wallet (in comparison, Roy's is very good food but $$$).
Personally, I like the small shack type spots. You're kind of close to this place if you're staying in Waikiki: Mitsu-Ken Catering - 1223 N. School St. (it's by Hoffenberger if I recall). It's literally just a walk-up window but their garlic chicken plate is
And dude, eat all the poke you can. Even Safeway rocks that shit. Do it.
for japanese food that is on the cheap but
Sayin' dude. Shokudo isn't next level but for a slightly different kind of Japanese food experience, it's a good look in my book. I've been there with my wife and her family and they always give it the thumbs-up.
In Oahu, they had (back in Jan at least), ice cream dipped in black sesame sauce.
saving money is lame
Mitsu-Ken mang - $3.50 plate!
Any Must See's to recommend?
Definitely seeing lava and surfing, snorkling.
Best beaches? Restaurants?
I've been reading travel books and stuff, but what are your favorites?
plus fresh Ahi and ramen for days.
mahalo, y'all!
yeah, the store bought poke and the shrimp trucks is where it's at...
as well as that crazy ass bartender/madam at porky's in kailua, but that's neither here nor there.
will seek out each and every recco and report back in detail.
thanks again!
I just got back from a weekend on Big Island. Make sure and swim in the warm ponds out by Kalapana. Lava is next level. Unless you're good, consider saving the surfing for Kauai - a lot of the breaks on Big Island drop straight into rock. Puna is hippie overload but has its charm. Try Ocean Sushi Deli in Hilo.
On Kauai make sure and drive up to Kokee and the Kalalau lookout. Secrets Beach is the white sand classic - walk right from the trail and go over the rocks to the second and third beaches. Hanalei Bay is the classic beginner surf spot. Polihale is amazing, but don't go out unless you have 4x4. The last time I went out there we saw some German tourists who had cracked the oil pan in their rental car.
Thanks man! Yeah, I've never surfed before so I'll be looking for smaller waves. I'll probably take a lesson.
We were planning on taking a helicopter trip, but one crashed in Kauai last week and my lady is now giving me the nay-no.
Woulda been cool
Yeah, another helicopter went down this weekend... two crashes in a week. Weird shit. I saw the police tape around the first crash site, it's about two miles from my house.
Here's the lava flow from the Kalapana side on Saturday evening:
all 4 stores in honolulu are pretty much all on the same intersection. stylus and rainbow books are sub-par and the beat only specializes in new dance music. your best bet is to roll over to toogruvs if you don't mind waiting for price checks due to slow internet connections trying to log on to ebay.
i was there yesterday looking threw some collection he just bought.
he had some raers!!after looking threw 22 boxes i bring it up to the counter
he tells me he has to price them.BAMMM ebay!!!!Then he says"come back next week"
i can't find the price on these..To all strutters when you come to honolulu don't
don't go to Toogrooves!!unless your willing to spend 50 bucks on a graham central
station record...
I haven't been to the Big Island since '94 but I've been to Kauai a few times. By far, my favorite island. It's not over-developed like Maui and Oahu, incredibly beautiful and real laid back. Sure, it's like the most haole-populated island (apparently, a remnant of a hippie invasion from the '60s) but it's hardly obnoxious.
If you and wifey are in good shape, I DEFINITELY recommend doing the Napali Coast Trail from Ke'e to the first beach. It's rigorous but definitely "do-able" in a few hours, there and back. If you really feel like it, there's a waterfall you can hike to from there but personally, unless you hit the trail early in the morning and are a good hiker, it might be a bit too much. We tried it and it was already past sundown by the time we got back to Ke'e. Walking Napali in moonlight = NAGL.
Personally, I'm a big fan of the north coast vs. the south or east. Best beaches, and just a really beautiful place. In the winter though, Poipu is much better weather-wise and my friends have had a good time down there too.
Saimin. But yeah, they got this all over.
Mallard, I've heard plenty of great things about Maui, a friend of mine has been there 12 times and can't wait to go back.
Make sure and drive to the top of Haleakala at dawn. It's worth getting up at 3:30 or 4 AM. Bring a jacket.
The whole trail is 11 miles... if you have time and like to camp you should consider going all the way in and staying out there for a night or two. The Kalalau valley is jawdropping and there are forest people who have been living out there for years. If you get a morning start it shouldn't be a problem to do the whole length before dark.
I jogged barefoot from Ke'e to the first beach last month... good times but I was picking lauhala spines out of my insole for a few days.
Anyway, for Chinese food, I would recommend Pauoa Chop Suey up in Pauoa, which is within Honolulu. It's about a mile away from the Punchbowl Cemetary, about two blocks around the corner from Kawananakoa Intermediate, or I should say, Middle School. The off ramp with the lychee trees? There, and then go down the cramped parking space in the back. It's around the corner from the Morita corner store with the good sake.
Some people have said that the food there isn't too good, but it also depends on your pallet. They have really good saimin, won ton min, gau gee min, and the people there are always friendly.
If you want something a bit out of the way, go to Lucky's in Kalihi. It's down the street from Gulick's, a nice deli where you can pick up hash patty, chow fun, and any kine stuff to go drive around the island, go beach, or whatever. A few steps to the stoplight and you'll find this really good pastele shop. About a mile or two outside of that, you'll find the Libby Manapua shop.
Of course, I haven't been back home in a few years and maybe that pastele shop is long gone.
Basically, outside of the tips within this thread, don't be afraid to ask local people, because most are willing to help. Honolulu is fairly big, but if someone tells you about going to Nu'uanu, Mo'ili'ili, or "Holiday Mart", even though Holiday Mart hasn't existed since the 80's (hell, it's not Daiei anymore), you might get lost.
There's also another Chinese restaurant in Kapahulu, a few blocks down the street from Rainbow Drive-Inn, that has a wicked cake noodle. They put on a little oyster sauce on that one and hui... aah, hit the spot.
Records? I heard they closed the Columbia Inn, they had a jukebox. Go check there.