I finally got to try this place for the first time at the strawberry moon market. Everything was…read moresooo sooo delicious. I personally think this was single-handedly the best musubi/okazuya I have ever had in a meal on this island. It is a shame that they do not pop-up as often but I was very grateful that they were able to make some more food even when the sign said they were "sold out." I guess it was fate that my taste buds were blessed by the hands of this cute Japanese family.

Food is amazing and made to order. Onigiri and side dishes are authentic and just like in Japan!!!read more

If you haven't checked out Minasa already, you gotta put it on the top of your must-try list…read more Filipino flavors with a modern twist, it's one of my favorite Filipino restaurants on the island. You can sometimes find them at food festivals, and they always have the longest line but at their brick and mortar- you can always satisfy your Filipino cravings. One of my favorite things on their menu is the calamansi chicken wings, it's got a bit of spicy kick and it's so good. You can order just the wings or get it as a bowl with rice and pickled vegetables. The sisig is also a classic that you can get with either crispy chicken or pork belly that's chopped up into small pieces and served with an egg. I love that all of the food here has a nice balance of salt, fat, and acid. And if you're wanting to try out all their best sellers, go for the kamayan sampler with lechon fries, calamansi fried chicken with rice, and ube churros. Or their Chef's special with lechon, calamansi fried chicken, and kalbi short ribs.

I'll never stop raving about this place…read more Minasa is a restaurant serving a variety of comforting and nostalgic Filipino food -- appetizers, entree, desserts and drinks. The space is cozy and welcoming, with limited amount of seating but ok for holding intimate events. Service is always great, food always comes out fresh and hot, and they always get our orders right. My personal favorites would be: * Kare-Kare (Beef Peanut Stew), which reminds me of my mom's cooking; and * Calamansi fried chicken + noodles, the noodles are very nostalgic for me as it reminds me of my "merienda" (afternoon snack) when I was growing up (in the Philippines). They usually change up their monthly specials (which I always look forward too) so make sure to check out their Instagram page @minasahawaii. Plenty of shared parking space in the shopping complex where it's located (Tropicana Square).

Pretty good experience overall. I had made a reservation for opening for two on a Tuesday. There…read morewere about 3-4 other groups and eventually the lunch hour group trickling in from the surrounding businesses. We were promptly seated then we ordered from our phones after scanning their QR code on a sign on our table. We ordered four things: two appetizers and two mains. For our two appetizers, we got the lumpia look fun and the ilocos empanada bahn xeo. The two mains were utog burger and pancit pad see ew. The lumpia look fun tasted good, but I don't think I would get it again. I'm used to getting look fun in Chinatown and eating homemade lumpia. I didn't think the combination was profound for the price point. As for pancit pad see ew, I think I would have wanted to taste more of the "pancit" than the pad see ew. For me, it tasted too strongly of soy sauce, and I think I'm used to flavors closer to pancit or beef chow fun, so I couldn't quite enjoy or finish it. Would like it to be less salty and have more wok hey served hotter. Of the four, I enjoyed the utog burger and the ilocos empanada the most. I liked that the utog burger wasn't too salty and the bun held up. I absolutely love the garlic shoestring fries that went with it. The ilocos empanada was delicious, within my expectations of what ilocos empanada is (after trying some of the ones made in Waipahu) but in good balance with the lettuce. Definitely would like to have the utog burger or ilocos empanada again and try the other mains!

Finally had a chance to try them out. Non traditional…read moreFilipino food that works well IMO. The limited menu makes it easier for you to choose. . Tried a few items: Utog Burger - surprised how good this was. Reminds me of a better version of the Big Mac! If you look burgers, you won't be disappointed. Lumpia Look fun - soft on the outside and crispy on the inside. Wifey liked this one the best. Also very good. Banh - taste like a Vietnamese/Filipino fusion. The cheese shell gave it another twist. Pancit/see ew- a bit too salty. Shrimp portions were good tho . But the Thai version is better IMO. I'd skip this one next time. This dish was meh. Service was good. You order thru the app. Can also do take out. Easy process. Similar ambiance to your average china town spot. Overall solid 4/5.

About 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, there was already a line of people placing their order for fresh…read morepulled noodles. We were told that the first batch would be served about 11 a.m. so we quickly put our order in. The first thing that caught my attention, was the savory aroma of their 5-spice ground pork being cooked. You can add this as a topping to the noodle dish. The second thing that caught my attention, was the labor of love going in to each order of fresh pulled noodles. You can watch him stretch the dough ball and slap it on the counter before he boils each batch with careful preparation. The third thing that caught my attention, was their adorable mother, helping to slice the cucumbers and top each dish with crushed iso peanuts. Do not forget to order the side of pickled bittermelon....so good!! From beginning to end, this was an incredible experience of all my senses! To see and hear them at work and then to taste the delicious sesame sauce on the fresh pulled noodles....WOW! The soft noodles, the crisp bittermelon, and the savory sauce....super delish! Seriously, go early to place your order. The wait is totally worth it :) Will come back next time to try other menu items.

Shima Dreams of Noodles is a pop-up, located at Fishcake -…read more This place supposedly has a huge following, and people anticipate for the changing menu of various noodle dishes. When we went, the menu focused on udon: +Hot Yamakake Udon with Quail Egg (a special) +Cold Yamakake Udon (a special) +Hot Udon +Cold Udon The special udon dishes are servied with tororo (grated mountain yam), housemade tsukudani (seaweed braised in a sweet Japanese sauce), crispy nori, green onions, and an option to add wasabi. We went for both the hot and cold udon specials - I think it was a consensus that we would have liked to have more noodles in the dish. This is definitely a sweeter dish, with the tororo and the tsukudani. The place already had a long line, and the best way to enjoy would be to dine-in. Note that if you do order a carry-out, the quail egg would not be included. +ordering online is available +changing menu of noodle dishes +popup at Fishcake

I absolutely loved every dish we tried. Everything was delicious and beautifully plated…read more The restaurant itself is on the small side. Not a lot of tables inside but they do appear to have an outdoor seating area in the back. I opted to sit at the bar. My Crystal Tiger cocktail was perfect. The bartender was super knowledgeable and friendly. It was fun watching his bartender tricks while he made drinks. We had the Hokkaido Milk Bread and Onion dip for appetizers. The Grilled Kampachi was so good. Cooked to perfection with amazing seasoning and flavors. The accompanying sauce had hint of curry with lovely freh herbs. Loved it! My fave dish of all the ones we tried. We also had the Capellini Granchio. This was also delish. Pasta was perfect. A good amount of crab to flavorful noodles. I will definitely return in the future to try more things and have the Kampachi again. This would make a nice date spot. Dishes are impressive.

Interesting concept and glad we tried. Food was good but perhaps not something I need to try again…read more Service and food pacing terrific. Lotsa cheese shavings on dishes - love it! Had the lilikoi mocktail - sweet and my husband liked it. The salad - liked the endive, watercress less so. Appreciated that not too heavily dressed. . Ono crudo new on menu - unusual bc on white bean puree and topped with olives. Tasted fine. Prosciutto - our favorite. Unusual with the sesame pocket, prosciutto thinly sliced and not too salty, the perfect pickles, plenty of shaved cheese. You make little pocket sandwiches and this made for a delish bite. Fois gras torchon - rich, nice sweet sauce, onion confit, on sourdough grilled bread. This can't not be good. Dan mien - liked the consistency of noodles silky and chewy. But sauce was overwhelmingly salty w lup cheong. I couldn't eat more than two bites. Our server was so solicitous and friendly and our water was never empty. The food pacing came out one at a time in perfect order and kept us from inhaling our food. Overall I'm glad we tried it and it's worth going to. Just not sure I'd be a regular here. For all of the above with tip was about $180.

A night in Kaka'ako is always a fun place to explore, and just be entertained!…read more The Honolulu Night Market at Our Kaka'ako is indeed a fabulous adventure into the biggest street/block party filled to the brim with all things local...food, retail and culture. I've been to so many and each and every one is very unique where you can find either fashion runway stage, live street art, or even a dance night in the barn. I just love the vibe SALT and surrounding Our Kaka'ako brings with the vibrant art we're so blessed to have and this particular night (November 19th) there was actually much more shopping just perfect for the holidays and the party went further down to Ya-ya's. Tonight I was fortunate to have gone after work so I kept it short but found some awesome treats. Some straw toppers to add to my holiday gift giving and some cheesecake cups (OG, Strawberry and Cookie Butter) of course I got one of each to share...ate the Strawberry which of course omg was yummy!! Not too sweet as the Strawberries was just perfect as I tried to get an even scoop of it all in every bite. Walked further down and honestly wasn't in the mood to wait too long for anything found something that would just exactly work for me. Ya-Ya's Chophouse & Seafood and tonight they had two items - Steak Kebabs - Fat Fried Rice with TAB (aka Thick Ass Bacon lol!) I seriously wanted the fried rice but thought that the Steak Kebabs was more sensible for me personally and it came with two kebabs each fully loaded with steak, mushrooms, peppers and onions with a huge scoop of rice! So many options I really was considering including Henna from Henna Happens, Birria Tacos from Dolce Vita, Corn from Corn Onoz Hawaii but though there's always a next time yes!?! I remember pre-pandemic Yelp had a booth here and hoping as things return to normalcy that we'll see it back again one day (hint hint!) Absolutely love this Honolulu Night Market as it offers so many cultural coolness that you can't find anywhere else! Thank you!

There were only about 4-5 food trucks when I visited, and it felt small. Around 6 PM, the area had…read morevery few people. There was some live music, but it seemed more like a quick stop for tourists rather than a real night market. I didn't try any food because the atmosphere wasn't appealing, so I left quickly.