NattoKun : I <3 Food

My Favorite Sushi Spots

2008-09-01T15:57:00.006-10:00

Hello...is anyone out there? I hope all my readers haven't abandoned me. I can't blame you, as I know I haven't really posted anything for you to read. I still have all the hobbies/projects that I mentioned a few posts ago and I started a few more hobbies/sports (SUP and 6 Man Canoe Paddling), so I am a bit busy. But rest assured I still eat and take a lot of pics.

I get asked often what I think is the "best" sushi bar on Oahu and to that I reply "I don't have a 'best' spot, but a few places that I rotate throughout as they all have different characteristics and do things differently." So here, I am going to list my favorite sushi spots.

Sushi Koh - Although this place isn't in business anymore, I wanted to mention it as a tribute to this great sushi bar of past. I really liked this place because of their Aburi Sake Harami Nigiri, Aburi Hamachi Harami Nigiri, consistently good Engawa and the one and only spot where you could get the OMG delicious Bakudan Koh Donburi. Yoshi always took care of me when I went there. Supposedly he has closed up and moved to the mainland to be closer to his daughter. Click on the below thumbnails to go to my Flickr sets of Sushi Koh.

Past posts of Sushi Koh:

2004-12-30 Sushi Koh
2005-06-10 Sushi Koh
Original Location Sushi Koh Closed
Sushi Koh Reopens
2002-11-xx Sushi Koh
Sushi Koh Really Closes

Sushi Izakaya Gaku - Gaku is great!...if you can manage to get seats. Gaku is very popular and always packed. This place is probably the hot spot of authentic japanese sushi/izakaya's in Hawaii at this very moment. With the Honolulu Advertiser recently reviewing it, it's popularity will only further increase. What I really like to order at Gaku that you can't get elsewhere is their Zuke Ikura and their dried then deep fried fish bones. Some places will fry you the bones of smaller fish, but because they don't dry it first, it never comes out super crispy as it does at Gaku. Of course they also do everything else well. They often have Aji and Hirame. Sometimes you get suprised with Iwashi, Sayori and even Kinmedai. Click on the below thumbnails to go to my Flickr sets of Gaku.

Chiba-Ken - I like Chiba-Ken because of the hours, the atmosphere, the staff and of course the food. On Friday and Saturday they are open 'till 2AM which is good for us night owls. This is the only place on my list that has outdoor seating. Although it only overlooks Ena Road, it is nice to relax with some drinks and good food out in the fresh Hawaiian air. The staff is great, attentive but not overbearing. This is the one place that always gives you that extra something. Whether it be that extra over pour on your sake or some gratis sashimi/sushi. Click on the below thumbnails to go to my Flickr sets of Chiba-Ken.

Sushi Masa - I typically go here for lunch. It is located right across of Sedona in Ward Center. It is very casual but convenient. Don't let the settings fool you though, this place has really good sushi. I like to order the Katsuo Nigiri (w/ Masa's special Ponzu sauce and a garlic chip wrapped by nori), Aji Nigiri (w/ Masa's special Ponzu sauce) and his "lobster" nigiri. Click on the below thumbnail to go to my Flickr set of Sushi Masa.

Yohei/Maguro-Ya - When it comes to sushi I am pretty traditional. Some call me a "Sushi Nazi," as I often refuse to eat at places that serve contemporary sushi. How do I define contemporary sushi? Anything that has dynamite or rainbow in its name or has ingredients involved that aren't usually used in Japanese cuisine. The reason I have been going to Yohei Sushi for almost 15 years now is that they are a blend of old and new and regularly have a great selection of neta (topping). If you sit in front of Kazuto he will make you straight up good traditional sushi. If you sit in front of Ryuji he will make you good progressive sushi. Ryuji can take a base neta that I would normally not order and make it something that I really like. For example, Ika is not something I normally would order, but this Ika Mentaiko Uzura Nigiri is just amazing. Another one of his progressive creations is this Ama Ebi Uni Nigiri. The reason why I have Maguro-Ya listed together with Yohei, is because it is run by Kazuto's brother. They have many similarities such as the fish they carry (I'm assuming they have the same fish broker) and their shari (sushi rice). I haven't visited Maguro-Ya as much as Yohei and there isn't the progressive Ryuji sushi, but it is nonetheless very good. Whether you decide to visit Yohei, Maguro-Ya or both, you won't be dissapointed! Click on the below thumbnails to go to my Flickr sets of Yohei Sushi.

Mitch's Sushi - I have only been here once before, but I just know that this place is a winner from my solo experience. In addition to having amazingly fresh ingredients, the sushi chef went out of the way to bring me out some kimo (entrails/offal) from the back when I mentioned that I love kimo. Also they have ingredients such as Fuka Hire, Live Awabi and Live Ise Ebi, which is generally not seen at sushi bars in Hawaii. Click on the below thumbnail to go to my Flickr set of Mitch's Sushi.

Hanamaru - Recently opened and recently discovered, Hanamaru was instantly a hit with me. On my first visit they actually had Kawahagi, although they didn't have the kimo which is what Kawahagi is really known for. Why them having Kawahagi is a big deal is that I have never had Kawahagi anywhere but in Japan. On my most recent visit there, the sushi chef actually let me pick which Chu Toro slab that I would be getting my Chu Toro Nigiri from (out of 6 different slabs). Every time I have gone they have had Katsuo (Yum!) which I rarely see at sushi bars in Hawaii. Which is quite odd since you can catch Katsuo in Hawaii. They have great prices on their sake and also are one of the few places that I visit that carries Orion beer. Click on the below thumbnail to go to my Flickr set of Hanamaru.

Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin

2008-03-05T15:08:00.003-10:00

I have been to TGB a couple times since they opened, but not once did I have their Tokusen Kurobuta Tonkatsu Teishoku. Not until my last visit. And OMG is it good. All of their menu items are good, but geez, the Kurobuta is good! It is worth the $36. The pork has a sweetness to it and it just melts in your mouth. It is fork cutting tender. Plus as it is, TGB has awesome rice which is cooked to perfection (all you can eat) and their goma suri tonkatsu sauce is tasty.

Wanda Adam's review @ The Honolulu Advertiser and her revisit here
Reid's post @ Ono Kine Grindz
Kathy's blurb @ A Passion for Food

We're sorry, you have reached a number that has been disconnected...

2008-02-27T14:58:00.002-10:00

I have found out that Sushi Koh has closed down. This came as a shock to my friends and I, as we just visited there at the end of last month. A few weeks ago a group of us were standing outside of Ginza Bairin waiting to be seated and we noticed that the Sushi Koh menu stand wasn't in it's usual location right in the front of the Breakers hotel. This was a night that they are usually open on. So it all makes sense now. Well hopefully they are moving or will reopen soon. :o\

Hisashiburi

2008-01-31T22:18:00.000-10:00

Hi everyone. Happy New Year! I know I haven't posted in a while, but I have been eating! Here are pictures from some meals that I had this week. Click on the pictures to take you to the photo set.

Sushi Koh (鮨好)

2007-09-05T11:37:00.000-10:00

Hey all! Long time... Been busy with a new job and I have other projects going on. I got a couple motorcycles I am building, a new car that I am trying not to modify ;), home renovations and have been surfing a lot. But, anywho, today I will be posting some old pics (Nov. 2002) from one of my favorite sushi spots, Sushi Koh. I last wrote that they moved and I have been there many times since. So without further ado here are the pictures.

Hon-Maguro Ootoro

Engawa

Aburi Sake

Aji

Awabi

Unagi

Sushi Koh Bakudan Koh Donburi

Ajitama Ramen

2007-03-07T19:12:00.000-10:00

On a recent night, while partaking in libations, a friend of mine, who goes by the handle, JiggyRamen, was raving to me about this new ramen place on Kapahulu. Now if you consider his handle choice and the fact that he AND his girlfriend, who stated that she doesn't care for noodles, was raving about this place, it must be good.

I was told it was in the same area as Starbucks and Jamba Juice, to park in the same lot and enter from the back entrance.

Follow the sign and you will find the "back entrance". A couple friends and I arrived right around opening on a Saturday evening. We were the first ones in there, but within half an hour the whole place became occupied. The interior was your typical ramen decor and nothing to write home about. They have a bookcase full of Japanese magazines and comic books. Fyi, the magazine "Fry-Day" has female nudity, so parents and those that might be offended of such, be forewarned. Of course my friends and I were all over it.

If you enter through the front you will be greeted with their sign with some Japanese hiragana that says "kotteri?". Which means, rich/thick. It refers to their broths.

As we reviewed their menu. I noticed that they had tsukemen, which they describe as "Cold Dipping Noodles". I love tsukemen because the noodles don't sit in the hot broth like Ramen, so the texture of it stays consistent through out your whole meal. So for those that haven't had tsukemen before it's like ramen but the noodles are served on the side.

We started off with some gyoza. Since it was early, they allowed us to make a "sampler" gyoza order. Where normally you would order 5 pcs. of either their Shantsai (Cilantro) or Nira (Chives) gyoza, they made one order of 3 pcs. Nira and 2 pcs. Shantsai. When this first arrived, the first thing I noticed was that the gyoza seemed small. They were about 2/3rds the size of your normal gyoza. The Shantsai was ok. I like cilantro, but I don't think it was a good pairing with gyoza. The Nira was good though. I like my gyoza to be juicy and both weren't juicy at all.

Friend K ordered the Shoyu Ramen. I sampled the broth and it was a bit richer than your normal shoyu broth. In the above picture you can see the fat floating around and it is definitely kotteri!

Friend J ordered the Kakuni Ramen. He also added the free chopped garlic option to his order. The broth seemed to be shoyu based. The Kakuni (braised pork belly) was very good. Pork fat rules! It was very tender and flavored well.

Friend C ordered the Goma Miso Tsukemen. I thought that they were a bit skimpy on the sides. There was only like 5 pieces of Menma (Pickled Bamboo Shoots) and a few sprouts. What's up with that? I tasted the broth and it was rich in miso and nutty goma flavor.

I ordered what my friend, JiggyRamen and his gf told me to order. The Spicy Negi Miso Tsukemen. I modified my order with chopped garlic, special garlic oil and chopped round onions. This dish was good but spicy. I was perspiring the whole time I ate it. If that mound of Negi (Green Onion) wasn't on my plate, my dish would have looked like friend C's plate. Again skimpy on the sides.

Overall the place is good. Flavors are rich like their street front sign suggests. Kotteri for sure. The only downside to this place is that the portions are small. Small gyoza, little sides and smaller than average portion of noodles. I will be back but not with a huge appetite.

Ajitama Ramen
617 Kapahulu Ave.
Honolulu, Hawaii 96815
808-737-1399

Lunch: 11:30AM-2:00PM (M-F)
Dinner: 5:30PM-9:30PM (M-Sat.)
Closed on Sundays

Some Local News

2007-03-05T19:02:00.000-10:00

This is old news but, Masu's Massive Plate Lunch closed down last week. I have only eaten there a handful of times, but I always find it sad when unique local eateries close down. I like the diversity and character they bring to our choice of eateries. Read the full story @ The Honolulu Star Bulletin or The Honolulu Advertiser.

On to other news. Big Kahuna's Pizza is moving from it's current location to the Airport Trade Center. Read more about it @ The Honolulu Advertiser.

Well it looks like...

2007-03-02T22:21:00.000-10:00

The Taste of Honolulu is not quite dead after all. The non profit organization, Abilities Unlimited ,will be hosting it this year under the new name, "The Flavors of Honolulu". The Flavors of Honolulu is scheduled to be held from June 29 through July 1 this year.

Read more about it @ The Honolulu Star Bulletin.

Argggh!

2007-02-21T17:17:00.000-10:00

Crap. It was just a few weeks ago, after a nice late evening night cap and dessert, that I was telling my friends that I hope this place never closes down. That it's the only place that I know of that is open till 2AM that serves this level of food. The place is The Bistro at Century Center. And today the Honolulu Star Bulletin has a story announcing it's closing.

The best part of the Honolulu Star Bulletin story is:

"I attribute this to both its asinine AOAO board and its apathetic owners," said Laughton. Within a period of little more than five years, this board has driven away two of Honolulu's finest restaurants while becoming notorious for permitting massage parlors, hookers and drug dealers to operate with relative impunity... I cannot envision any legitimate restaurateur in his right mind following us into this space."

Read the full story here.

CHOCOLATE!

2007-02-07T23:35:00.000-10:00

With Valentine's day coming up and all, I found this cool article on 'the Best V-Day Chocolate'. Or so NPR says. For those thinking of getting your significant other chocolate, check out the article here.

More Japan Bounty

2007-01-31T16:18:00.000-10:00

Here is some more of the things I brought back from Japan.

For you lovers of Natto, I found a gatcha gatcha (capsule toy dispenser) that had Okame Natto charms. I bought 4 and got 4 different ones. There are a total of 8. What's even cooler about these is the fact that they have plastic natto beans, tare (shoyu based seasoning) packet, karashi (mustard) packet and an Okame face inside. You can see them in the second picture below. Apparently you can purchase them online through J-list.

Then at another spot I found a gatcha gatcha with charms of various dissected things. Mainly they had animals, but they had this Maguro (Tuna) one. I so had to have it and on my first and only try I got it. Yes!

From left to right: At Mujirushi, which is apparently is coming to America, I found some Goya chips. I picked up a 99% cocoa chocolate bar, which I am sure is crazy bitter. Lastly is a bag of Unagi bone senbei.

Recently I have been watching Dotch New Cooking Show and on one episode which put Shio Ramen (Salt Based Broth) up against Shoyu Ramen, they used Kuro Mame Shoyu (Black Bean Soy Sauce). That got my curiosity piqued, so I purchased a bottle to bring back home.

When I get to taste the Kuro Mame Shoyu I will hopefully post up a report of it.

Some Japan Bounty

2007-01-29T02:16:00.000-10:00

One cup sake sampler.

Current limited edition Kit-Kat's.

R.I.P. Taste of Honolulu

2006-12-12T19:12:00.000-10:00

Apparently the Taste of Honolulu has grown so big that it's not manageable by the Easter Seals anymore and next year they are not going to hold it. Oh well it was fun while it lasted. Hope you at least went to one.

Read more about it at the Honolulu Advertiser.

Food & Liquor

2006-12-06T21:39:00.000-10:00

I went to Marukai today and this is some of my bounty.

Yakiniku Zipper Pull

2006-11-28T23:28:00.000-10:00

Wow. This is not exactly food, but this is definitely food related. Over in Japan, there is a company that has produced yakiniku zipper pulls. Check it out at Tokyomango.

12 yrs. of Veggies

2006-11-28T23:17:00.000-10:00

Today I read about a 12 year vegetarian breaking her vows and starting to eat meat again on IHEARTBACON.com. Check the pics of her 30 days of pork on Flickr.

Burger Bar @ The Mandalay Bay Resort

2006-11-02T19:35:00.000-10:00

On our third night, while we were strolling about Vegas, my sister called me to remind me about the Burger Bar @ The Mandalay Bay Resort. She had previously told me that I had to check this place out and that they have a Kobe beef burger with shaved black truffles and foie gras. After hearing that I was like, "WOW, I do have to check it out"!

Since it was about that time to eat, we all headed toward The Mandalay Bay Resort. As we eyed over our menus I caught sight of the Kobe/truffle/foie gras burger. But, ouch, it was $60. So this is what I came up with as a nice compromise.

I made a custom burger consisting of a Wyoming buffalo patty, whole wheat bun, mozzarella, pan seared foie gras, black Perigord truffle sauce with a side of sweet potato fries. I chose the buffalo meat, because I though the leanness would go well with the milky mozzarella, rich foie gras and the truffle sauce. And by using the truffle sauce you still get the truffle flavor without having to pay for the actual truffle price. So instead of paying $60, mine was $36.55 including the sweet potato fries. Oh and it was a good call. The combination of flavors were just right. It wasn't too rich. The lean buffalo matched well with the buttery foie gras and creamy mozzarealla. And to top it off, the truffle sauce took it to that next level. The sweet potato fries were a hit too. I enjoyed them and so did my friends.

Among the other things we ordered was a Wyoming buffalo patty, whole wheat bun, "Sin City Beer" caramelized onions, marinated anchovies, mozzarella custom burger with a side of buttermilk onion rings. I had a bite of this and it was good. I should have stuffed one of the onion rings in and it would have been a winner.

Surf & Turf Burger - Black Angus patty, plain bun, grilled half lobster, grilled green asparagus with a side of french fries. I had a bite of this also and I thought that lobster, while being very good, doesn't really match being eaten with hamburger in the same mouthful. Lobster has too delicate of a taste to be muddled with the bold flavors of Angus beef and the likes.

I do recommend going here if you like your burgers, because they sure have a great selection of them. Being able to custom make a burger is great too. Also try the buttermilk zucchini fries and let me know how they are. If you want to see a menu click here (it's a bit outdated though).

The Buffet @ The Bellagio Hotel

2006-11-01T22:54:00.000-10:00

On our second night we went to a buffet. But not just any old buffet. We visited The Buffet, at The Bellagio Hotel.

The best thing about buffets are that when you are hungry, you don't have to wait for your food to be ordered and prepared, you can just go up and dig in. And boy were we hungry. One "problem" with this buffet was that there was much food to choose from. A lot of food. Ok it's not a real problem, but when you're hungry and you're just interested in getting back to your table to partake in your bounty, you don't want to be weighed down with sooo many choices. Hehe.

The choices are many. You got your seafood, meats, breads, pasta, salads, sushi, blah blah, dessert, etc. The list is long. Here are some of items from the buffet that we ate:

Bay Scallop Ceviche, Kobe Beef Sirloin, Rack of Lamb, Beef Wellington, Sake Nigiri and Maguro Nigiri.

Steak Tartare, Spicy Tuna Roll, Sake Nigiri and Maguro Nigiri.

Smoked Salmon, Rack of Lamb and Cocktail Shrimp.

King Crab Legs.

We ate at The Buffet on a Saturday and the price was $34.95 + tax per person. I heard that it is cheaper on weekdays. I dunno for sure though. I also read about a trick where you go and pay the lunch price about half an hour before dinner prices start and hang out until they bring out the dinner items. Voila, you get dinner buffet for lunch buffet prices. Next time I will have to try that. At any rate this was not bad for the money, but bring a hearty appetite so you can get your moneys worth.

Shibuya @ The MGM Grand Hotel - Las Vegas

2006-10-31T21:23:00.000-10:00

A few weeks ago I returned from my first trip ever to Las Vegas. Yes you read that right, I have never been to Vegas until now. So anywho, what were the few things that my friends and I did in Vegas? Eat, shop, gamble, eat and eat more! Oh and lose money. :o( Before going to Vegas I was told to visit Shibuya @ The MGM Grand Hotel and that I would love it. In fact I was told that it's better than Nobu. Not that it matters since I haven't been to either, but I have heard good things about Nobu. So what did we have and what did I think about it? Let's find out.

My friend ordered the Combination Tempura ($20). I might have had one or two pieces of it. I don't remember and I guess that means it wasn't anything outstanding.

Next up was the Toro Tartare accented with Achiote Oil, Beluga Caviar and Gold Leaf ($24). This was pretty good. I couldn't discern any flavor added by the Achiote oil and apparently Achiote is mainly used to add coloring. The salty Beluga caviar and the very rich toro melded perfectly in my mouth.

Kampachi Sashimi with Fresh Yuzu and Black Truffle Oil ($12) was brought to our table next. The crisp and clean flavor of the Kampachi blended well with the tart Yuzu and the very aromatic black truffle oil. I recommend ordering this if you ever visit Shibuya.

Following the delicious Kampachi was the Australian Kobe Beef Tataki ($22). It came garnished with red onions, lemon Tamari soy, tarragon oil and garlic chips. I have never had a bad order of beef tataki anywhere and this place didn't dissapoint. High quality Kobe beef combined with the tart/salty lemon Tamari soy, garlic chips and the herby tarragon oil are a really good combination that takes plain old beef tataki up a notch.

Following all those "fusion" dishes we ordered some sushi. We ordered a bunch of nigiris along with a Niji Roll ($19.50). The Niji roll is made up of crab meat, avocado wrapped in tuna, yellow tail, salmon, fluke, shrimp and eel. I didn't have any of the roll since I usually don't do "rolls". Yea I know that sounds snobby but when it comes to sushi I am. Or so I have been told. :op

The sushi here was good, but nothing great. Prices of the nigiris ranged from $8-11.50. Not that great of a deal when you later read about the really, really good sushi we had a few days after eating at Shibuya.

To finish off our meal we ordered the Warm Chocolate Cake ($10). The chocolate cake is below the rice tuile and the green tea ice cream. In the foreground you have poached lychee. The chocolate cake was good. The green tea ice cream was ok. It wasn't Dave's green tea ice cream which, if anyone from Shibuya is reading this, they should consider using. I didn't know how the lychee fit in to the dish. I couldn't see eating it with the cake since both are really sweet. I dunno.

Even though the sushi wasn't as good as it could have been, my friends and I enjoyed eating at Shibuya. Check it out if you are ever in Vegas. Just make sure you try their more untraditional menu items.

JP Serrato Pasta

2006-10-26T18:18:00.000-10:00

One of my coworkers often goes to JP Serrato Pasta (JPSP) for lunch. As matter of fact it was with him that I went on my first visit to JP Serrato Pasta. The first time I went I had some lunch special that really didn't impress me. But recently another coworker and I, which both of us happen to love the chicken anchovy olio from Assagios, were talking about chicken anchovy olio and the JPSP regular mentioned that JPSP has chicken anchovy olio for about $7. So it was decided that the next day that we had to have JPSP. My coworker and I both ordered the chicken anchovy olio, because we love it, did I mention we like it a lot?

For y'all that haven't had chicken anchovy olio, it is really a simple dish. You combine pan fried crispy chicken simply seasoned with salt and pepper, with minced garlic and anchovies that have been sautéed in olive oil and linguine. Anywho we both thought that it was missing a little something in the flavor department. Maybe a tad bit more anchovies and garlic. Also I thought my noodles could have been cooked a bit more al dente. But all in all it is a great value. And waaay better than paying about the same amount for some boring plate lunch.

Someone got the seafood pasta, but I only got pictures and no comments on it. Sure looks good though. Yum!

Moa Mua Tei (R.I.P.)

2006-10-12T19:47:00.000-10:00

I think these are the only pictures I have of the late Moa Mua Tei (MMT). This was and is the best all you can eat sushi/tempura restaurant I have been to in Hawaii. Back in the day we used to go to this place almost weekly. Visits to MMT tapered off towards the end when their quality and selection went down as they tried earnestly to make profits. I miss this place.

Sushi Bistro

2006-08-31T21:27:00.000-10:00

Last week a couple friends and I paid a visit to Sushi Bistro. This was my first time there and it was pretty good. All the ingredients in the dishes were of good quality and the flavors were well balanced. In addition they had my favorite sake, Hakkaisan for $9.75 a glass. Which is a relative deal. Selection of sushi neta was limited to your usual options. Personally I like neta that you don't usually find elsewhere. Anywho I'm not gonna bore you much more and if you want to read some professional reviews of this place check them out @ the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and the Honolulu Advertiser.

Dragon Fruit

2006-08-23T01:42:00.000-10:00

The other day I was shopping at Safeway and I stumbled upon some dragon fruit. I have never had it before so I bought one to try.

Reading on how to prepare it I found out it is part of the cactus family. As I cut it open I was greeted by what looks like cookies and cream.

Taste and texture: The meat has the consistency and flavor of pear. The seed remind me of the seeds in a kiwi fruit. All in all nothing to write home about but it was an interesting experience.

Kauai

2006-08-21T00:06:00.000-10:00

I just got back from Kauai. It was a nice relaxing weekend spent with friends and family. Here is some pics of what we ate for dinner tonite.

Supreme with a wheat crust (butter brushed on the crust) from Brick Oven Pizza in Kalaheo and some garlic saute'd prawns.

Oops

2006-08-13T11:33:00.000-10:00

Sorry guys and gals, I accidentally removed perms on most of the pics before I left for my work travel and I only caught it a few days ago. It's all g now.