Archive for the 'Hawaiian' Category

Furikake Kettle Corn

Published by Gastronomer on April 15, 2012 in Appetizer, Hawaiian and Recipe. 11 Comments

It’s high time we commence alfresco dining now that spring has sprung and summer is around the corner. These warmer months were made for breaking bread with friends and family under sunny skies and shady trees. While the burgers are grilling or the ribs are smoking, I highly recommend serving a big ‘ol bowl of Furikake Kettle Corn. It’s an addictive nibble that never fails to delight.

This recipe comes from Chef Roy Choi of Los Angeles’ A-Frame restaurant. I couldn’t keep my hands away from the bowl the first time I tried this Hawaiian-style popcorn. Every fistful of buttery kernels brought a hit of sweetness from Corn Pops, sourness from dried pineapples, savoriness from bacon, spiciness from cayenne pepper and chili flakes, and a whole lot of umami-ness from furikake. This unlikely combination of big, bold flavors had me hooked at first bite.

Making Furikake Kettle Corn requires very little preparation, especially if you’re using bagged kettle corn like this recipe suggests. The bacon needs to be fried and chopped, chives minced, and butter clarified. After that’s good and done, everything comes together in a snap. Serve the popcorn in a bowl, or better yet, channel the aloha spirit and spill it onto the table just like they do at A-Frame.

4 cups kettle corn
2/3 cup of Corn Pops
2 ounces clarified butter
2 tablespoon furikake
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tablespoon dried pineapple
2 tablespoon chopped bacon, cooked
2 teaspoon chives or Shiso, minced

Chop and fry bacon, mince chives, and clarify butter. Note: My dried pineapple came dusted in cayenne pepper, hence its darker appearance, so I skipped the “pinch of cayenne pepper.”

My “Qwik and EZ” method for clarifying butter entails microwaving the butter in a small bowl for 20 second at a time until it’s completely melted. Let the butter cool for a minute or two at room temperature and then skim off the white foam with a spoon. The resulting clarified butter isn’t perfect, but it’ll do just fine for this recipe.

Finely chop the bacon and dried pineapple together using a food processor.

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A-Frame – Los Angeles (Culver City)

Published by Gastronomer on March 29, 2012 in Asian Fusion, Culver City, Hawaiian, Los Angeles and Restaurant Review. 9 Comments

I found myself on the west side of town last Monday night following a photo shoot at Sotto. Rather than hop in my car and make the long drive home at the tail end of rush hour, I convinced my friends and fellow Eastsiders, Nastassia and Diep, to meet me for a bite to eat. Our destination this evening was A-Frame, stop number two on the Roy Choi Express. Choo choo.

While Chego dishes up “refrigerator food” in a fast-casual setting, A-Frame is a full-service “modern picnic” channeling the aloha spirit.

Chefs Jude, Chris, and Fernando on the beats. Beth on the sweets. Picnic! – @RidingShotgunLA

There’s usually a long wait due to the restaurant’s firm no reservation policy, but the crowds were mellow tonight, so our party of three was seated immediately.

Carrying on the picnic theme were communal tables, do-it-yourself silverware, and perfectly sensible enamelware. Diep loved these little touches, which made the place feel cozy and comfortable.

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Susan Feniger’s Street – Los Angeles (Hollywood)

Published by Gastronomer on October 25, 2010 in Breakfast / Brunch, Hawaiian, Hollywood, Los Angeles, Restaurant Review, Singaporean and Turkish. 18 Comments

I followed the opening of Susan Feniger’s Street with great anticipation during the early months of 2009. I had just moved into town following a year traveling and feasting abroad, so news of a local restaurant specializing in global street food was especially exciting to me. Every minuscule pre-opening detail, from the interior design to menu development, was captured on the restaurant’s “Street Noise” video series. I watched each one and felt like a privileged insider getting a behind-the-scenes look at the restaurant’s impending launch.

As stoked as I was to try Street, the lukewarm reviews that came out during the first few months of service changed my mind completely. It seemed that paying premium prices for street eats didn’t sit well with folks (see: $16 bowl of phở), and the hodgepodge menu was something of a minefield. Without glowing reviews all around, the restaurant soon fell off my radar.

It wasn’t until I received a 30% off coupon from Blackboard Eats some months ago that I finally made my way to Street for a meal. Ain’t no better motivator than a hefty discount and promises of kaya toast.

The Astronomer and I, along with our friend Laurie, brunched here one Sunday afternoon following a terrific volunteer sesh with Project Angel Food. We’d been up and on our feet since 6:30 AM, so we were hoping that this meal would be a real battery charger.

Brunch began with a plate of spiced Turkish doughnuts simmered in cardamom rose syrup and served with sour cream and rose hip jam ($10.50). The sweet and slightly floral doughnuts were grease-less, pillowy wonders that had all three of us seriously impressed.

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Cafe 100 – Hilo

Published by Gastronomer on July 19, 2009 in Hawaiian, Hilo and Restaurant Review. 13 Comments

Loco moco, a thoroughly Hawaiian delicacy comprised of white rice topped with a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy, was invented in 1949 in the city of Hilo on The Big Island. There are many people who claim to have invented the dish, but it is generally agreed that Cafe 100 or the Lincoln Grill created the first one.

I felt sick to my stomach after my first brush with loco moco back in April, so it took nearly a week on the islands for me to get up the guts to give it a second go. When I found myself in Hilo after an excursion to the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, I toughened up and paid Cafe 100 a visit.

Cafe 100, which owns the trademark for the term “loco moco,” dishes up over fifteen varieties, including ones made with “smokie” sausage and mahi mahi. Adorable hand-drawn posters that reminded me of projects from junior high advertised the most popular renditions. All of the loco mocos were priced between $1.99 and $5.25.

I went with the OG loco moco for a buck ninety-nine—brown rice, fried egg, hamburger patty, and gravy.

The weighty loco moco was packaged to-go in a plastic container. Both the plump grains of brown rice and the rubbery hamburger patty were swimming in a sea of gelatinous brown gravy. The gravy’s taste wasn’t offensive, just not nearly delicious enough to be drenched over everything. Come to think of it, I’m not sure there’s any sauce in this world that would taste pleasant ladled on in this excessive manner.

Although I’d love to say that loco moco on the motherland was ono to the max, it really wasn’t. It’s the end of the road for loco moco and me. It’s been real, brah.

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Cafe 100
969 Kilauea Avenue
Hilo, HI 96720
Phone: 808-935-6368

Hawaiian Style Cafe – Waimea

Published by Gastronomer on July 16, 2009 in Hawaiian, Kona Coast and Restaurant Review. 8 Comments

During my vacation on the Kona Coast, my family resided in a faux village called Waikoloa. Located a half-hour from the happening city of Kona, Waikoloa was a soulless bubble consisting solely of condominium clusters, luxury hotels, golf courses, and two malls that Tiffany’s, Louis Vuitton, and Macaroni Grill called home. Waikoloa’s complete isolation from reality reminded me of the expatriate communities in Saigon, down to the wrought iron gates out front. Although I’m not positive, I’m pretty sure that Waikola means “no grindz here” in native Hawaiian.

In order to avoid eating at the Mac Grill, I coaxed locals working in Waikola to divulge where they ate when they were off-the-clock. The most popular answer was Hawaiian Style Cafe in Waimea. On Lush’s final day on The Big Island, we made the drive out to the distant cowboy village to eat among fellow grindz seekers.

The interior of Hawaiian Style Cafe is pleasantly dated. A U-shaped counter, which easily sat twenty-five, ran along the main dining room. There were a handful of bright red booths to the left of the counter and a few tables in the back room. Lush and I grabbed two seats along the counter with a great view of the open kitchen. I informed Lush that open kitchens are all the rage on The Mainland.

All lunch plate joints in Hawaii seem to offer the same collection of condiments—Aloha shoyu soy sauce, mustard, ketchup, Tabasco sauce, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, and Aunt Jemima.

Lush and I decided to share a plate lunch after eyeing the huge portions in front of our fellow Hawaiian Style Cafe-goers. We chose a Mix Plate ($9.75), which allowed us to choose any two plate lunch entrees off the menu, plus two scoops of rice and a scoop of macaroni salad. We selected the Korean chicken and the Pulehu ribs.

Kona-3

The wonderfully seasoned fried chicken was reminiscent of Kyochon’s soy garlic variety. I was hoping for a snappy skinned specimen, but this one lacked the classic tautness of KFC. The beef short ribs, which were grilled with Hawaiian rock salt, were slightly under-seasoned but satisfying nevertheless. The bed of shredded cabbage beneath the meat helped to cut the grease factor.

The lone scoop of mac salad was all mine because Lush is grossed out by mayo-laden pasta salads. Hawaiian Style Cafe’s mac salad was special because it included canned tuna and peas.

I’ve been thinking a lot about plate lunches since my trip and have come to the conclusion that they were aesthetically influenced by Japanese bento boxes. By employing ice cream scoops, side dishes can be separated from one another without resorting to individualized compartments and sacrificing visual appeal. This is a theory in progress…

In addition to our more-than-enough-for-two plate lunch, Lush and I shared a pancake ($2.25) in order to avoid the $2.75 split fee. We are tricky mothers.

Next door to Hawaiian Style Cafe was a little snack shop called Crack Seed, etc. Crack seed are preserved fruits that have been cracked or split with the seed or kernel partially exposed as a flavor enhancement. See here for the Vietnamese equivalent. For fifty cents, we picked up a refreshing and tasty li hing mui ice. I desired another as soon as we finished it, but Lush wouldn’t let me because too much salt isn’t healthy. Wah wah.

Instead, we visited Mauna Kea Snow, which was located on the other side of Hawaiian Style Cafe. Our shaved ice was flavored with lime, passion fruit, and li hing mui powder. The li hing mui powder was so bomb that I opted to snort it.

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Hawaiian Style Cafe
65-1290 Kawaihae Road
Kamuela, HI 96743
Phone: 808-885-4295

Crack Seed, etc.
65-1290 Kawaihae Road
Kamuela, HI 96743
Phone: 808-885-6966

Mauna Kea Snow
61-3616 Kawaihae Road
Kamuela, HI 96743
Phone: 808-887-2665‎