Hawaii - Island Breakfast

Whether you echo the idea or not, Breakfast, the so called the most important meal of the day, turned out to be the most memorable meals on my vacation days. Over a course of a few days, with a little help of the Yelp iPhone app, we drove our way around those Nearby would-be Hot Spots and they sure live up most of their hype.

First: Kaka'ako Kitchen. Located inside of the Ward Centers, it opens before most of the stores does in the plaza. Seating is spacious and clean; ideal for morning moods.

Below, the Hawaiian Egg Bread French Toast and the Local Breakfast that comes with two eggs, sausage and home fried red potatoes. Since they use local produce,  everything tasted fresh. At around $6 each, the generous servings are reasonably priced.

Kaka'ako Kitchen - Honolulu, HI
www.yelp.com/biz/kakaako-kitchen-honolulu
1200 Ala Moana Blvd Honolulu, HI 96814 | (808) 596-7488

---

Boots & Kimos. A re-visit since two years ago and it’s becoming a town landmark locally and to me personally.

Below, Banana Pancake With Macadamia Nut Sauce $8.59, with just the right amount of creamy nutty sweetness on the fluffy stacks that reminded my now two years old love at first bite. The Hawaiian Smoked Sausage was very juicy and savory while the fried rice took a different turn being tasteless and dry.

Although I missed the old hold-in-the-wall decor, the larger sittings certainly shorten the wait while keeping their pancake hot and onolicious.

Boots & Kimo's Homestyle Kitchen - Kailua, HI
www.yelp.com/biz/boots-and-kimos-homestyle-kitchen-kailua
131 Hekili St Kailua, HI 96734 | (808) 263-7929

---

Kihei Caffe. Whether you are a tourist or a smiling local, this is a spot you don’t want to miss when you are in Kihei.

Besides the great location and the ocean front view, their offerings are sure worth all the yelp stars. Below, French Toast 7.5 (topped with banana and macadamia nut +2), it’s crispy out fluffy in and everything one could ask for. It’s almost worth waking up in the morning. Don’t hesitate to ask for a second jar of coconut syrup because it will run out before you notice it.

Above, the Loco Moco Local Fry 11.95. It’s Loco Moco over fried rice like two eggs and a hamburger patty wasn’t enough. No, really. It’s savory, satisfying and you don’t have to be a Hawaiian to appreciate it.

Kihei Caffe
www.kiheicaffe.com
1945 South Kihei Road, Kihei, HI 96753 | (808) 879-2230

---

Gazebo Restaurant is located in one of the most beautiful private beach in the U.S.

Below, Combo Short Stack $8.25. Sausage & Eggs $9.5. Ocean view: priceless.

In case you haven’t already notice, I’m a pancake french toast addict. Gazebo’s version of my favorite staple was not the best I have had but with such view and a little walk of the beach afterwards, it’s unbeatable.

Gazebo Restaurant - Lahaina, HI
www.yelp.com/biz/gazebo-restaurant-lahaina
5315 Lower Honoapiilani Rd Lahaina, HI 96761 | (808) 669-5621

---

Visit my flickr page HERE to see the full size photos.

Torrance - TORIHEI

It’s conveniently located in a Japanese plaza right next to the Mistuwa Market. I can see myself getting in a habit of not cooking right after the grocery shopping and go dining out somewhere close.
Torihei has been rated the best Yakitori-ya in the So.Cal. among the foodie circles. We had been warned it being busy, so we got our 8pm reservation a week ahead and walked straight right in, passing all the eye-rolling-hungry-souls in the 45 minutes line. We felt good even before ordering anything.

Right after we walked in, thanks to their fancy fan, it’s virtually smokeless compared to other yakitori-ya.

The menu was pretty big and not limited to chicken only. Service was decent.

Below left, White radish - 1.95 from the Oden section, was cooked perfectly with nice light oden broth flavor.


Above, Grounded chicken on rice bowl with soup - 5.95, for those who need rice in every meal.

From the left, Chicken thigh, Half raw egg w/ salmon roe, & Breast w/ plum. For these less than two dollars each skewers, all the bites were all cooked to the right tenderness and seasoned well.

Again, the fire & salt masters at Torihei just keep hitting the perfect spot. (Beef tongue, Gizzard & Chicken wing)

The whole squid with mayo was gone in seconds.

While some people might considered the liver being cooked too rare here, it tasted fresh and creamy soft.

Fuwa-Fuwa (soft) chicken ball was one of my favorite bites. It was sauced generously and I really enjoyed the texture of little pieces of chicken cartilage (soft bone) they mixed in the balls.

It was a birthday dinner so we bought our own Banana Chocolate cake from Frances Bakery - Little Tokyo. There was this cakeage fee of $15 where they served the cake with some candle and plates. It was not the best of the deals but it did the trick.
Now I am a fan and yes TORIHEI is easily one of the best Yakitori-ya you will find in the Southern California.
TORIHEI

http://www.yelp.com/biz/torihei-torrance | 1757 W Carson St Ste A Torrance, CA 90501 | 310-781-9407