Editor’s Note: In the summer of 2022, just before Liliha Bakery opened its fifth location in Pearl City, these were the top sellers at the iconic local diner’s four other spots. We’re republishing this post because the meals and treats are timeless. Our top takeaway? Locals love hamburger steak!

These butter rolls. Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Just as every Zippy’s and every Rainbow Drive-In is a little bit different, every Liliha Bakery location is different. Only the “original” Liliha (the true original opened around the corner on Liliha Street in 1950) has beef curry and beef stew—and the best counter diner experience in town. The Nimitz Highway restaurant has Waffards, which are waffles layered with dollops of custard; Ala Moana Center’s one has mimosas (!); and the Waikīkī location, at posh International Market Place, has carved prime rib and milkshakes.

The top-selling baked goods at each place don’t vary: Coco Puffs reign everywhere, and the famous grilled butter rolls with neon raspberry jelly get their due. But country-style omelets? Even Liliha Bakery can’t explain why this scramble of three eggs with green and round onions, tomatoes and your choice of meat is the No. 1 entree at original Liliha and Ala Moana—except to note that breakfast is served all day, and these locations are the most heavily patronized by locals.

Other surprises: Liliha Bakery makes a mean oxtail soup. Who even knew there’s mushroom chicken? And though we buy the same best-selling pastries at every single location, mind-bogglingly, these do NOT include slices of chantilly cake.

SEE ALSO: These 3 Family-Owned Eateries Are Bringing Local Favorites to Wider Audiences

Now, the chain’s fifth restaurant is slated to open in Pearl City on Aug. 31. Given the mix of potential customers there, we’re betting the top sellers will be country-style omelets—and Coco Puffs. Of course.

Top 5 at Original Liliha

Country-style omelet: Is it the onions? Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Coffee Shop

• No. 1: Country-style omelet
• No. 2: Hamburger steak
• No. 3: Hotcakes
• No. 4: Loco moco
• No. 5: Waffles

Bakery

• No. 1: Coco Puffs
• No. 2: Poi mochi doughnuts
• No. 3: Cream puffs
• No. 4: Butter rolls
• No. 5: Chocolate cream puffs

Top 5 at Nimitz

Oxtail soup. Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Coffee Shop

• No. 1: Loco moco with fried rice
• No. 2: Country style omelet
• No. 3: Oxtail soup
• No. 4: Loco moco
• No. 5: Hamburger steak

Bakery

• No. 1: Coco Puffs
• No. 2: Poi mochi doughnuts
• No. 3: Chocolate cream puffs
• No. 4: Cream puffs
• No. 5: Butter rolls

SEE ALSO: The Best-Selling Local Slurpee Flavors of All Time at 7-Eleven Hawai‘i Are …

Top 5 at Ala Moana Center

Miso butterfish. Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Coffee Shop

• No. 1: Country-style omelet
• No. 2: Loco moco with fried rice
• No. 3: Oxtail soup
• No. 4: Loco moco
• No. 5: Miso butterfish (followed by hotcakes)

Bakery

• No. 1: Coco Puffs
• No. 2: Poi mochi doughnuts
• No. 3: Chocolate cream puffs
• No. 4: Cream puffs
• No. 5: Green tea puffs (followed by butter rolls)

Top 5 at Waikīkī

Loco moco with fried rice. Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Coffee Shop

• No. 1: Loco moco with fried rice
• No. 2: Country-style omelet
• No. 3: Mushroom chicken
• No. 4: Hotcakes
• No. 5: Loco moco

Bakery

• No. 1: Coco Puffs
• No. 2: Poi mochi doughnuts
• No. 3: Cream puffs
• No. 4: Chocolate cream puffs
• No. 5: Green tea puffs (then butter rolls)

SEE ALSO: What Are the Best Sellers at Rainbow Drive-In?

Editor’s note: The Natto Dinner has sold out.

Photo: Credit BJ Rivad

Natto lovers, the feast you’ve been waiting for is here. Our tradition of all-natto dinners returns on Natto Day, July 10, with an elegant seven-course slime fest at Nami Kaze. Chef and owner Jason Peel admits the pungent beans don’t put much of a dent in his wallet, but “I don’t want to be lazy and serve natto on rice,” he says. “It’ll be front and center—over the top, mixed in, in the sauces. For the most part, it’ll be gooey and sticky, yeah.”

First, some background: Natto Day is an actual thing in Japan, birthplace of the notoriously fermented beans, because 7-10 can be read as na-to in Japanese and because the Japanese like puns. Our own natto dinners date back to 2011, when a natto-durian dinner I organized at Izakaya Naru caught the eye of Scott Pang and Greg Sekiya. The two local natto fans were looking for a way to create a Natto Day celebration in Hawai‘i—and an annual tradition was born.

Since then, we’ve had natto dinners all over town: Pig and the Lady, Tokkuri Tei, Koko Head Café, Ethel’s Grill, Torae Torae, Feast, Zigu, Kaimukī Shokudo. These celebrations are open to all, with only one rule: You must love natto. There will be no substitutions.

SEE ALSO: Kampai at the Pier: Nami Kaze Is the Best New Restaurant of 2023

An all-natto dinner will be a first for Nami Kaze. The brunch spot and izakaya opened in 2022 and within months won the Hale ‘Āina Best New Restaurant award and became a semifinalist for the James Beard Awards’ Best New Restaurant in the U.S. Peel already has a natto dish on the menu, which I asked him to include on July 10 as soon as he mentioned its Thai chiles and egg yolk jam—it is the only existing menu item in an otherwise all-original Natto Day feast.

Here’s the course-by-course preview, with a recap of details and a ticket link at the end:

Photo: Credit BJ Rivad

1^st: Mrs Cheng’s Soy Milk Panna Cotta | Potato | Natto | Truffle | Uni

“The uni’s on top as a sweetener and creamer, and the natto’s in the sauce,” Peel says. “It’ll be really light on the bottom, then you’ll have little bursts of creaminess from the uni, then you’ll have the heaviness of the natto with the truffle. And I do like to put potato chips on it for texture.”

Photo: Credit BJ Rivad

2^nd: Maguro Natto, Nami Kaze style

(Grated Mountain Yam, Wasabi Okra, Natto, Egg Yolk Jam, Soy Gel, Puffed Rice)

“This is okra with kizami (chopped) wasabi with ginger scallion, Thai chiles mixed in with natto on top of that, maguro, egg yolk jam and soy gel. I’ll probably do some puffed rice on top.”

3^rd: Local Cabbage | Natto | Gochugaru | Cream Cheese

“We’re working with the GoFarm program, and they’re growing cabbages. So we did a salted cabbage that we charred with a sansho pepper and ginger cream cheese, then a kochugaru vinaigrette with tons of garlic. We’re gonna infuse the natto into the vinaigrette and get the texture of the natto in there. To me, it’s like a kim chee dip, if you want to get nostalgic on it, where you get the creaminess and the roastiness of the cabbage and the smokiness from the natto and the spice from the kochugaru. Everything’s gonna be in your face.”

Photo: Credit BJ Rivad

4^th: Clams | Sake | Seaweed | Natto | Onion

“Just a very simple sake-braised clams. I want to extract all the flavor out of natto and reduce that stock down and use that flavor as the base with sake and seaweed, and then get charred onion in there. We’re gonna serve that with [pastry chef Bev Luke’s] bread to dip.”

5^th: Kampachi | Ginger | Smoke | Natto | Butter

“Beautiful kampachi from the Big Island. I’m gonna smoke the butter in the natto and serve that over a porridge, with a lot of herbs in there. So it’ll be like a smoked butter natto sauce with some ginger. That’ll balance itself out—the texture of the natto with the soft rice and the kampachi.”

6^th: Mountain View Dairy Pork | Natto | Fish Sauce | Roasted Garlic (Cauliflower)

“It’ll be a beautifully glazed roasted pork loin with a huge fat cap. I’ll cook it slow and char it nicely. Pretty much braised and glazed and sticky and unctuous and cutting through the fish sauce caramel that I’m gonna add the natto to. It’s gonna have choke umami in it.”

7^th: Nuts | Natto | Fruit | Vanilla

“Bev is gonna do a mixed nut tart. We’ll have a caramel made with natto that’s gonna be laced throughout the nuts and will bake in there, and there’ll be poached fruit and a vanilla cream.”

2024 Natto Day Dinner at Nami Kaze

Where: 1135 N. Nimitz Hwy at Pier 38
When: Wednesday, July 10, seatings every half-hour starting from 5 p.m.
Tickets: $100 a person including food, tax and tip but not drinks
Drinks: Full bar or BYOB with discounted corkage; see below
Sake pairing: Optional flight of 4 paired sakes for $35
Parking: Free at Pier 38 around the restaurant

BUY TICKETS

Drinks are not included, but Nami Kaze has a full bar and is discounting its corkage fees for the Natto Day dinner. If you BYOB, 720-ml sake and wine bottles will have a $20 corkage; the fee for magnums will be $35.

P.S. Also per tradition at our Natto Day dinners, Scott and Greg are planning a short natto group activity that will produce two winners who will be crowned the 2024 Natto Day King and Queen. I can’t tell you what the game will be, but from early descriptions, it sounds hilarious.

Assortment of dishes from the upcoming Nami Kaze okazuya. Photo: Martha Cheng

Nami Kaze started out as a modern okazuya pop-up. Now the 2023 Hale ‘Aina Best New Restaurant winner and James Beard Award nominee is coming full circle: The eatery is launching Okazuma, a new okazuya concept by chef-owner Jason Peel. Frolic readers can preview a generous assortment of dishes at an exclusive tasting at Frolic’s Okazuma Okazuya Dinner at Nami Kaze on Sunday, May 19.

At the heart of the evening will be a parade of old-school and updated comfort foods served family-style in a sit-down format. But okazuya aren’t only about food. In a nod to the throwback status of the plantation-era delis that are still popular today, the evening will recall old-time gatherings with live Hawaiian music, lucky number prizes and take-home bento boxes filled with Okazuma logo keychains, magnets, treats and other omiyage. Comfy aloha wear is suggested; palaka is even better.

“We’ll probably have too much food,” says Peel, who named the okazuya after his mother and grandmother—aka Mama and Grandma—and the food they made when he was growing up on Kaua‘i. “Like dim sum carts of mini musubis going around. People can pick and choose, so I think that’ll be kind of fun. We’ll be refilling vegetable dishes and the musubi carts will be going all night.”

SEE ALSO: First Look: Nami Kaze, Okazuya-style Now, Izakaya Later

Okazuma opens for large-group pre-orders the same day, May 19, with announcements going up on Nami Kaze’s Instagram. Afterward, Peel says, periodic pop-ups will open up at Okazuma’s new space at Dole Cannery; on these days, anyone can walk in and order.

Tickets for Frolic’s Okazuma Okazuya Dinner on May 19 are $97 and include all food and tip but not drinks. There are two seatings—an early one at 4:45 p.m. and a later one at 7:15 p.m. Pre-order tickets here. Parking next to Nami Kaze at Pier 38 is free.

BUY TICKETS: MAY 19 4:45 PM

BUY TICKETS: MAY 19 7:15 PM

Here’s the evening’s menu:

Banchan to Start:

• Mama’s Kim Chee
• Taegu Carrot
• Zucchini Namasu
• Marinated Eggplant
• Shiso Tsukemono
• Spicy House Takuan
• Grandma’s Potato Salad

First Course:

• Sashimi Platter
• Hapa Poke

Assorted Musubi Carts:

• Shio
• Shio Nori
• Yukari Ume
• Furikake
• Spam Furikake
• Goteburg Furikake
• Kamameshi

Second Course:

• Mama’s Curry Croquette
• Mama’s Spam Hash
• Mama’s Somen

Third Course:

• Ginger Chicken
• Stuffed Shrimp Katsu

Fourth Course:

• Char Siu Pork Belly
• Smoked Meat
• Kaua‘i Pepper Beef

Assorted Asato Sherbet Cups:

• Mama’s Favorite Mango Bango
• Green River
• Strawberry

Frolic’s Okazuma Okazuya Dinner at Nami Kaze

When: Sunday, May 19, at 4:45 and 7:15 p.m.

Where: 1135 N. Nimitz Hwy

Tickets: $97 online, includes all food and tip

Nami Kaze, the izakaya that opened at Pier 38 last year and is now a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best New Restaurant in the U.S., is coming out with its first omakase tomorrow, March 23. The 16-course menu will highlight sushi and sashimi treatments using seafood from Hawai‘i and Japan, along with local produce and meats—but not in typical izakaya style. “I don’t want it to be one note,” owner and executive chef Jason Peel says. “The way we’re cooking is a combination, not just Japanese, but a combination of different items whether it’s hot or cold or grilled or fried. I guess I’m too ADHD. I just want different things.”

Dishes will include local abalone and an amaebi sashimi with flavors of ceviche. There’s beef shin from Maui, braised and described as “a play between French and local with some Japanese influences” that ends up “like a type of adobo,” Peel says. “My sushi chef likes to do a cure, so he’s doing konbu jime of salmon belly, he’s doing kampachi shimesaba-style on top of a hand roll. We’re using lardo from Bob McGee (of Pono Provisions), the pork from Mountain View Dairy, so lardo with uni and akami (lean tuna sashimi). We’re all over the place. We’re doing foie gras chawanmushi, tuna lobster ochazuke.”

SEE ALSO: Nami Kaze’s New Izakaya Style Dinner Is One of Honolulu’s Best

Maui beef shin with smoked onion and crispy rice. Photo courtesy of Nami Kaze Hawai‘i

The style—Japanese meets local, with influences from all over the place—mirrors the playful approach of Nami Kaze’s brunch and dinner menus. Its focus on different approaches to sashimi, nigiri sushi and hand rolls is meant to showcase the restaurant’s sushi chefs, Shane Tonokawa and Devin Hikosaka. The omakase will close with desserts by pastry chef Bev Luk.

The $180 menu will be available Thursdays and Fridays starting March 23—but not Friday, March 24—with one seating a night at the 10-seat sushi counter.

SEE ALSO: These 11 Hawai‘i Chefs and Restaurants are the 2023 James Beard Awards Semifinalists

Nami Kaze is up against 29 other eateries around the country for Best New Restaurant. Other Hawai‘i semifinalists this year include Andrew Le of Chinatown’s The Pig & the Lady (Outstanding Chef) and Kaimukī’s Breadshop and Fujiya in Mō‘ili‘ili for Outstanding Bakery. Sheldon Simeon of Tiffany’s Maui and Brian Hirata of Na‘au on Hawai‘i Island are among five Hawai‘i semifinalists for Best Chef: Northwest and Pacific—the same award Robyn Maii of Fête won last year. See the complete list of 11 semifinalists here. Finalists will be announced March 29, with winners revealed at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards in Chicago on June 5.

1135 N. Nimitz Highway, (808) 888-6264, namikaze.com, @namikaze.hi

Waffles or pancakes? It’s a decision I always—ahem—waffle on. But waffles are rarer: Almost every breakfast spot will have pancakes, but not waffles, since the latter requires special equipment. So they feel just a little more special. 

And here are four places where the waffles feel extra extra special, where I always order the waffles.

Wicked HI Café

Sourdough liege waffles at Wicked Hi Cafe. Photo: Martha Cheng

I am slightly less likely to surf the North Shore on Tuesdays because Wicked HI Cafe in Waialua is closed those days. Its sourdough liege waffles are my favorite post-surf snack, caramelized on the outside, slightly tangy from a long fermentation, a little bit chewy—like brioche smooshed into a waffle iron—and studded with crunchy pearl sugar. They are perfect plain, or with a little melted butter and maple syrup, but you can gild the lily by adding fruit or even bacon, egg and cheddar if you like both salty and sweet for breakfast.

Starting at $7.50, 66-935 Kaukonahua Road, Waialua, (808) 636-8162, wickedhislushie.com, @wickedhicafe

Café Kaila

Photo: Martha Cheng

Too often, Belgian waffles are cakey or dense or—horrors—soft. Not at Cafe Kaila, where they are airy, delicate and crisp, so light that it feels like I inhale one in a few minutes flat. But maybe other people do, too, which explains how the line outside Cafe Kaila seems to move fantastically fast. If you’re feeling extravagant, you can pile on the fruit options (strawberries, bananas, blueberries), though that turns it into a $20-plus waffle. Just think of it like a caviar supplement! But Cafe Kaila’s waffle is still a beautiful thing plain or with just one additional fruit to balance the maple syrup.

Starting at $11.50, 2919 Kapi‘olani Blvd., cafe-kaila-hawaii.com, @cafekaila

Upon Waffles

Photo: Martha Cheng

I didn’t expect much from this unassuming vendor inside Palama Market on Makaloa, but it was a surprise hit, with shatteringly crisp yet light waffles. It borrows a crepe stand format (are waffles the new crepes?), with light and crispy thin waffles folded over fillings like Nutella and strawberry, peanut butter and banana, or azuki, with a smear of whipped topping. Made to order and served straight from the waffle iron, adding azuki paste to it reminds me of hot and fresh taiyaki that I used to get with my grandma, and which is surprisingly rare these days. Now, when I need a waffle snack, or to relive those memories, I will head here.

About $7, inside Palama Market, 672 Makaloa St.

Liliha Bakery

Speaking of unassuming, the plain waffle at Liliha Bakery shocks me every time with its simplicity. It’s a thin waffle, so crispy it almost tastes fried. The hefty smear of salted butter on top (at least at the original Liliha—you’ll find a more dainty dollop at the other locations) combined with the syrup makes every bite salty-sweet perfection. I have a handful of favorite menu items at Liliha but this one is the absolute best. 

About $10, multiple locations, lilihabakery.com, @lilihabakery

The places we found most ‘ono, that thrilled our taste buds again and again: Frolic’s writers sent in their picks in secret, to avoid the temptation to broaden our spotlight by offering up a range of Hawai‘i eateries. Here are the results.

SEE ALSO: Our Fave New Hawai‘i Restaurants of 2021

Nami Kaze

From savory bowls of steamed egg custard “omelets” slathered with creamy mentaiko and embedded with ikura jewels to crisp, lighter-than-air ‘ulu tots stacked high in Grandpa’s crack barbecue sauce, Nami Kaze is a soul-satisfying look beyond the expected. Food and drink are consistent, timely and served with gusto. My favorite trick of 2022 has been convincing anyone and everyone who wants to eat to meet me there. —Maria Burke

Second favorite: Tiffany’s Maui

SEE ALSO: Sheldon Simeon’s Tiffany’s Maui Is a Homecoming for Palate and Soul

Nami Kaze opened its dining room in June for brunch … which is fabulous. Then dinner service started in November, which confuses me because I can’t decide which I like better. For brunch, I think The Omelette is my favorite—two eggs steamed to a silky custard texture and smothered in mentaiko mornay sauce. Or maybe it’s the ginger fried chicken. No, possibly it’s the cured salmon toasts. You get the picture. It’s impossible to choose, so you need to go there multiple times. For dinner, I’m pretty sure my favorite is the grilled abalone with house bread or the ‘ulu with tri-color dipping sauces, but I’m going to investigate further. Again. Soon. —Melissa Chang

Second favorite: Margotto Hawai‘i

SEE ALSO: We Tried Margotto, Kaka‘ako’s New Truffle-Centric Restaurant

I’ve already expressed my appreciation for Nami Kaze in lots of words, and this probably won’t be the last. I’ve been delighted from the first time I had brunch there, with the honey walnut shrimp and waffle, and chawanmushi masquerading as omelets, to my most recent visit, with Kona abalone dressed up oyster Rockefeller style and ’ulu tots that taste more like fried polenta. And keep that sake on tap flowing! —Martha Cheng

Second favorite: Le’s Banh Mi

SEE ALSO: Legit Banh Mi Lands on Top Floor of 808 Center in Honolulu

Nami Kaze at Pier 38 bewitches with fresh, unexpected flavors coaxed from plate after plate of predominantly local food—from carrots, ‘ulu and beets to lamb and a gallery of seafood. In a year when eating at new restaurants still seemed a rare treat, the creations of chef Jason Peel proved delightful because of the inventive way he prepares such a wide variety of ingredients. All the small plates encourage us to gather friends so we can try more dishes each time. I can go on about the tomatoes and the eggplant, both served hot and cold, the ‘ulu dishes, the Ahiki Acres beets pickled and served with avocado, quinoa and gochujang. Or the lamb special served two ways, the meat sliced with an herbaceous topping and the bones cooked in hoisin sauce so we could savor every bit. Each time, we find new favorites. —Robbie Dingeman 

I love izakaya culture. Small plates of shared food that allow me to experience many different flavors while engaging in spirited conversation. Nami Kaze has created its own izakaya footprint in the sand with an inventive menu and on-point technique. Within a comfortable setting of high ceilings, communal tables and an open kitchen, this has become a new family favorite on the list of izakaya to return to in Hawai‘i and Japan. —Gregg Hoshida

Second favorite: Prime Roast Café (opened end of 2021)

SEE ALSO: Date Night Dinner Downtown at Prime Roast Café

The lobster on the chawanmushi got me first. Having never been to Nami Kaze for brunch, my only inkling about Jason Peel’s style of food was from the reports of besotted friends. So my first bite was that lobster, followed by blistered shishito peppers and cloud-like ‘ulu tots—all spawned by simple izakaya and pub fare but touched with the unexpected: gochugaru and lemony brown butter, honey and preserved calamansi. The ‘ulu was dressed in Peel’s grandfather’s barbecue sauce and drizzled with grated tomme. The one-two-three punches immediately broadsided and brightened my world. —Mari Taketa

1135 N. Nimitz Highway, (808) 888-6264, namikaze.com, @namikaze.hi

SEE ALSO: Nami Kaze’s New Izakaya Style Dinner Is One of Honolulu’s Best

Little Sparrow

Photo: Thomas Obungen

Who would have thought to open a spaetzle concept in Hawai‘i and make it work? I love their signature spaetzle bowls like the Garlic Shrimp or the Poipu bowl with smoky kalua pig and grilled pineapple tossed with the bouncy egg pasta. —Thomas Obungen

Multiple farmers market locations, @littlesparrowhnl

SEE ALSO: Farmers Market Finds: Nouveau Spaetzle Bowls in Kaka‘ako and Kailua

Second favorite: Pizza Dadi

SEE ALSO: Pizza Dadi Brings Mad Bene’s New York-Style Pies to Ward Village

The izakaya-style spread at Nami Kaze. Photo: Thomas Obungen

Based on brunch alone, I had already thought of Nami Kaze as one of the best new restaurants to open in Honolulu in years. With a menu of honey walnut shrimp and waffles, and so-called omelets that are really decadent chawanmushi topped with mentaiko or shrimp and chile crisp, chef-owner Jason Peel shows off a playful originality. And now, with dinner, the creativity continues to pour forth. 

SEE ALSO: Nami Kaze Debuts New Seafood-Focused Brunch at Pier 38

Kona abalone. Photo: Martha Cheng

Dinner shifts into small plates, izakaya style. There are some obvious crowd pleasers, like the lobster chawanmushi for dinner ($17) and Kona abalone ($22) dressed up oysters Rockefeller style, doused in butter and topped with garlicky kale and a sprinkling of Sweet Land Farm’s goat cheese tomme. Put spendy items like lobster and abalone on anything, and people will go for it—though Peel shows much more care with these ingredients than many. But it’s his approach to often-overlooked produce that really shines. Take the cold-smoked tomatoes ($13) with Mrs. Cheng’s custardy tofu and a float of ume ponzu—ethereal, refreshing and comforting. Or the corn beignets ($9), puffs of air brought down to the earth with a dredging of Japanese curry salt and Kewpie mayo. 

Cold smoked tomatoes. Photo: Martha Cheng

Peel devotes his menu to seafood and vegetables—that focus much too rare in Honolulu. Even rarer: two dishes of ‘ulu—that tricky thing. A chef recently lamented that too many people mistreat ‘ulu, thinking it simply as a potato substitute and not understanding its starchiness. Peel understands. For his ‘ulu tots ($10), he lightens the heavy starch so that they’re more like fried bites of ‘ulu mousse, and pairs them with his grandfather’s recipe for barbecue sauce. The ‘ulu patatas bravas ($9) treatment is more conventionally potato-like—wedges of it deep-fried—served with dots of Hawaiian chile pepper gel, Kewpie, and teri gel, the presentation a tad fussy, but on the other hand, I can’t think of a better way to evenly distribute the sauces for each bite. Nami Kaze constantly upends my ideas of what will work, and couldn’t we all use a little shakeup in ideas?

‘Ulu tots. Photo: Thomas Obungen

Like brunch, the dinner menu can feel overwhelming. It helps to just ignore the sushi side, which I find less strong. The wine list is a bit rote, but the sake is not. There’s sake on tap ($10), a Bushido Ginjo Genshu that’s uncomplicated and robust, making it an easy pairing for everything on the table (it was out on my second visit, which made dinner a touch less fun). The Fukuju Hyogo Junmai Ginjo ($20) is exceedingly pretty and delicate—lovely to drink on its own but it can get drowned out by the flavors on the table. 

SEE ALSO: Islander Sake’s Omakase Sushi Restaurant Opens This Week in Chinatown

‘Ulu patatas bravas. Photo: Thomas Obungen

The dessert menu is the shortest section of the menu: currently, Asato Family sherbet and a green tea chiffon cake ($6) with lemon-macerated strawberries, light and simple. Here’s hoping that dessert eventually expands—I’ve loved pastry chef Beverly Luk’s sweets at her previous spots (most recently Hau Tree).  

But to talk of more feels a little embarrassing, like complaining about diamond shoes that are too tight, when there is already so much on the menu to explore and delight in. Nami Kaze, as my colleague Mari Taketa says, “has brightened my world.” 

1135 N. Nimitz Highway, (808) 888-6264, namikaze.com, @namikaze.hi

Ouf, it’s hot. Give me a spoon and a halo halo, one of the best ways to stir me out of a lazy haze. Here are my favorite places for the maximalist Filipino dessert.

Via Gelato

Photo: Martha Cheng

Via Gelato’s special of the month, a halo halo sundae, is a showstopper: a Hawai‘i version unlike any halo halo you’ve ever had. Get the large, which adds a scoop of mango sorbet to two scoops of halo halo gelato, made with locally grown Okinawan sweet potato, fresh corn and swirled with pirie mango sauce. The gelato itself is a marvel, the corn providing pops of crunchy sweetness, but the sundae, in the spirit of halo halo, takes it over the top. Azuki beans and osmanthus jellies studded with water chestnut pave the bottom, more mango sauce fills in the gaps, and the whole thing is crowned with mashed sweet potato and a wedge of flan, then finished with sweetened milk and brown rice puffs. 

$15 for a large, 1142 12th Ave., viagelatohawaii.com, @viagelatohawaii

SEE ALSO: Try These New DIY Gelato Cakes from Kaimukī’s Via Gelato

Shimazu Store

Photo: Martha Cheng

Until recently, I didn’t know Shimazu sold halo halo, even though it’s literally listed on its sign, right after shave ice. Now, it’s one of my favorites. It’s the most restrained on this list, but Shimazu makes each component count, including coconut strips that taste of fresh coconut meat, slippery sweet coconut gel, and even an entire jackfruit pod, a treasure found at the bottom. Azuki beans, ube ice cream, a coarse shave ice, and evaporated milk tops it all off.

$8, locations in Liliha and Kapahulu, but call the Kapahulu location before going to make sure it’s not sold out

Magnolia Ice Cream & Treats

Photo: Martha Cheng

Nine ingredients, contributing to a riot of textures and colors, make their way into the signature halo halo at Magnolia, aka the Halo Halo Place. Coarse ice is piled on top of sweet beans and fruit, including jackfruit, saba bananas, macapuno (coconut strings), red bean, and kaong (date palm jelly). Good luck not getting the lightly sweetened milk to overflow as you try to mix in the ube ice cream and puffed crispy rice.

$7.74, multiple locations, magnoliatreats.com

SEE ALSO: My 8 Favorite Filipino Foods on O‘ahu Right Now

Photo: Martha Cheng

Max’s of Manila

I’ve had bowls of cereal less sweet than Max’s halo halo, which helps me justify it as a summer meal. There are even white beans in there—it’s practically a salad! An assortment of colored jellies lend texture while the flan, ube ice cream and ube paste add sweetness to the otherwise unsweetened milk and ice, somewhere between coarse and fine. 

$7.95, multiple locations, maxsrestaurantna.com/hawaii 

Jason Peel spent more than a decade opening restaurants for other chefs, including Roy Yamaguchi and Chris Kajioka. In between, he also herded 120 international chefs and 30 mixologists for the Hawai‘i Food and Wine Festival and spent six years as a culinary instructor at KCC.

So opening his own restaurant: easy, right? Not really, he laughs. Ownership is its own “crazy” thing, with so many details to consider.

But if it’s crazy behind the scenes, it doesn’t show: the first week at Nami Kaze, the first venture of his own, is already revealing hits, like a fried ginger chicken, wasabi okra and Hapa Boy poke, Peel’s take on Hawaiian-style poke. At the moment, Peel is only offering pre-order okazuya-style bentos as he readies the interior (and waits for the COVID surge to lessen) to reveal an izakaya with a menu of only seafood and vegetables.

More on that later.

Go to Nami Kaze now for the okazuya menu. Because when Nami Kaze opens for dinner, in about a month, there’s no guarantee the okazuya will stick around. Then you’d miss out on bentos like the Kaua‘i Boy ($12.95), Peel’s homage to his childhood in Kaua‘i, which includes ginger fried chicken inspired by the erstwhile Hanamaulu Café, and slices of fried Goteburg sausage, that summer sausage in the German and Scandinavian tradition, by way of the Garden Isle.

Goteburg musubi. Photo: Martha Cheng

There are also the Nami (wave) and Kaze (wind) bentos. The Nami ($18.95) features seafood like fried garlic shrimp (also inspired by Hanamaulu Café), assorted sashimi, and spicy ‘ahi made with meat scraped from the bone. The Kaze ($12.95) is a vegetarian bento with tofu poke, wasabi okra and carrot tegu—this was my favorite, along with the simple kamameshi rice musubi, seasoned with strips of kombu. You can also make your own bento or add on extras, everything from a char siu pork belly to futomaki (with ‘ahi!) and vegetable kakiage.

So think okazuya, down to the white cardboard takeout boxes, but made to order. “It’s nostalgic, it’s fun,” Peel says. “It’s a lot more simple. You gotta reach back to every form.”

Left: the Kaze vegetarian bento. Right: the Nami seafood bento.

But when Nami Kaze opens for dine-in, Peel plans on izakaya dishes crowned with luxury, perhaps a cauliflower porridge with chili crisp and option to add uni, or butter-braised ‘ulu topped with an ‘ulu crumble and caviar.

So back to the seafood and vegetable focus of Nami Kaze. “I love the people trying to raise meat on the Islands,” Peel says, “but I feel like there’s never enough to go around, for one. And I would like to cut back on meat,” for health and sustainability reasons. Plus, Nami Kaze’s location on Pier 38 (and literally under Fresh Island Fish) provides lots of inspiration. “Everybody loves steak, everybody loves meat,” he says, himself included. He’s up for the challenge of making vegetables craveable. Not that that means banishing meat from the kitchen—he’s considering a secret meat menu at Nami Kaze.

He has lots of other ideas, like “chef battle” nights, which is why he made Nami Kaze’s space, formerly Uncle’s Fish Market, with an open kitchen and floor plan (which even includes a pool table). And starting next week, he plans on making teishoku takeout dinners.

“I’m kind of all over the place,” Peel says. I’m not sure if he means with his ideas or right now, as he’s running around shopping for Nami Kaze. Maybe both. Which makes sense, for the once itinerant chef. But this time, it’s for his own restaurant.

Open Mon. to Fri., 10 to 2 p.m. (or sold out), 1135 North Nimitz Highway, toasttab.com/namikaze.hi, @namikaze.hi

Vegan early bird breakfast bowl, $12. Photo: James Nakamura

I never thought I’d say this, but forget sunny-side up. Today, I’ll take my eggs powdered. In fact, I’ll take some chicken and cheddar powdered as well. These and other made-to-order breakfast dishes, burgers, tacos—all made from magic dust as fine as the sands of Kailua—are cooked and served at Blondie’s Plant Based Food Truck. The vegan starter powder mixes are creations that owners Paula Rae and her daughter Cybil have been perfecting together since Cybil was a child—and are preservative-free, soy-free, nut-free, gluten-free, cholesterol-free, non-GMO, low in sodium, low in fat, and high in protein. They’re local, all natural, and made from a family recipe. Buy the hot, recognizable form at the truck (a double cheeseburger), or buy packages of the mix to prepare at home with your own toppings and sides.

SEE ALSO: These Vegan, Gluten-Free Cookies from Maui Are Every Snacker’s Dream

For guilt-ridden McGriddle gluttons flirting with vegan Mondays, here’s a breakfast bowl for your conscience—a scramble of potatoes, sausage and eggs on a medley of greens, with some tomato lomi and avocado slices ($12). For health-conscious whole-food vegans, there’s no methylcellulose, soy leghemoglobin or textured legerdemain in this stuff, just a blend of whole grains, vegetables, Hawaiian salt and seasonings. The sausage is herbaceous and savory. The eggs, a mix of mung bean and fava bean powder, have the textured curd of a scramble. They may lack the creaminess you get from an actual yolk, but it’s nothing the cheese can’t take care of. The cheddar comes from vegetable starches and coconut milk so smooth you’d think it came from a nacho cheese dispenser. And yes, you can even get breakfast sandwiches with vegan sausage, eggs and cheese for $10.

Not an early riser? There’s a vegan cheeseburger ($13.99 with freshly brewed sweet iced tea) on local buns made with ‘Ewa onions, a vegan barbecue sandwich ($14.99 with sweet tea) and other sandwiches, protein bowls and vegan tacos (2 for $10 or 3 for $12 on Taco Tuesdays).

SEE ALSO: Two New Pop-Ups Turned This Concert Venue Into a Vegan Hotspot

Cheeseburgers and breakfast sandwiches aside, Blondie’s is not fast food! And, although it may look like a Jetson’s-age bowl of powder that springs into a burger with just a drop of water, a lab-made Whopper it isn’t. It’s just veggies without the chemical binders and fillers. The mixes are available for sale, for everything from vegan chicken, beef and sausage to vegan eggs and cheese. Pour some into your palm, blow it into the sky and watch as the cloud forms a halo over your head.

SEE ALSO: New Riff on Chinatown Restaurant-Bar Brings Back Vegan and Vegetarian Fare

Find the plant-based food truck in the parking lot of Lowe’s Home Improvement in Iwilei Tuesday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Open Tuesday to Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. 411 Pacific St., blondiesfoodtruck.com, @blondiesfoodtruck