tifa2276

Hi everyone! We just got back from 8 nights in Oahu. 6 of those nights were spent with friends, some who have not been to Hawaii before. DH and myself were the tour guides and trip planners. Our group of seven adults was a mixture of beach and non-beach people, foodies, and athletic/outdoorsy types. I tried to plan stuff that would appeal to everyone but it was challenging. Overall everyone had an AMAZING time and they now understand why we go to Hawaii so often!

We had two rental cars between the 7 of us. DH and I stayed at a condo at the Fairway Villa which had parking and washer/dryer. The rest of my friends stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki and Royal Hawaiian which are right next to each other. Here was our itinerary for the week:

Friday (arrival day) - went supply shopping at Don Quijote, and tried Hawaiian food at Highway Inn in Kaka'ako for dinner.

Saturday - Honolulu Fish Auction, KCC Farmer's Market, Waikiki Beach, Pig and the Lady dinner.

Sunday - Diamond Head Hike, Koko Head Cafe brunch, Pearl Harbor, and Side Street Inn dinner.

Monday - North Shore day which got cut short due to bad weather. We got to visit Byodo-In Temple, Pali Lookout (no views as completely cloudy), decided to call it a day and went to Ala Moana Mall instead.

Tuesday - Sunrise at Sandy Beach, Koko Head Crater hike (difficult but what a view!), brunch and beach in Kailua, Dinner at Cafe Lani

Wednesday - Supposed to be a Waikiki beach day but ended up going to the North Shore since we hadn't gone yet. We made multiple stops including Kualoa Beach Park, Hukilau Beach, Kahuku shrimp trucks, Sunset Beach, and Haleiwa Ali'i beach (turtle basking!). Had to have Matsumoto shave ice, drove back down and had dinner at MW restaurant and my friends finished the night souvenir shopping at Don Quijote (did you know it's open 24 hours?)

Thursday - breakfast buffet at the Royal Hawaiian, my friends flew back to cold NYC but DH and I went back up north, going by Central Oahu, stopping at the Dole Plantation. We spent the afternoon at Mokuleia Beach (so pretty). We returned to Kahuku to get some poke and to try Fiji Market (delicious curries!)

Friday - Breakfast at Cafe Lani, DH went SU Paddleboarding while I did some shopping on Waikiki beach. Lunch at Marukame Udon, and spa treatments at the Outrigger Reef.

Saturday - our departure day, we went back to the KCC Farmer's Market one last time and then departed back home.

I'll go into more details about each day in my upcoming posts. Overall the itinerary was a good blend of everyone's interest. We all had a great time and my friends were wowed by the natural beautify of the beaches and mountains but they also liked having places to walk around and show (Waikiki) near their hotel.

emalloy

Good job with the planning for diverse interests, I'm so glad everyone had a good time.

dusty56438

Very nice! Thanks!

Songdoc

Sounds like a fun trip!

tifa2276

Friday (arrival day)

Myself, DH and three of our friends arrived at approximately the same time (3pm) so we all rode in our rental car together. DH and I got some early Hawaiian hospitality since we flew Hawaiian and were well fed by the time we got to Oahu. The others, not so much since they flew United and were starving by the time they landed.

The warm air in HNL was very inviting. We decided to get some snacks around the area before heading to Waikiki. We went to get fresh fried taro and sweet potato chips at Hawaiian Chip Company in Kalihi (about 10 mins away) which they absolutely loved. They also have these great tasting dips made by a local guy in Kaneohe, something like All Stars Dips. The Habenero is not for the faint of heart but some of my friends loved it. They also had a nice cooling spinach dip and we bought both dips and a large box of fresh fried taro chips. I asked for a few extra paper bags so we split up the chips and each person could season them as they wish. Our favorite seasoning is garlic, salt, toragashi and nori. Ono!

As we made our way down Nimtiz Highway we stopped for fresh poke at Nico's Fish Market. The Fish Auction we would be attending the next day was also located near Nico’s, but since we had a full schedule the next day I wasn’t sure if we could stop here then. The poke was very good although the selection is not as vast as say, Foodland or Taniokas. But you can be assured that all the fish is as fresh as can be with the fish auction just a few buildings away. The poke bowl was good and we ate at the few tables they had outside the market. We tried Hawaiian style poke as well as shoyu, and spicy made with ahi tuna, and we also tried marlin poke which was great.

We headed on to Waikiki, dropped my friends off at the Sheraton (the one that is beachfront) and went to check in at our condo, the Fairway Villa on Ala Wai Canal. This is our third time staying at this building, and it’s mainly because units in the building come with parking and a washer/dryer. There are limited buildings that offer both so we can’t be too picky. Our unit this time was a 1-BR vs a studio, but we were again on the 18th floor as we had been in the past.

Here’s our unit: https://www.vrbo.com/732338

Some info on the unit: I would say the unit is decorated lovely. Everything has been renovated, the kitchen and bathrooms are new and there are laminate wood floors. I would totally stay here again aside from one thing…the bugs. They are like roach like bugs and they seem to only come out at night. We saw one bug on our 2nd night, and two more the next day. When we saw four of them on the fourth night of the trip, we had to call the rental agency and tell them of this problem. They came while we were out and laid out traps and sprayed some of the areas a bit. From then on we did not see anymore bugs. We did not cook nor leave any food lying around at all. We only made coffee during the mornings. I was told this was never an issue before, and it doesn’t look like it judging from the unit’s 5-star reviews. I am thinking it could be from the previous renters, an apartment next door, or perhaps the cleaning was not as thorough as it should have been. Either way they had the unit exterminated right after we left and the rental agency and owner were very responsive whenever we had an issue and I’m pretty sure it has been resolved. Note that I have never experienced bugs before in the other unit we stayed in this building, also on the 18th floor. I’d like to say I’d stay in this unit again but as one with an irrational fear of bugs this fact will bug me (no pun intended) the entire time. Other than that we really enjoy the Fairway Villa for its convenient location and amenities. It's also just across the street from the Food Pantry and the new International Marketplace is down the block on Kuhio. I found the best way to get to the beach is to walk through the International Marketplace and exit at the other end: Kalakaua Ave. and the beach will be right across the street.

After we dropped our stuff and had a quick shower, we went to pick up my friends and go supply shopping at Don Quijote, we bought drinks, snacks, and fruit for the week. For dinner we tried traditional Hawaiian Food at Highway Inn in Kaka'ako. Some of my friends had not had it before, so I told them to get some laulau, kalua pork, and lomi salmon and the like. The laulau was very tasty, and the lomi saimon tasted fresh, almost salsa-like with hints of cured salmon. One of my friends also tried the fried butterfish collar with gravy which she loved, as well as the tripe stew, which also got rave reviews. Kalua Pork Nachos were pretty tasty as they came on sweet potato chips. However, no one liked the poi (it was the sour version). My salt meat watercress soup was super salty but I think that's the way it is supposed to be. I just can’t imagine anyone being able to drink this soup. So I ate the meat and vegetables that were in it. The loco moco another friend ordered was not as good as it looked, gravy seemed a little lackluster and was a bit too mushroom-y in flavor. The Haupia was a nice sweet treat at the end.

We were tired from the traveling but happy to be in Hawaii together! We were expecting 2 other friends arriving the next day and then our group will be complete!

We had an early night to prep us for the 6am Honolulu Fish Auction so we all returned to our hotel/condo to get some rest.

tifa2276

@emalloy - Thanks! I tried to fit stuff in that people wanted to do as a group.


@dusty56438 - Thank you!


@Songdoc - It sure was, thanks!

Inakauaidavidababy

Your reports are always a treat. I look forward to the Blog Report!

I thought of you on BI when we had our first and second most amazing acai bowl (I did a food report) It was from you that I knew I needed to have one for the first time.

Not to self promote, but remember inspiring you to visit the shroom farm.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...aii-island.cfm

Cheers and Aloha

tifa2276

@Inakauaidavidababy - Thanks! Yes I do remember the mushrooms! One day I will get back to Kauai.

Your BI trip report looks like a blast! I love farmers markets on Hawaii. We went to the KCC one twice on Oahu. I definitely needed more acai bowls though. I had a really great one at Sunny Days Monsarrat, but then we ate so much shave ice...sigh, we were always so full!

tifa2276

Saturday - Honolulu Fish Auction , KCC Farmer's Market, Beach and dinner at Pig and the Lady.

We awoke really early because of the time difference, luckily too because we had a 6am appointment for the Honolulu Fish Auction tour! http://www.hawaii-seafood.org/auctiontour/

We picked up our friends at their hotel while it was still dark out, and we all brought our puffy coats and wore thick closed-toe shoes as instructed. One of my friends even brought rubber boots. (They recommend it for the tour but not absolutely necessary)

The tour is the only live tuna auction in the United States and is a really great experience for those of you interested in this sort of thing. It started off with our guide from the Hawaii Seafood Council handing out headsets so that we could hear him talk. He took us around the dock areas and explained the different type of fishing and the fishing boat process. We could see the sunrise in the distance and it was great. The fisherman had already unloaded by this point but I heard if you come even earlier you could catch the tail end of them unloading. Either way, the dock was still very active with them transporting fish around the auction area.

The best part was when we got to walk into the fish auction floor. We had to step into a small dish of disinfectant solution about a half inch high so if you had thin-soled shoes you'd probably not be a happy camper, however a good pair of sneakers with a sturdy sole would be ok. We walked into a huge cold room chamber where different fish were all laid out by species, ahi yellowfin, ahi skipjack, ahi bluefin, opah, mahi mahi, marlin, etc. It was an amazing sight! There were people (auctioner and bidders) milling about but we tried to stay clear of them. Our guide explained the auction process and told us about the different varieties of fish. He also told us about fish quality and how supply and demand carries into the prices (basic economics). It was all very interesting and we could take as many pictures and video as we liked.

I highly recommend this tour if you want a unique and different experience on Oahu. It is no Tsukiji but it’s the closest we’ll get. All of us aside from one of my friends are huge seafood eaters, but even my non-fish-eating friend was very impressed with the tour and thought it was cool to experience once. Definitely dress warmly and bring some sturdy shoes. It will be a cold wet mess inside.

The tour ended close to 7:30am. After the tour we decided to check out Kamehameha Bakery about 5 minutes away before we headed to the KCC Farmer's Market. The bakery is known for their poi donuts and they often sell out. We arrived to a little crowd, you take a number and wait for your turn. The funny thing is they don’t really have signs next to any of their baked goods, so while they all looked great, we didn’t know what anything was. We ordered some poi donuts and pointed at various other things which looked good. The donuts were yummy, but you don’t actually taste any poi, it’s just a purple colored donut really.

We drove back to the Waikiki area and went around to Diamond Head and parked at the KCC. It was packed at this time (close to 8am) at the farmers market but luckily there were were always people coming and going so we found parking pretty quickly. There’s lots of stuff at the market, and it was great to wander around and sample different items. We ate takoyaki (legit, according to one friend who had just returned from Tokyo), giant ama ebi garlic shrimp (the biggest shrimp you’ll ever see), abalone, fresh cut pineapple, pineapple juice served (albeit gimmicky) in a hollowed out pineapple, some chicken and rice from The Pig and The Lady (delicious!), and tried a cruffin, the latest bakery trend that is a cross between a croissant and a muffin. Not too bad and it had a coconut filling to boot. We also had some fresh strawberry azuki bean mochi.

We tried local jams, cookies, and honey, drank Waimanalo Lemonade (the li hing flavor is my favorite!), sugar cane juice, and iced kona coffee. There was a lot of stuff to eat and sample and having friends there made it easier for us to try different things without getting too full.

We went on a little drive and got some blueberry cream cheese scones at Diamond Head Café and Bakery. They also had Banana and Cranberry Orange scones that day. They are very large moist scones and delicious! I always get one (or two) on each trip.

It was a very productive morning so we headed back to Waikiki for a rest/beach time. My friends chilled at their hotel while DH and I went to Waikiki Beach. It was a glorious day at the beach, the weather was perfect and the water was a good temperature. On the way back to the condo we tried some shave ice at the Island Vintage kiosk near the Royal Hawaiian on Kalakaua. Let me tell you, this is an amazing shave ice! Get the Heavenly Lillikoi and you will not be disappointed.

Our other friends, another couple, arrived at that time and they were staying at the Royal Hawaiian. We all met up that evening at The Pig and the Lady for dinner.

DH and I came here last year and raved about it. Not surprisingly, their menu has changed quite a bit since we were last here. We tried the Laotian Fried Chicken: outstanding. Truffle potato beignets: unfortunately our first order was cold. It was not appealing so we had to send it back. I was with friends who are major food-stagrammers and have exacting standards when it comes to restaurants. Luckily our next order was better but I still feel like these sounded way better than they tasted. Kualoa oysters were pretty good. A fresh farmers salad was delicious with lots of Vietnamese herbs, Oxtail Pho was lackluster and not served hot enough. We got two pastas which were pretty tasty and had unique flavors. The Balinese Fish Nasi Campur was great, and our steak dish was ok but we were pretty full by then. We also got 3 different desserts which were very unique and tasty. A sugar-cured egg yolk on top of meringue was especially pretty to look at.

Overall a fun atmosphere for dinner with unique food. It pleased the foodies but the non-adventurous may find it hard to find something to eat. I couldn’t help but think our meal last year was better but we could only taste 3 dishes last year before getting too full. We were all pretty tired after our early morning and traveling so we slept soundly that night.

The next day – Diamond Head, KokoHead Café for brunch, and Pearl Harbor. Stay tuned.

Patty

The auction tour sounds fascinating. I didn't know about it, thanks! Looking forward to more.

Songdoc

You're making me hungry!!!

tifa2276

@Patty - it's really cool. Definitely a highlight of the trip, especially since we go to Oahu so often and this was a new experience.

@Songdoc - wait until you see what the week brings us! Definitely a foodie-centric trip.

tifa2276

Sunday - Diamond Head Hike, Koko Head Cafe brunch, Pearl Harbor, and Side Street Inn dinner.

This morning we work up early to climb Diamond Head. On the way there we stopped by Iyasume Café Musubi for a quick breakfast of spam and egg musubis. It was packed inside! Apparently it’s one of the few places to get musubi at 7am. Their musubi is very good but they are mostly made-to-order so you may end up waiting a little longer. They do have pre-prepared ones sitting out on the counter but there is nothing like having them made fresh. Along with musubis they have all sorts of musubi souvenirs – musubi makers, t-shirts, stuffed dolls, reusable bags, etc. along with cans of different flavored SPAM. My friends found it all very amusing. Bellies satisfied, we drove and parked at the base of Diamond Head.

We had a wonderful hike up to the top. The weather was great and the views were amazing as usual. There weren’t that many people early in the morning but coming back down it got pretty crowded. I would say it’s a pretty easy hike, now that I’ve done it a few times. At the very top, most of my friends walked up the narrow steep staircase and through the crawlspace to reach the apex. Myself and another friend decided to take the more scenic longer route. I much prefer that as the crawlspace doesn’t appeal to me. I think this is a hike for everyone as for a little effort you get rewarded with beautiful views of the crater, ocean, and Waikiki beach.

Once back down we drove around the Diamond Head/Kahala area and came upon a gorgeous lookout so we stopped to take some pictures of the ocean. It was so pretty with the blue water in the background. Saw a couple of boogie boarders too. Heard the swells were picking up on the North Shore so pretty excited to check out the surfers the next day.

Koko Head Cafe is located in Kaimuki, a short drive away from Diamond Head. They don’t normally take reservations but through friends of friends who know Chef Leeanne Wong, they were happy to provide our large group with a table. We still had to wait about 20 minutes though since it was packed. In the meantime some friends managed to find a gelato store around the corner and indulged in some pre-brunch lillikoi sorbets which they loved (I think it was Via Gelato they went to).

At Koko Head café we shared some appetizers: dumplings of the day, Breakfast Congee (like a porridge with bacon and egg), and the kitchen sent out a platter of the Breakfast Bruschetta which were amazing: sweetened toasted Japanese bread with macadamia yogurt and brightly-colored fresh tropical fruit with local honey. It was hands down the prettiest thing we had the entire trip, and the flavors were refreshing and delightful. If the kitchen hadn’t sent this out I would probably not have ordered it as the description made it sound like a mere fruit platter and some toast but I kid you not when you bite into it, it’s like biting into the essence of Hawaii. I will have to order this from now on!

I had the poke bowl special of the day, which was pretty good. The loco moco skillets with tempura kimchi were popular too. The surprise dish was the luau skillet, which had a beef and taro leaf stew on top of garlic rice, sunny side up eggs, and tempura onions. It was a unique and extremely tasty dish. Koko Head café was a hit among my friends and I’m glad I took them there!

After an afternoon resting up at our condo/hotels, we got ready for our late afternoon at Pearl Harbor. 2 of my friends decided to sit this one out (they had been before) so we took the newbies to one of the most memorable sites in all of Hawaii. We had booked one of the last tours of the day but due to unexpected traffic, we ran late. We thought we were going to miss our 3:00pm boat launch, so when we finally arrived I ran out of the car hoping to grab the tickets and make a run for the boat. To my relief they had cancelled the 3pm tour and we were to join the last boat trip of the day was 3:30pm. Whew! We were just in time to catch our breath, watch the movie, and make our way onto the ferry to the USS Arizona Memorial. I was the first one off the ferry at the memorial and managed to capture pictures of the site without any people in it. I definitely recommend a visit to Pearl Harbor for all first timers. This marks my 4th time to the memorial and it’s always a moving experience. I’ve usually booked one of the first tours out to the memorial (around 7am), and it’s always been packed. The 3:30pm launch in contrast was relatively uncrowded and the light was very pretty in the memorial. Oh and remember, don’t bring any bags! Just very small camera bags/wristlets are allowed.

We had dinner reservations at Side Street Inn but we had some time to kill so we drove to Ala Moana mall to check out their new Shirokiya Japan Village Walk and the new Foodland Farms. They are amazing and the selection of food vendors is killer. We were scheduled to eat here after our North Shore trek the next day so we just wanted to scope it out a bit. The Japan Village Walk had dozens and dozens of different food stalls selling everything from curry rice, poke, to desserts made from edamame beans. There were burgers, tempura, musubi, omurice, practically everything under the sun with a Japanese influence. There were additional stalls that have yet to open as well. It was definitely one of those places where you’ll have a hard time choosing what to eat as there is plenty. Foodland Farms reminded me of a really fancy Whole Foods, but they had a poke bar which makes it even better! We bought some more fruit and some local snacks. Our taro chips had already been depleted!

Side Street Inn (Kapahulu location) was bustling. Lots of groups and families ready for Sunday night football. The game is obviously a replay but everyone was having so much fun watching as if it were live that it didn’t matter. Side Street Inn is a great place for groups because the portions are so large, not so much for a couple so DH and I never really get to go here on our couple trips. Our last time here was my family trip in 2012, so I couldn’t wait to take my friends here. I imagine if my family lived in Hawaii this would be a place we’d frequent a lot.

Specialties of the house are their “da works” kimchi fried rice and island pork chops. We got an order of both as well as a multitude of other dishes. I think we may have over-ordered but we did a good job. This is a great restaurant for those picky eaters as they have continental as well as local favorites that are sure to please many. The fried rice and pork chops were delicious. We ordered 2 different types of poke, steamed clams, sautéed garlicky mushrooms, chicken wings, teriyaki chicken, a farmers salad that had fried sweet potato crisps on top (delish!), sliders, and oxtail soup. It was a myriad of food and we were happy campers. Our total bill for 7 people was about $176 without tip and that included a few happy hour drinks. Extremely reasonable for the amount of food we got and we even had to doggy bag a few things.

It was a great day eating our way through the island…our next day was supposed to be a North Shore grand slam trek…but do we even make it?

ElendilPickle

I'm so hungry now!

Lee Ann

Songdoc

This sounds like an awesome trip!

tifa2276

@EelendilPickle - Thanks! Glad I whetted your appetite!

@Songdoc - It was an awesome trip! Definitely an on-the-go sort of trip but it's fun when you're with newbies and you get to show them your favorite places and restaurants.

tifa2276

Monday – North Shore Trek Rained Out

Today was supposed to be our grand circle island drive of the North Shore. We started out with a breakfast at one of our staples, Wailana Coffee House. It’s right near the Hilton Hawaiian Village. You can park in their basement lot for 75 cents with validation. We enjoyed some traditional diner-style breakfast with a local twist. Portuguese sausage became the new “breakfast meat” and DH tried the Hawaiian-style breakfast which is corned beef hash, two eggs, toast, and butter-grilled bananas. I always stick to the creamy and delicious muesli there. Yum. Stomachs fueled, we headed on out on our drive.

The skies were cloudy but we thought it could clear up a bit. Instead it got worse. While driving on the Pali highway it started to rain. So when we actually got to the Pali Lookout…there was nothing to see. The entire area was cloudy and visibility was zero. It was also quite chilly up there since it’s so windy. I described to them what it was supposed to look like on a good day. Undeterred, we decided to press on a little to see if the weather would change the further north we headed.

We ended up at the Byodo-In Temple in Kaneohe. It was raining pretty steadily at this point, but for some reason it only made the place seem more mystical. The beautiful red temple was quite majestic even in the rain and the mist made it seem surreal. We huddled under our beach towels and toured the property. If you don’t mind getting a bit wet, this is actually a nice place to visit in the rain. It made for pretty pictures despite the clouds.

I kept checking the weather in Haleiwa to see if it would clear up but it didn’t look like it so we decided to head back to Waikiki and just spend the day chillaxin’. We made a slight detour to Ono Seafoods in Kapahulu so my foodie friends could try some of my favorite poke on the islands. They really enjoyed it and we got the traditional shoyu, spicy, and some wasabi octopus poke.

We ended with dessert at Leonards malasadas. I prefer the traditional, non-filled masaldas with only sugar as a topping, but we also got tastes of mango, custard, and haupia (coconut cream) filled as well. Think the haupia was a favorite too. They are definitely lighter than I remember them, and I like how they are made-to-order so you can eat them while warm.

I suggested we go to the Ala Moana Mall for the rest of the afternoon since the rain wasn't letting up. Us girls had a great time shopping and the guys I’m sure went off on their own. We had an early dinner where we were going to go anyways, the Shirokiya Japan Village Walk. Everyone was overwhelmed since there were so many choices and we had to to several walk-thoughs to view each vendor. we were able to try different things. Different types of ramen, katsu-don, takoyaki (agreed the KCC Farmer’s market one was better), yakitori, gyu-don (beef over rice), curry udon, etc. It was a lot of food and we were all quite happy with our selections. I even tried the edamame ice cream. It wasn’t bad but I felt the flavor of the beans were a bit lost and kinda tasted more like vanilla.

While having dinner, some mentioned how fun it was to hike Diamond Head and wanted to know if there were more challenging hikes out there. We told them about Koko Head Stairs of Doom, and they immediately said yes, let’s do it. Even the non-athletic types were eager to just check it out, so it was decided we would do Koko Head Crater the next morning. We were scheduled to be on the East side of Oahu in any case. I hoped they knew what they were in for! I myself have never made it to the top at that point, and stopped short right when the “stairs” become a bridge over a chasm. We’ll see if we make it to the very top tomorrow.

Too bad the weather prevented us from doing our circle island tour that day but we had a good time with each other and spent the evening chilling.

Coming up, the Stairs of Doom!

tifa2276

Tuesday - Windward Oahu

The next morning we awoke before dawn to catch sunrise at Sandy Beach. I went there last year on a sunrise photography tour and it was just gorgeous so I took my friends there so they could witness a beautiful sunrise.

We got there around half an hour before sunrise and enjoyed the views and the sky changing colors. It really is a great spot to watch the sunrise at the beach and to take pictures. My friends were in awe and thought it was one of the most amazing sights they have seen.

Our next stop was not as easy…Koko Head Crater Stairs of Doom! I had warned everyone about what to expect. I myself have never made it to the top as I have a fear of falling - there is a portion of the rail track a little more than halfway up (at about the 550 step mark) which goes over a chasm. Apparently there is a detour which allows you to bypass it and make it to the top. I think everyone was pumped up about this hike although it was definitely more strenuous than they thought it would be. Five of us successfully made it to the very top. I took the detour and was able to bypass the chasm, albeit very slowly, and then continued all the way up. The track becomes very steep at points, almost turning into a ladder. The views up at the top are incredible. You definitely feel a sense of accomplishment. Then you realize you have to go back down! Going down for me was the hardest. The tracks are very rocky and uneven, and I always felt like I was going to slip and fall. I think we definitely burned off all the calories we ate and would be eating all week. It was a challenging hike and took up most of the morning.

After our incredibly active morning activity we headed into Kailua for brunch at Over Easy, a cute little spot that recently opened serving breakfast and brunch only. There was a long wait when we got there, around 40 minutes. So we just sat and rested outside and got smoothies from the store next door. Some of us also took a short walk to Agnes’s Portugese Bakery to try their fresh malasadas. They were really good and I highly recommend getting the cinnamon sugar ones.

Finally we were able to be seated and we were glad we had waited as we had a great meal. One of the best dishes was the Kailua Eggs, a dish made with rice, Portuguese sausage, sunny side up eggs, and a bacon cabbage dashi broth was poured all around it making it a local version of Japanese “ochazuke”. It was a very unique dish and we all enjoyed the food.

After brunch it was time for the beach! We headed to one of my favorites, Lanikai beach. It was a really beautiful day and the water was welcoming after our rigorous hike. It was just gorgeous and we wound up spending the rest of the afternoon there. Even my non-swimmer friends did not mind just sitting on the sand and enjoying the views. It just so happened to be Election Day that day so we created our own election, Hawaiian style, thinking of which of the Mokuloa Islands we would paddle to if we had kayaks. LOL.

Before returning to Waikiki we took a detour to Uncle Clay’s House of Pure Aloha for some delicious shave ice. I always get the combo with the green tea syrup, azuki bean, ice cream, and mochi. It was delicious and really hit the spot. Back in Waikiki, we just chilled for the evening watching election coverage on the news. Some of us had a late dinner at Café Lani, a newish café serving Japanese-western style food. We were really surprised by this café and we thought the food was delicious, the portions generous too. They have an in-house bakery and they give you unlimited bread. The bread comes in rounds and they have a variety of them a night. Pretty cool if you love carbs! (We all do)

For dessert we shared a giant ice cream sundae served in a huge martini glass. It served at least 4-5 people and was really yummy.

Coming up the next day, we finally make our way around to the North Shore!

tifa2276

Wednesday – North Shore Take II

Since we were rained out on Monday which was our planned day to the North Shore, we chose today to attempt it again, rain or shine. My friends were leaving the next day and it was our last chance to see the beautiful north which I had been raving about when planning our trip. Thankfully it was a beautiful sunny day and we got to see plenty of sights.

DH and I had an early breakfast at Sunny Days on Monsarrat Ave while everyone else had breakfast at their respective hotels. We really enjoyed breakfast at this cute café. DH got something called an Eggslut which is poached eggs atop greens, with toast and a mason jar of mashed potatoes and another poached egg. It was a very colorful and beautifully presented dish that was also really tasty. I had a gorgeous acai bowl. It was decorated with bananas, berries and other fruit and was almost too pretty to eat, but it was yummy too! We will definitely return on another trip.

We picked up some of the others and we headed up North! We drove the beautiful H-3 highway and reveled in the lush green mountains. We stopped at Tropical Mac Nut Farms right near Kualoa Ranch so we could do some souvenir shopping. We had a great time tasting the different flavored mac nuts and we all got gifts for friends and family back home. We went to Kualoa Beach Park and hung out there enjoying the view and taking pictures. I pointed out Chinaman’s Hat which is that cone shaped island in the distance, also called Lizard’s Tail, I think.

We continued north and made another beach stop at a personal favorite of ours, Hukilau Beach. It was absolutely gorgeous there and the beach was also quite empty. We spent some time here basking in the sun and waves. We also saw a spear fisherman, with his catch, a still-wiggling octopus. It was cool to see it and he spoke to us about his experience fishing in Hawaii.

When we were finally hungry, we headed up to Kahuku, which is my favorite town to stop for lunch on the North Shore. We made a pit stop at the Kahuku Superette which has delicious poke bowls. I don’t’ know what makes them so good, something in their sauce but it was my friend’s favorite, even over Ono Seafood. Then we went down the road for some garlic shrimp goodness…at Giovanni’s! Now Romy’s Shrimp is my favorite but I wanted my friends to try Giovanni’s because they had been reading so much about it and it would be a shame to not try a plate of garlic shrimp from the most famous shrimp truck on Oahu. Some of my friends don’t’ eat shrimp so they got some hot dog scampi instead, which is just hotdogs prepared in the garlic sauce. There are also other food trucks in the compound which is convenient. We tried some grilled corn too which was very good.

A little further up in Kahuku we stopped at Kahuku Farms which is the place we went on a short tractor tour last year. They had built out their farm even more and it was cool to see the hydroponic gardens. We got smoothies as I loved the papaya power smoothie here last year and it was just as good as I remembered! We also bought many of their local honey and all-natural jams and dressings made with produce from the farm. Very lovely place and they also have a cute café serving dishes made with vegetables and fruit from the farm.

We finally hit Romy’s shrimp shack after that although everyone was getting a bit full. We decided to share a plate of garlic and steamed shrimp just to do a taste comparison. We didn’t realize the garlic shrimp would take 45 minutes to prepare though! So we ended up cancelling that order and getting more steamed shrimp instead which was a lot quicker to come out. Just an FYI that Romy’s seems to make the garlic shrimp to order so it can take a while.

Our steamed shrimp were delightful. You can taste the quality difference in between Giovanni’s and Romy’s. We all agreed these shrimp were sweeter, more succulent, and plumper than Giovanni’s. I think it’s worth the wait to come to Romy’s, but maybe grab a poke bowl or a smoothie before in case you’re super hungry to make the wait less daunting.

We continued on around the north shore, enjoying the beautiful scenery. We stopped at Sunset Beach as the views were nothing short of amazing. The water was a gorgeous blue, the surf was high, and the waves were pounding the beach. It was spectacular during that time of year. We saw quite a number of surfers braving the waves too.

As we continued on towards Haleiwa, I stopped at the “Turtle Beach” - think it is Laniakea beach or something like that - but either way, there were no turtles here. It was the same last year as well, but I knew of another spot where turtles bask in Haleiwa itself so we headed there. I guess the turtles seemed to have found a new lounging spot! Haleiwa Ali’I Beach Park seems to be the new it place for turtles and we counted 4 giant turtles basking on the beach! My friends thought it was amazing as they have never seen one up close before. We saw some spectacular sights that reminded me of Bali Hai on Kauai as the sun streamed through some clouds in the distance. Very beautiful view here.

In the town of Haleiwa we made it finally to Matsumoto’s for some shave ice. It was very yummy and a great pick me up after our day at the beaches. At this point it was beginning to get dark and we had to head back to town because we had our last dinner at MW Restaurant. There was so much we didn’t get to do, there were other stores in Haleiwa we wanted to check out, and many other beaches we only glanced at. We didn't' get to go to the Dole Plantation, as it was closed by the time we headed back down. Traffic wasn’t too bad though and we got back to Waikiki in time to freshen up before dinner.

We had a late dinner at MW Restaurant and boy was it delicious. I had the tasting menu and had a selection of mini appetizers, scallops, mochi-crusted opakapaka, short ribs with foie gras, and amazing kula strawberry shave ice. I like how they have the big round tables for groups so it’s easier to converse. It was definitely a memorable last dinner with friends.

To round off their last night, we all went shopping at Don Quijote next door. I didn’t know it was 24 hours and it was pretty cool to pick up those last minute souvenirs or an extra bag to stash all the goodies you buy while on vacation. Some of my friends did not take note when I told them to pack light so they had to buy another small luggage. Lots of mac nuts, chocolate, and local snacks were purchased as well.

Coming up next … my friends depart Hawaii but DH and I still had 2 extra days on the island and we make full use of it!

tifa2276

Here's the conclusion of our trip report with the last few days being just DH and I. Hope you enjoy!

Thursday - North Shore Take III

Today my friends were departing Oahu and we had a last breakfast at the Royal Hawaiian. The couple who were staying there had generously accumulated enough breakfast vouchers for all of us to eat together (their room included breakfast but they didn't always partake in it every day). It was a nice little breakfast buffet plus a la carte items to order, and we sat outside under pink umbrellas enjoying the view of Waikiki Beach. The Royal Hawaiian is a beautiful hotel but their pool is tiny. It is a little round "pond" which I thought was just the hot tub. Not a big deal when the beach is right there, but I feel like when you pay for a luxury resort in you should get a pool area to match. The infinity pool at the Sheraton was much better.

We said our goodbyes as DH and I still had 2 days left on Oahu to explore on our own. We set out to see more of the North Shore we didn't get to the previous day, while everyone else got ready for the airport. It had been a blast to share Hawaii with our friends and they equally loved it as much as we did.

We drove the central route up and stopped at the Dole Plantation, mainly to get some Dole whip and to have a look around. Yes it's very touristy but I like to have a pit stop there and browse the shop, taste the pineapple, and I love Dole whip!

We continued on and ended up at Mokuleia beach which is further west that I have explored on the north shore. This is where parts of LOST was filmed, including the pilot episode. It's a lovely, very empty beach; in fact I think I only saw 5 people at a time there. The water was a bit choppy and seaweed-y that day so we didn't really go in but it was a very nice afternoon basking in the sun by ourselves. At one point we saw some horseback riders too.

We went back to Haleiwa so I could shop around and I got some cute little artwork and some t-shirts from Happy Haleiwa, probably the cutest store on the island. I love it, and their North Shore location is the biggest.

Fueled up with some iced coffees from Island Vintage we headed back to Kahuku to enjoy an early dinner. I’ve always wanted to try the curries at Fiji Market so we headed there. The Fiji Market is a tiny little grocery store selling South pacific/Fijian products that are normally hard to find in most US areas. The little gem though is the window in the back of the store selling their made-to order curry plates to-go. We ordered the “corned beef” curry which is served with rice and roti. It was delicious and a huge portion big enough for DH and I. I’d never tasted corned beef curry but heard it was a specialty. It was spicy and savory and really good. The roti was great as well. We ate at one of the few tables they had outside the store. I’d definitely come back and wish we had more time to spend trying out the other curries. We also grabbed a poke bowl from the Kahuku Superette which is across the street, before driving back to the condo. It’s a great poke bowl, one of the best on the island I’ve decided.


Friday – Waikiki

Decided on our last day to take it easy in the Waikiki area. We started with a delicious breakfast at Café Lani. We returned here because we had a great meal earlier in the week with our friends so we decided to try breakfast/brunch. They have soufflé omelets which are the size of my head, but very light and fluffy so they aren’t as dense as you think. Everything tasted great and the unlimited bread is always welcome.

We made a stop at Costco to buy chocolates and mac nuts gifts for people back home. DH then went to rent a SUP while I continued walking around Waikiki shopping for X-mas presents. I had a lot of luck at the new International Marketplace and bought some Honolulu Cookie Co. tins which are always a big hit. I even got myself a snack at the new Matcha Café Maiko which specializes in green tea ice cream. I’ve never had green tea ice cream packed full of matcha flavor, and it was a deep dark green, not the pale green I’m used too. I got a parfait which was delicious and had mochi, fruit, and chunks of cake in it.

Match Café Maiko is right next to Marukame Udon, the ever-popular fast-style udon place so we had a late lunch there before heading to our spa treatments. We shared a giant bowl of their beef udon topped with an onsen egg. It was very good. We went at about 3pm and the place was still packed with a short line, not as bad as during the peak times where the line snakes around. It does move fast though, but sometimes seating can be a pain to find.

Our spa treatments were at the Laakea Spa at the Outrigger Reef. We had a couples massage and salt room sauna package. The salt room is a little hokey but it was just more time to relax. The spa itself is ok, not exceptionally luxurious but our massages were great and we got the couples package at a good price compared to other hotel spas in the area.

We ended the night with another shave ice at the Island vintage kiosk, and poke bowls from Maguro Brothers Lewers, which is a little take out window with fresh sashimi/poke bowls. They were very good. We had been to their stall in Chinatown last year and they had just opened the Lewers St location in Waikiki a few months ago. The Waikiki location is only open at night, after they stop selling at their Chinatown location during the day. You’ll have to get your food to go, or eat right there in front of the storefront; we saw many people doing this to enjoy the bowl at it's freshest!

It was our last night in Hawaii! We walked along the ocean breezes back to our condo and packed up before we had to leave the next day.


Saturday – Final foodie moments

We went back to the KCC Farmer’s market on Saturday to get some good eats before leaving the island. We shared some oxtail pho at The Pig and the Lady, and I got some food to go as well. Got my last refill of nalo-made lemonade in my mason jar too. I definitely think this market is a must-do for all foodies as there is so much to sample and taste all in one place.

We checked out of the condo and made our way to the Honolulu Coffee Experience – it’s a cute little center with a giant coffee roaster in the middle, plus a coffee shop, and gift shop. It’s a nice spot to have a coffee and to read about how Kona and Ka’u coffee is harvested and roasted. A great deal there is to order a Sidecar: a shot of expresso, a small cappuccino, a seltzer (to cleanse) and some chocolate-covered espresso beans served on a tray. This is all for a little over 4 dollars, a great deal for some very good coffee.

We had some time before the airport so we went to check out the brand new South Shore Village market at the Ward Center. A plethora of local designers including crafts, art, jewelry and clothing shops under one roof. It opened just a few days earlier and it seemed everyone was there to check it out. Some fun stalls here and very cool designs, some a little bit pricey but I do like supporting the local designers here.

Unfortunately it was time to leave beautiful Hawaii, we arrived at the airport and DH went to return the car while I waited at the terminal. It really took no time at all. We went to the Plumeria Lounge to await our flight. We have been to one of the Plumeria lounges before, the one in the inter-island terminal but the one we went to this time was twice the size. It was very modern and spacious plus they have amped up their offerings in the past 2 years, with lots more food and drink, including beer and wine, offered. We enjoyed this lounge and is a reason to fly Hawaiian air to the islands!

That’s the end of our fall trip to the Islands. We had a great time sharing our love of Hawaii with our friends. We had a pretty active trip but we are the type who like to be on the move most of the time, with some relaxation thrown in. Not sure when our next trip is, unfortunately looks like we won't make it in 2017 but I'm aiming for early 2018!