A Hawaii holiday will expose you to a wide spectrum of great sceneries, culture, and flavors. Hawaii is considered a melting pot due to the different peoples from all over the globe that make up its population. Aside from tons of pictures you will bring home, you will also have a ton of memory because of the gastronomic experience after your Hawaii travel.

This article focuses on the great local finds in Honolulu, Hawaii:

Best seafoods

Hawaii offers the freshest of freshest when it comes to seafoods. Try the poke which is usually made from ahi tuna and can be served either spicy or limu. In case you want your fish cooked, you can go for grilled tuna, steamed onaga, or maybe pan-seared name-we-have-it fish. If you are a sushi lover, Honolulu will be heaven! There are a ton of izakayas and sushi bars in town.

One of the best places you can go to is Nico’s Pier 38 along N. Nimitz Highway. A must try is their Furikake pan-seared Ahi but they also have their Catch of the Day which is the best pick of the chef.

Traditional Hawaiian

The best place to try the local food is the Ono Hawaiian Food in Kapahulu. The restaurant will let you into an experience of how the locals enjoy their great local dishes. In case you get an invite for first birthday party, cancel everything and attend the baby party! The first luau is an all out dining party which may come with lau lau, kalua pig, haupia, salmon, poi, and a whole cast of luau food.

Regional Cuisine

The Indigo Restaurant along the Nuuanu Avenue is in the Chinatown part of Honolulu. They serve great Eurasian cuisine using the best seafoods and locally grown veggies. They are also popular with the younger crowd because of their creative cocktails and drinks.

Another extraordinary stop is the restaurant of Chef Mavro. This restaurant is not only a favorite of locals and tourists but have been awarded as one of the best seafood restaurants. Aside from great food, you will have a great dining experience as the dishes are paired with a good collection of wines. You will not really choose from a list of wines but the chef will send you the best match for whatever food you order. You can go for the tasting menu which is served in six courses (and of course, six glasses of the best wines). If you have diet restrictions, the chef will prepare a good course that is adapted to your preferences. If you are celebrating an important occasion, Chef Mavro is a must.

Alan Wong’s resto is just a few meters from Chef Mavro is considered as among the best restaurants in Honolulu. Like Mavro, Alan Wong is also one of the founders of Hawaii Regional Cuisine. If you want to dine at this Honolulu restaurant, you must call and reserve seats in advance especially if you are travelling during peak seasons. The chef is famous for the Farmer Series menu for dinner which is his way of supoprting the local ranchers and farmers.

Shrimps

If you are craving for some shrimps, drive to the North Shore of Oahu. Ask locals how you can find the Original White Shrimp Truck of Giovanni. Bring your camera since you will catch beautiful sceneries on the way to your best shrimp experience in Honolulu. Order a plate of shrimp scampi and ask for a hot sauce if you want it on the spicy. You can also ask for extra slices of lemon.

Noodles

Locals of Hawaii love noodles and you have a wide variety of noodles to choose from. Try Pho if you love Vietnamese, pancit if you want to try Filipino food, chap chae for a Korean version, or a rice noodles of the Chinese.

Mixed plate lunch

The traditional Hawaiian lunch comes as a mixed plate with rice, potato or macaroni salad, and choice from a long list of entrees. You can go for a burger steak, chicken katsu, mochiko chicken, shoyu chicken, or maybe Spam. The servings are bigger than usual and only cost $7 to $9. It may not be the healthiest but it will be a fill you up quite good.

Some of the common destinations for a good plate of lunch are Rainbow Drive Inn, Zippy’s, Diamond Head Grill and Market, and the Kakaako Kitchen.

Sweets

If you have a craving for something sweet, ask the locals where you can find Leonard’s Bakery. This bakery sells the best Malasadas in all of Hawaii. Malasadas is a ball of bread that is deep fried and had a good roll on a plate of sugar. The best part is that you are getting them freshly baked and still hot. Malasadas is a good excuse to say that your diet restrictions are suspended for a day. Or two maybe.

End your day with a cone of shaved ice or the local version of sno cone. On a hot day, the best place for this will be Islan Snow or Matsumoto’s.

You can also get tropical fruits of the season from local farmers’ markets. The mangoes of Hawaii are good or you can also try longan, dragon fruit, lychee, persimmons, or cherimoya.