Herringbone makes flavorful splash in Waikiki

Coming off of holiday in Spain and Portugal, I thought it would be difficult to return to the same old grind, especially after enjoying some of the best cod, octopus, smoked sardines and dourado in Lisbon.

The selections are different, but feasting on seafood is no less enjoyable here at home at Herringbone, which brings California chic to Waikiki via “Top Chef” alumnus Brian Malarkey’s ocean-to-table menu. The restaurant is the second from the Hakkasan Group to open at the International Market Place. The first was the upscale dim sum house Yauatcha. Both combine style with some serious eats.

I’ve always found it strange that on an island surrounded by ocean, we haven’t seen many seafood restaurants — I’m talking Western-style, not sushi bars — besides Monterey Bay Canners, since the days when John Dominis and Andy Wong’s family of restaurants (Chowder House, Orson’s, Fishmonger’s Wife) dominated the category in the 1980s.

Certainly, today’s restaurants have their fair share of fish and shellfish dishes, but for the sake of satisfying varied appetites and in light of fierce competition for consumer dollars, no one wants to leave the impression of excluding meat eaters. Herringbone, too, offers meat dishes but comes closest to being the seafood restaurant Oahu hasn’t had for a long time.

That said, this is not your mom’s or grandma’s seafood restaurant. You won’t find lobster thermidor or other time-warp classics such as seafood Newburg or oysters Rockefeller that were considered haute in their day.

Instead, Herringbone presents seafood as appreciated in the 21st century, as close to au naturel as possible, with plenty of local greens and just enough labor to make diners feel it’s worth taking a break from their own kitchens.

The setting is an oasis of planter boxes and living walls, with lights strewn overhead, effectively shutting out the rest of the world and allowing you to thoroughly engage in the magic of evenings spent here. Forget California, Herringbone’s patio makes me feel like I’m on a rooftop in Boston or New York.

Getting down to the business of noshing, I’ve noticed that most groups tend to start with a seafood platter. They range from a $75 “Skiff” provisioned with four oysters, a quarter-pound of Alaska king crab, half a Kona lobster and two jumbo shrimp; to a $155 “Yacht” featuring a dozen oysters, a pound of Alaska king crab, 1-1/2 pounds of Kona lobster and eight jumbo shrimp. In between is a $115 “Sailboat” laden with eight oysters, a half-pound of Alaska king crab, whole Kona lobster and four jumbo shrimp. You can save a lot going this route versus ordering a la carte.

I’m drawn to the Alaska king crab legs (market price, recently $35) because the legs are split in a way that allows nonmessy, date-safe access to the meat, and accompanying Devil Sauce of Dijon aioli makes a nice match. If you ask nicely, they may even be able to sneak you some spicy remoulade to enjoy with the crab.

Oysters on the half shell start at $3.50 per piece and allow comparisons among about five East and West Coast offerings that might range from Maine Damariscottas to Washington Kumamotos, as well as locally sourced Kualoa oysters. It’s geared toward the casual diner, rather than connoisseurs who enjoy exploring a fuller range of options. The oysters can be enjoyed with a splash of lemon, Tabasco, a slightly spicy kim chee mignonette, apple cider or cocktail sauce. Oysters are $2 each during oyster hour, 4 to 6 p.m. daily.

Yellowtail crudo ($23) spiked with truffle yuzu is a dream, but for a little Instagram shock value, there is the whole fish ceviche (market price, recently $28 for branzino), with sashimi sandwiched between the fish’s head and tail. Without a bath of leche de tigre, it’s more like crudo than a classic ceviche. Instead, the fish is splashed with olive oil, festooned with chili and cilantro, and served with a half lime to capture the citrusy essence of ceviche.

If you’re missing a traditional chowder, wrap your head around the concept of a Manila white clam flatbread ($22) that captures the creamy essence of the New England specialty.

Among Herringbone’s most popular items are yummy Ray Ray fries ($12) topped with furikake, green onions, tobiko and Rooster (Sriracha aioli) sauce; and Buffalo octopus ($17), the tako done up right, tender with crisped tentacles, the way I enjoyed it throughout Portugal and Spain. Let’s hope this becomes the new norm, replacing the rubbery treatment that’s been standard here for decades. Octopus this good doesn’t need extra help, but it’s doused with Buffalo wing sauce that I still prefer on chicken. Here it detracts from the sweetness of tako, but several people have told me they love this dish.

The highlight of the menu is a whole deep-fried fish (market price, recently $48 for opakapaka) served with roasted garlic and a California-style, pseudo-Asian sauce. A true, herb-filled Thai chili vinaigrette would make this dish exceptional.

Other entrees include ahi ($41) with blackening spice and Romesco sauce, and shutome ($38) with roasted Maui pine­apple and a sake-ginger beurre blanc, but I felt the presentations were less interesting than meat offerings that included the same bright notes we associate with fish preparations. These include Pono Pork chop ($38) coated in a kukui and macadamia nut vinaigrette that cut some of the barnyard notes associated with the local pork, as well as every critic’s litmus test, a half of crisp-skinned, perfectly roasted local chicken ($36). Capers with lemon, herbs and a sprinkling of furikake were all that was needed to create a lick-the-plate-clean dish. Because they expect diners to add that finishing splash of half lemon, it would be nice if it were wrapped with cheesecloth, because it’s a bit slick to grasp when coated with oils from the chicken.

The menu is mostly set, but presentations continue to be tweaked. I say this only to warn that appearances of dishes might differ from those on these pages. A greens dish of Big Island hearts of palm and avocado ($16) started as medallions of hearts of palm combined with beautifully arranged slices of avocado. It’s evolved to be a chopped salad requiring less work for diners but is no longer as picturesque for those who care more about their everlasting Instagram feed than a meal that’s gone in a few hours..

Nadine Kam’s restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Advertiser. Reach her at nkam@staradvertiser.com.