Best New Restaurant: Tsukada Nojo

The idea of “farm-to-table” dining has been around for so long now that it’s losing its cachet as a selling point for restaurants. We are coming upon a day when use of fresh, locally sourced produce is the baseline. But Japan-based Tsukada Nojo shows there’s still plenty of unexplored territory in the realm of the farm-to-table izakaya. “Nojo” translates as farm, and the warm, wood interior with upstairs loft reinforces the wabi-sabi beauty of a farmhouse crafted from natural materials.

The restaurant offers many fun ways for diners to get their daily greens without any feeling of sacrificing flavor or protein. Chicken veggie tacos present an easy example of the restaurant’s philosophy. The tacos start with “shells” of thin-sliced radish that wrap around a delicious combination of yellow curry chicken morsels, tomato, onions and cilantro. Continuing on the veggie track, avocado lovers will swoon over the savory sliced nori avocado. Even tsukune gets a green component. The chicken meatballs are served in crunchy cups of sliced bell pepper and topped with a mild curry sauce.

Meals can be built around a centerpiece of bijin nabes big enough to feed four when enjoyed with smaller side dishes. “Bijin” translates as “beautiful people,” a reference to the chicken-based collagen broth said to work wonders on the complexion from the inside.

All this leads up to delightful desserts of Polar Bear shave ice in the shape of the arctic animal’s head. Vanilla ice cream forms the bear’s snout, and milk syrup contributes to its snow-white appearance. Yellow Bear shave ice derives its color from a thick mango sauce.

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1731 Kalakaua Ave.; 951-4444. Lunch, dinner. $$$

Fine Dining: Sushi Sho

Farm to table has come to the sushi bar through the vision of chef Keiji Nakazawa, one of Tokyo’s most influential sushi chefs, famed for his mastery of ancient Edo techniques. But don’t expect an old-school, traditional experience. Nakazawa combines fresh fish and shellfish with such locally grown produce as luau leaves, taro and Maui onions for something much more progressive — farm-to-table sushi incorporating the best of Hawaii and Japan.

With only 10 seats, this theater-in-the-round experience encourages connoisseurship. Guests sit in a semi-circle, receiving the undivided attention of chefs preparing course after course of exquisite omakase.

Free from distractions, both chefs and audience can focus on food alone for an intense experience to be remembered. Prix fixe meals often comprise 25 to 30 items. In between single bites of nigiri sushi might be chawanmushi with Kona abalone, caviar and uni; or grilled opah brightened with pearls of finger lime.

A highlight is vinegared fish prepared as it was during the Tokugawa shogunate beginning in the 1600s. Even if you don’t care for it, it’s fascinating to taste history in one bite and worth noting how sushi has evolved over more than 400 years.

Seating is limited to two seatings of 10 nightly; call between 2 and 4 p.m. and have your credit card ready to secure a reservation.

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Ritz-Carlton Residences, 383 Kalaimoku St.,Waikiki; 729-9717. Dinner (closed Sundays).

Best Casual: DB Grill

With proper nurturing, the homegrown DB Grill Korean-fusion concept could easily go on to take the nation by storm, and if anybody could manage this kind of leap it’s Henry Yoon, a Harvard University finance graduate whose former life was as a derivatives trader, before he entered the restaurant biz with brother-in-law Jin Hyuk Hong.

The menu is equal parts pop and polish, sure to appeal to broad tastes. How else to describe the way it veers from a playful, crowd-pleasing ramen fried chicken sandwich to elegant Thai mussels in a lemongrass curry broth?

There’s a lot to enjoy here, but start with kalbi that takes three days of tenderizing and slow-cooking to arrive at its luxurious, melt-in-your-mouth consistency. During the day it arrives complete as the Signature Kalbi Plate, with a side of duck-fat fried rice and sauteed kim chee. In the evening, the big-bone marinated short rib is an a la carte option intended to serve two.

DB spicy garlic shrimp is another must, with its savory chili sauce, bits of crispy garlic and cilantro.

Thirst quenchers include craft cocktails ranging from a soju caipirinha to a chocolate haupia mojito.

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4450 Kapolei Parkway; 376-0885. Lunch, dinner, late night. $$$

Best Breakfast: Scratch Kitchen & Meatery

For breakfast that’s big, bold and beautiful, head for Scratch. This newly opened spot in Ward Villages serves hearty and sophisticated specialties that hit on just about every start-of-the-day need.

Gotta have something sweet? A monthly French toast special could be slathered with apple butter and mascarpone or something equally sublime.

Lighter? A Yoga Bowl with crisp Brussels sprouts and roasted veggies and a sunny-side egg.

Something meaty and eggy? Pork adobo loco moco.

The approach to breakfast here is masterful, flavorful, whole-hearted. Consider the truffle-flavored roasted mushrooms with poached egg over a cake of crisp grits. All kinds of stuff going on in that dish, all of it packed with yum.

The Scratch experience began in Chinatown with Scratch Kitchen & Bakeshop, which provided the template for the Ward location. The original Scratch closed this summer.

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Ward Village Shops, 1170 Auahi St.; 589-1669. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (no dinner Sundays).

Best Lunch: Piggy Smalls

Chef Andrew Le knows family. Piggy Smalls, sister restaurant to his Pig & The Lady, opened to a lot of hype last year. The large daily queue of patrons makes it apparent that the food is as amazing as its older sibling’s.

Enjoy some of the popular items from Le’s Chinatown headquarters, such as the popular LFC (Laotian fried chicken) — fried chicken wings topped with kaffir leaves, shallots and peanuts, all drizzled with “money sauce.” The J. Ludovico chicken pho is a masterfully created bowl of spiced chicken broth, chicken meat, rice noodles and aromatic herbs, with a bit of acid from calamansi to bring everything together. It’s a bright pick-me-up dish perfect on a cloudy day.

But if you’re looking for something different, Piggy Smalls’ menu changes with the seasons, encouraging repeat visits.

Dessert items, specifically the Milk & Honey, is what makes this such a suitable lunch spot. A soft sponge cake is soaked in four kinds of milk, then topped with honeycomb candy, local bee pollen, raspberries, whipped cream and edible flowers. It’s a dessert almost too beautiful to eat and too heavenly not to finish.

But honestly, it doesn’t matter what you get. To quote the pink neon sign above the bar, “It’s all good!”

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1200 Ala Moana Blvd.; 777-3588. Lunch, dinner. $$

Best Dessert: La Palme D’or

Those who eat with their eyes are going to gain weight just walking into this patisserie, a siren song of delicate, colorful temptations that call out, “I’m beautiful! I need to be part of your life!”

La Palme presents French pastries in a Japanese style — cakes (layered or rolled), cheesecakes, tarts, custards, jellies and something called a Cookie Puff, sort of a cross between a malasada and a cream puff that’s a delight.

Buy a single portion (most in the $4 to $5 range) or a whole cake — the most popular is the Gateau au Fraise, or strawberry cake (available whole in three sizes for $25 to $45). Order a custom cake as well, for occasions from birthdays all the way up to weddings.

Flavors cover everything that pairs well with sugar, from berries to chocolate to green tea. Several gluten-free options are also available.

The beauty of these desserts is that no matter what you pick it will be cloudlike in texture and delicate in flavor. Which must mean it has no fat or calories, right? Yeah, just tell yourself that.

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Ala Moana Center; 941-6161. $-$$

Best Neighbor Island: JO2 Natural Cuisine

After a career in the celebrity-chef spotlight, Jean-Marie Josselin went dark. At least that’s how it seemed from Oahu, but on his home island of Kauai, Josselin has been a constant, known for his inspired, artful and tantalizing dinner creations. His latest restaurant, the 3-year-old JO2 Natural Cuisine, reflects the chef’s turn toward vegan fare, although certain seafood items kindle memories of his original A Pacific Cafe restaurants.

Plates here can seem like bouquets, garnished with edible blossoms that lend delicacy and a bright punch of color to each creation. Flavors are elegant and true, subtle yet distinctive.

The menu can be a bit of a moving target as Josselin works with seasonal produce, most of it from farms no more than 15 minutes away. But look for a taco with a “shell” made of thin-sliced jicama, a beautiful bowl of tempura-style green beans, or poached scallop ravioli.

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4-971 Kuhio Highway, Kapaa; 212-1627. Dinner. $$-$$$