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Few would argue that ramen reigns when it comes to Japanese noodles in Hawaii, but it’s time to reconsider soba, a noodle for today and beyond as the health conscious become more aware of its combination of nutrition and the gluten-free nature of the buckwheat flour it’s made from.
Unlike many noodles that serve up more sugar than nutrition, soba contains 12 amino acids essential for building protein, plus antioxidants and nutrients including thiamine and riboflavin.
But all thoughts about science go out the window at Kikue, which takes this most casual and basic of ingredients to new heights when combining soba with such luxe ingredients as truffles, uni and caviar.
SOBA NOODLES made in house are the centerpiece of a menu that comprises many a guilty pleasure. For a foodie anxious to explore the many temptations on the restaurant’s two-page menu, it can look pricey, but having been there, done that, I would suggest taking it slow. With a meal built around a bowl of soba, all you really need to add is one or two side dishes. I’ve gone the multiple dish route, only to find my stomach pushed to its limit as the noodles expand.
Nine hot and cold soba dishes are available. Cold noodles are generally preferred because their delicate nature doesn’t stand up to a lengthy bath. The cold dishes allow a more leisurely paced experience.
At the most basic, hot or cold plain soba is $9. The next level is soba with Kauai shrimp tempura ($18) or niku soba, served cold with a generous amount of thin-sliced pork belly ($19) and nontraditional broth, or tsuyu, for dipping. I liked the bold, strong flavors of soy sauce, sesame oil and cayenne, but those expecting the usual tsuyu of dashi, soy sauce and mirin might find it too strong.
At the higher end, hot duck soba ($21) is topped with five pieces of tender grilled duck breast; cold truffle soba ($22) is loaded with shaved truffle, its signature essence flavoring the entire dish. My favorite, cold uni soba ($27), arrives like a work of art, the noodles topped by dashi gelee and a piece of uni in a pool of uni foam, topped with a small amount of caviar. Both the dashi and foam are wonderful in flavoring the noodles until the last bite.
Given the pricing and portion size of recommended ingredients, you’d probably go home hungry if you were to dine izakaya style without the soba. But given how filling noodles can be, a little goes a long way with such luxe sides as duck foie gras teriyaki ($24.50) and grilled A5 wagyu (2.3 ounces for $49.50).
The four pieces of foie gras are served temaki style with sheets of nori, truffle-topped rice, negi, wasabi and yuzukosho for making your own mini hand-roll sushi. It is like tasting a little bit of heaven as the foie gras spreads and melts on your tongue. The fatty wagyu can also be dabbed with a bit of wasabi or yuzukosho or dipped in ponzu. It’s served with a small helping of grilled vegetables such as mushrooms, negi, potato and tomatoes.
Also not to be missed, the toro aburi ($28.50), or torched fatty tuna.
MORE AFFORDABLE starters worth trying include the Kikue Royale ($8), a delicious cold chawanmushi topped with more of the dashi gelee, and comforting dashi tamago (Japanese rolled omelet, $9.50).
The menu’s weakness is its deep-fried items. The coating for the tempura ($18 vegetable, $22 mixed) is just not right, and chicken karaage ($9.50) is more flabby than crisp, even though the flavor is good.
For a short cut in exploring the menu, an $80 nine-course tasting menu features the Kikue Royale, sashimi, uni toast, grilled butterfish, soba salad, three “battleships” (wrapped nigiri), tempura and wagyu aburi — plus a choice of uni, truffle or niku soba. Soba and sake sets are $40.
The restaurant recently added a lunch menu of plain soba, donburi ($12 to $22) and soba-donburi combinations ($15 to $25).
KIKUE
3579 Waialae Ave.
Food: ***1/2
Service: ****
Ambiance: ***1/2
Value: ****
>> Call: 376-8576
>> Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. weekdays, 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sundays to Thursdays, 5:30 to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays
>> Prices: Dinner about $60 to $80 for two
Ratings compare similar restaurants:
**** – excellent
*** – very good
** – average
* – below average
Nadine Kam’s restaurant reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Advertiser. Reach her at nkam@staradvertiser.com.
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