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Off the Wall Craft Beer and Wine opened nearly two years ago in Kakaako’s South Shore Market with a focus on self-serve taps offering local craft beers, ciders and a handful of wines, plus a 10-item menu of simple pupu.
The menu had been expanding before COVID-19, but food offerings have become more important than ever in light of general sentiment that it’s not safe at the moment to be in spitting distance of people who drink.
Off the Wall has emerged from the latest shutdown with a new chef at the helm of the gastropub experience, Lane Yasuda, who is working with co-owners Tomas Kloosterboer and Jota Munoz on further developing the South American fusion menu that reflects their respective roots in Argentina and Chile.
The space is small but elegant, and central to its design is the wall of taps. Fourteen are designated for local beers, three for local ciders, five for wine, and one each for local seltzer and kombucha.
It’s a bit disconcerting to have to present your credit card up front, but it’s necessary to work with the self-service system. You’ll be given a microchipped card, which tracks transactions, to use at the taps. Drinks are priced by the ounce and tallied on screen as you pour to keep you informed. Charges from the taps then appear on your final bill. The system ensures a credit card is on record should anyone “forget” to pay their bill.
Along with the microchip card, you’ll get your own hook for contact-less pulling of the taps. Then you can opt to sit at high tables inside the restaurant or low tables just outside, though still under the roof of South Shore Market.
Now that we’re allowed to dine out with friends again, this is a great place to reunite for lunch or dinner, with fun food options that don’t stray too far from the familiar, yet are unique to this space.
New additions include a refreshing ceviche ($14) that combines elements of the Peruvian original and Tahitian poisson cru (without coconut milk), with an added touch of pineapple for local flavor.
Chicken wings ($13) are juicy and meaty, brightened with a classic Argentine chimichurri sauce that is so loaded with parsley that it felt guilt-free. Overall, dishes here are so well-seasoned, but nongreasy and non-salty, that it feels much much healthier than what you’d expect of bar fare.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t sinful items, such as an order of papas bravas ($9), thick-cut fried potato wedges. If you’re ordering the Off the Wall burger ($16) or crispy ahi burger ($17) you don’t have to order these fries as a side; sandwiches come with them. Or maybe you do, because they’re so good you might want more.
Patagonian short ribs ($18) are also worth ordering. The tender sous-vide beef is blanketed in a rich tomato stew, served over garlic mashed potatoes with an extra touch of chimichurri sauce. That condiment also accompanies Big Island beef-filled empanadas ($11) that have been the most popular item since the restaurant opened.
More standard fare includes an ahi and avocado poke bowl ($12) with a spicy poke sauce, which I didn’t find that spicy, and a drizzle of unagi sauce. The real heat came with pepper threads topping the poke.
And a $20 charcuterie board with three kinds of meat, cheeses, nuts and, recently, yuzu jam, is great to pick at while enjoying the rotating roster of beers.
For dessert there is flan ($9), which people get to only after trying the brigadeiros (fudge balls, $9) and pave ($12), described as a Brazilian-style tiramisu because it’s constructed of ladyfingers. With its strawberry filling and whipped cream, however, I found it more comparable to strawberry shortcake.
OFF THE WALL CRAFT BEER & WINE
South Shore Market
Food: ****
Service: N/A
Ambiance: ***1/2
Value: ****
>> Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily
>> Prices: About $50 to $60 for two without drinks
>> COVID-19 precautions: Temperature check, masks, contact information collected
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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