A fascination with food and fire is in our blood, dating back a million years to the first hominids who put 2 and 2 together to create the first culinary magic.
The primitive hearth also became a gathering place, such that the word “focus” derives from the Latin “foco,” meaning hearth, fireplace, pyre.
No amount of classical kitchen technique or contemporary concoction such as “a distillation of Thai flavors” or long pepper “bubblegum” with hibiscus and creme fraiche can match the primal attraction and evocative nature of foodstuff tossed on the grill to sizzle over an open flame. Add a skewer for scarfing each morsel with your bare hand and the seduction is complete.
Two restaurants, one new, one old but with a new format, prove this to be true.
Volcano Skewer House
It’s believed that the popular Chinese street fare of chuan, or flame-cooked skewered foods, originated in Northwestern China, a gateway to the Silk Road and where contact with Muslim traders introduced the concept of kebabs perfumed with cumin.
Chuan eventually made its way east to Shenyang, where skewer houses are prolific, ranging from small mom-and-pop shops to opulent restaurants, according to Rebecca Zhuo, co-owner of Volcano Skewer House with her chef husband, Eason Zhuo.
Originally from Shenyang, she said that the region’s cold weather drives people to seek the comfort and warmth of fire, and skewer restaurants provide a place where family and friends can huddle and commiserate over grilled meat and alcohol.
Half the joy of restaurants of this type is seeing the open flames. Alas, here, all the grilling is hidden away in the kitchen, so we don’t get the spectacle of seeing the flames licking at the meat being turned. But what is missed in showmanship is more than compensated for in flavor.
Only one spice blend seasons the meat here — predominately comprising red and Sichuan chile peppers, cumin and fennel — but light sauces and the ingredients themselves provide variety as the flavors mingle to present a full range from sweet to spicy.
At first, tongue-searing bites of grilled lamb ($5 per three-piece skewer), pork belly ($5/two pieces) and spiced mushrooms ($5/two pieces) had me thinking I was in for an unrelentingly spicy evening. But just as I turned to fire- extinguishing bites of savory garlic eggplant ($8) to tamp down the heat, other neutral-to-sweet selections arrived, from crispy chicken wings ($4/piece) to grilled beef ($5/five pieces).
Just as at a sushi bar, costs can add up quickly because each ingredient is a temptation. For some, seafood selections of shrimp and fish tofu skewers ($5 for two and three pieces respectively) will be the siren call, as well as garlic abalone ($12/piece) and grilled squid ($18). Offal lovers may be drawn to pork intestines, pork kidneys, or chicken hearts and gizzards (all $5/two pieces).
Vegetarians will find lotus root, sweet corn, green peppers and tofu at $5 to $8 per two-piece skewer. If you require starch with your meal, an order of rice is $2, and scallion pancakes (crisped oily flatbreads with scant green onions) are $8 each.
The restaurant has been open only about a month and is still a work in progress, with more elegant furnishings and artwork set to be installed next month. Diners can look forward to more dishes to be added to the menu.
Volcano Skewer House
808 Sheridan St.
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Food: ****
Service: ****
Ambiance: Work in progress
Value: ****
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Call: (626) 464-5908
Hours: 5 to 10 p.m. daily
Prices: About $35 per person
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Ratings compare similar restaurants:
**** – excellent
*** – very good
** – average
* – below average
Honolulu Skewer House
Like a Phoenix rising from the ashes, Honolulu Skewer House was among restaurants that appeared to disappear from the dining scene in December 2019, after just a year in business, only to recently emerge in Kapahulu stronger and better.
At the old Makaloa Street location, grill masters turned meat-and-veggie skewers in an open kitchen. The new grill-it-yourself format is interactive, entertaining and alluring to all who enjoy playing with fire.
One reason for the switch was that diners’ multiple grilled orders came out all at once, and food got cold while skewers sat uneaten. The new format allows you to control the timing so every bite is hot off the grill.
Tabletop box grills have a sliding mechanism that turns the skewers for you. This does not absolve you of attentiveness, as oils dripping from meat can send charcoal flames raging if you’re not careful about removing skewers and letting the fire die down before finishing cooking. Luckily, observant staffers are there to assist.
To the fire you can add all manner of meat, seafood and veggies, though a look around the room shows meat lovers abound. Favorite ingredients to start include lamb and beef ($6.99 for three skewers, $9.99 for five), chicken wings ($2.99 each), and rolls of pork-wrapped enoki mushrooms ($2.99 each).
I love how everyone can cook their skewers as they like them. There are always people in a party on opposite spectrums when it comes to a choice between rare and well-done.
In my case, anxiety over the chicken wings’ readiness led my friends to pull their wings off the grill early, while the skin was still soft. I left mine on until the skin was beautifully crisped.
Most ingredients don’t need an extra boost in flavor, but a 16-ingredient red pepper-cumin spice blend provided at each table enhances everything it touches … if you can take a little heat. Those with allergies are warned that the blend includes peanuts.
To accompany the skewers, you might order sides of scallion pancakes ($4.99 each), white rice ($1.99), toast ($2.99) or juicy pork and chive dumplings ($8.99).
If you’re OK with lots of garlic, the house tofu salad ($7.99) with chile and garlic sauce, topped with plenty of cilantro, is delicious.
The star of my initial visit to the restaurant was the hanging pork belly ($11.99) draped over a rack with thin-sliced cucumber, but this time it took a back seat to all the grilled specialties.
I was curious about the Taiwanese sausage ($2.59 each), but didn’t care for its combination of lup cheong flavor combined with enough sugar to make candy.
Daily specials keep return visits interesting. Recent offerings included abalone skewers ($5.99 per two-piece skewer), lamb shank ($8.99), crispy fish fillets ($9.99 for three skewers) and clams and mushrooms steamed in butter and garlic ($11.99).
There is a lot more on the menu to explore and people are already lining up for the fun experience.
Honolulu Skewer House
567 Kapahulu Ave.
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Food: ****
Service: ****
Ambience: ***
Value: ****
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Call: 888-8680
Hours: 5 to 10 p.m. daily
Prices: About $35 per person
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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.
