I was thinking this week, what are the most memorable Oahu restaurants from our past? These would be eateries that are now gone forever, but they once held you in some sort of embrace. You went there over and over again. The staff knew you.
Maybe you celebrated anniversaries there with your spouse, or it was your family’s Sunday dinner spot. Maybe you hung there with your buds or went for pau hana with co-workers.
Here are some of mine and some from my readers. What would be your top 10? Send me an email and let me know.
Alex Drive In
After basketball practice in an unair-conditioned gym in summer, we’d go to Alex Drive In on Kapahulu Avenue for a watermelon freeze every Saturday in the 1970s. It was so refreshing.
Patti’s Chinese Kitchen
I loved many of their entrees, but their lemon chicken had a hold on me for years. Crispy, boneless chicken with the sauce added when you ordered it. I can still taste it.
Sarento’s
My wife and I celebrated many anniversaries at this special occasion place atop the Ilikai. There were three “Sunset Booths” and we always reserved No. 2, with a great, unobstructed view of Ala Moana Beach Park, where we met in 1984.
The Bistro
My girlfriend, Katy, took me there in 1974. We sat at the bar and she ordered a Brandy Alexander. Co-owner Mike Pirics scolded her and asked the bartender for a split of Champagne. He poured her a glass. “This is what you should be drinking,” he told her. He was right. The Bistro, on Kapiolani near Keeaumoku, also had the best and tallest cheesecake I ever had.
Mama’s Mexican Kitchen
I went to the ones at School Street and Moanalua Shopping Center every week for years. I loved their taquitos, sopes and salsa. I can picture my regular waitress but can’t remember her name.
Wailana Coffee House
“The Wailana was one of the reasons my parents bought a unit in the Wailana Tower,” Wendy Tolleson said. “My smart mom knew that eventually she would have to stop cooking because of her dementia, and the Wailana would be right downstairs. She did stop cooking after her dementia became worse, so they ate there every night when I didn’t cook for them. They either ordered or went down to the restaurant.
“All the staff knew and just loved them, and they loved the staff. Many had been there for 20 years. They knew my mother wanted either kalbi ribs or oxtail soup with a salad. My dad liked the seafood grill and the meatloaf. After my dad died and mom moved to the Big Island to live with my sister, I would go there just for the memories of my parents.”
Like Like Drive Inn
Gere Ome Best said, “During my single days, Like Like Drive Inn was the place to go when the nightclubs closed down. Groups of people headed in to enjoy their saimin, bbq sticks, fried rice with char siu, roast pork and sandwiches, which no one has ever duplicated.
“Every time I had an appointment in town, I made sure that I could stop and get their roast pork sandwich. Talk about being in ‘hog heaven’ when eating it.
“When Like Like Drive Inn closed, my heart broke. Whenever I pass the location, my stomach still aches for their roast pork sandwich and other goodies. I then smile knowing that I grew up in the best of times when Like Like Drive Inn was at our beck and call.”
Columbia Inn
Russell Komoto said, “I’m probably the only one to take my prom date to dinner there in 1965. She was a nice girl who didn’t mind at all. Back then, promgoers used to take their date to pre-prom dinners at fancy restaurants like Canlis or the Kahala Hilton, in prom dresses and tuxedos.
“The lady who answered the phone said incredulously, ‘You want to have your prom dinner here?’
“Hey, I loved Columbia Inn, so why not?”
Oceania Floating Restaurant
Jo Anne Yamamoto said, “I viewed a recent Japanese drama filmed on a floating restaurant. It brought back fond memories of the Oceania Restaurant that was moored near Aloha Tower. It was beautifully majestic. Dick Jensen was a headliner there. The Chinese cuisine was not exceptional, but the ambience was there!”
Alan Wong’s
Roger Kobayashi nominated Alan Wong’s and Tripton’s. “We celebrated many occasions there. Friends from Indianapolis, Sue and John, also chose it to celebrate a wedding anniversary there. The Obamas liked it, too.”
Tripton’s American Cafe
“We went there often enough that when I forgot my wallet, they allowed me to settle the tab based on the credit card number I had memorized. This was sometime between 1985 and 1994 when credit cards had to be ‘run through’ a little gadget near the cash register.”
Seaview Inn
Bobbi Green added, “Seaview Inn in Haleiwa was a nice, local, low-key restaurant. It was known for their saimin, teriyaki and onolicious local food. Haleiwa Joe’s is there now.
Green also nominated the Haleiwa Sands — “they had good shrimp tempura and other local delights.” Yamada’s — “pork chops were their specialty.” Jerry’s Sweet Shop — “where teenagers hung out. Great hamburgers, 5 for $1.”
“In Mapunapuna, Bob’s Big Boy. Hamburgers, sandwiches, etc. Jumbo Drive-in, across the street from Bob’s Big Boy — fried noodles was their specialty. Henry Loui’s in Mapunapuna was famous for their ribs. I liked their calamari, nice, tender and yummy.
“Hackfield’s in Liberty House, Ala Moana, for a fancy lunch. Good sandwiches and salads. Victoria Station — dining inside a mock train.”
Lyn’s Deli
Robert Kawai said, “I remember going to Lyn’s Deli at Ala Moana Center and having their hot pastrami sandwich with potato salad and a mug of beer after work, then going across the street to the Kapiolani Theatre to watch a Zatoichi movie. Great times.”
Alan Okamura nominated Orson’s at Ward warehouse. “The food was delicious and the prices were reasonable.
“Tin Tin Chop Suey on Maunakea Street was the place to go late at night for won ton mein. Not the cleanest place, but the prices were good and the food delicious! I miss these places!”
Dewey & Susan Watson said, “In the early 1960s, Pat’s at Punaluu had the best coconut cream pie (Willows did as well); Coco’s at Kapiolani and Kalakaua was great for a late-night chorizo and egg snack.
“M’s Ranch house in Aina Haina — if you could eat the 5-pound steak in an hour, you got it for free, and every table was served a fresh miniloaf of bread.
“And for luxury, Canlis in Waikiki. I remember my mother being shocked that a baked potato cost 50 cents. Unheard-of price gouging!
“Queen’s Surf in Waikiki had a $1.25 all-you-can-eat buffet including sukiyaki and hekka; and how many first birthdays and weddings did we all enjoy at Wo Fat in Chinatown?
“Or McCully Chop Suey for beef broccoli and gau gee mein.”
Steve Timberlake said, “The Tahitian Lanai had the best Eggs Benedict in town! And they brought a basket of banana muffins to each table free.
“TGI Fridays was downstairs when I worked at the Honolulu Club, and the burgers were excellent. It was a good pau hana place for club employees.
“Pearl City Tavern was the family restaurant we loved before it became a Dodge dealership. It had the Monkey Bar and the Bonsai Garden upstairs, and its Japanese food was really good. I always had the pepper steak. I’ve never had a better one.”
Kevin Connelly suggested the Cannon Club, Lisboa, the Fog Cutter in Makaha, the Round House at Fort Shafter, Sizzler, Popo’s and Victoria Inn.
Seam Morris liked Alfred’s, John Dominis, Swiss Inn, Chicken Alice’s and Wisteria
Gene Kaneshiro nominated “all places Roberta and I went to on dates:
“Scotty’s Drive In, Chunky’s Drive-In, Tropics, Evergreen, The Bistro and Flamingo.”
We’re barely scratching the surface here. I can think of so many other favorites: Haiku Gardens, Kau Kau Korner, Ciro’s, Fisherman’s Wharf, Tasty Broiler, the Pottery, Renown Milano, La Ronde, Cafe Sistina, Palomino or Hungry Lion.
What about you? Let me know which restaurants you still think about, even if they are long gone. Next week I’ll let you know which ones rose to the top.
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Bob Sigall is the author of the five “The Companies We Keep” books. Contact him at Sigall@Yahoo.com or sign up for his free email newsletter at RearviewMirrorInsider.com.
