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What are the most fondly Oahu remembered restaurants that are, sadly, no longer with us? I asked readers to vote for their top 10. Over 150 of you did.
Last week, I unveiled No. 25 down to No. 13. They were: The Bistro at No. 25, Waikiki Lau Yee Chai, King’s Bakery, Indigo, Third Floor, Keo’s, KC Drive Inn, Kuhio Grill, Haiku Gardens, McCully Chop Suey, Yum Yum Tree, Like Like Drive In and No. 13, Patti’s Chinese Kitchen.
I invited you to predict the top 12 and made you wait a week to unveil them, but wait no more. Here they are!
12. Wisteria (1952-2004)
The family of Jiro and Agnes Asato owned the Wisteria at 1206 S. King and Piikoi streets where the 7-Eleven gas station and convenience store is today. Wisteria II was at Windward Bowl, and the family owned KC Drive Inn and several spinoffs.
Wisteria in Honolulu could seat 400. A 1954 menu list includes laulau with lomi salmon and poi, 85 cents; Blue Point oysters with tartar sauce, $1; hamburger steak, 65 cents; and broiled lamb chops, 95 cents. Meals came with soup or fruit cocktail, rice or potatoes, dessert and drink.
11. Ranch House (1948-1987)
“The exterior of the Ranch House was painted red, with white trim, and always looked faded,” Peter Young in Taiwan recalled. “It had a Western motif, with saddles, lassos and a little covered wagon.
“We would usually go there when we could get Tutu (grandmother) to go to church on a Sunday morning. She’d only go if we promised that we’d take her to brunch at the Ranch House afterwards.
“She really liked it because there was a handsome Hawaiian waiter there, about 40 years old. He and Tutu got along famously. He’d be singing snatches of old songs that Tutu liked, some of them Hawaiian, in a falsetto voice as he’d come gliding up to the table and put his hands on Tutu’s shoulders.
“He would sing any specials of the day, and she really loved that guy. I would sometimes order the Western omelet, and the waiter would sing about whether I really wanted onions, peppers, or — gasp — mushrooms in my omelet. It was a regular, funny routine.
“The food was always quite good there, with large portions. One evening the Makaha Sons of Niihau were playing live with Israel Kamakawiwo‘ole. He was amazing.”
10. Canlis’ Charcoal Broiler (1947-1988)
Coming in at No. 10 is Canlis’ Charcoal Broiler. “Canlis had an elegance unmatched by any other Honolulu restaurant,” Jack Davis believes.
“It was designed by local architect Pete Wimberly to look distinctly Hawaiian. The entrance was over a water feature, and there were lava rock walls with orchids growing on them. It had kimono-clad female servers.
“The food was excellent with delicious steaks, and the Canlis salad was made table-side and was unforgettable. A friend would sometimes go for just the salad ($1.50) and one of their huge fully loaded baked potatoes (50 cents).”
Owner Peter Canlis shared the salad recipe and it ran in newspapers around the country. Many mainland restaurants put the Canlis salad on their menu. (The recipe for the Canlis salad will be in my newsletter, or send me an email.)
9. Pearl City Tavern (1939-1993)
Pearl City Tavern opened in 1939 when only 800 people lived in Pearl City. It became famous as a gambling den during WWII.
Gordon Chang said, “Pearl City Tavern served lobster thermidor, which I had on a special occasion. The food was great, and it was always a special treat when we could afford to eat there.
“Upstairs was a collection of bonsai trees and plants. The monkey bar was the famous novelty that fascinated children and adults.”
8. Fisherman’s Wharf (1952-2014)
Tom Sheeran said, “Fisherman’s Wharf was our go-to for special family dinners. The nautical decor was fascinating to a youngster like me.”
“I wasn’t very fond of fish as a kid until I somehow got introduced to cioppino there — all the seafood in the shell, the delicious tomato broth, became my go-to order. Now I have to go to San Francisco for cioppino.”
Maile (Marcallino) Taylor said, “We hung out at Fisherman’s Wharf as kids. My dad continued to meet with his buddies for a beer there at pau hana time, every weekday, throughout his life, until he died in 1968. If walls could talk!”
7. John Dominis (1979-2010)
D.G. “Andy” Anderson opened John Dominis restaurant in 1979 and named it for his father, John Dominis Anderson. His family was friends with but not related to John Dominis, a sea captain who moved to Hawaii in 1837 and his son John Owen Dominis, husband of Queen Lili‘uokalani.
Ed Craig said, “I loved the evening view at sundown through the large windows. I was there several times, but the most memorable was a dinner where I treated a team of workers who had just successfully completed a yearlong effort to deploy a U.S. government computer system on Oahu military bases. The team had a great dinner, and I was very happy to pass along my thanks for all their efforts.”
Perry & Price’s KSSK live Saturday show broadcast from there for many years. John Dominis closed in 2010 and is now 53 by the Sea.
6. Swiss Inn (1982-2000)
Martin Wyss was executive chef at the Kahala Hilton for 18 years before leaving and opening Swiss Inn in Niu Valley in 1982.
“Debbie” wrote, “One of our favorite restaurants was Swiss Inn. It was a place both families and dates could enjoy. The wonderful hostesses, wife Jeanie and sister-in-law Sharon Fujii would remember your name after only two visits! And, their Swiss onion soup was to die for. That was my son’s request for his birthday meal, when he was only a little boy.”
5. Alan Wong’s (1995-2020)
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama could often be found dining there. Specialties included ginger crusted onaga, twice-cooked shortribs, opihi shooters and kalua pork won ton tacos.
“In the early 2000s our daughter came home from college,” Andrea Bell said, “and we took her to Allen Wong’s to celebrate. We were a little slow to figure out our choices. I proposed that we share one of each of the entire left side of the menu, appetizers, soups, salads.
“The staff agreed and served us as if it were a tasting menu, topping the whole thing off with desserts! A lively, fun, interesting meal that had other guests visiting our table!”
4. Flamingo (1952-2022)
“We would pack into our ’56 Chevy wagon and travel from Kaneohe for a treat at the Flamingo,” Noel McCully told me. “As a kid, their teriyaki steak was the best, and the low prices were appreciated by the grown-ups.”
Steven Nagamine opened the first Flamingo in 1950 on Ala Moana Boulevard. It was named for the Flamingo hotel in Las Vegas. He’d later open six other restaurants in Waikiki, on Kapiolani Boulevard, in Pearl City, in Kaneohe, downtown in the Davies Pacific Center as well as the Flamingo Chuckwagon.
K.G. Lee took over and had Flamingos in Waimalu and 99 Moanalua, and still sells their pies in various supermarkets.
3. Columbia Inn (1941-2007)
Fred “Tosh” and Frank Kaneshiro opened their restaurant in 1941. Ilse Epple said, “It had the very best shrimp tempura ever! The batter was so light, and the dipping sauce out of this world. I don’t care what anyone says, no one made shrimp tempura like Columbia Inn!”
Columbia Inn moved next to the newspaper building, which resulted in a tremendous amount of press coverage, much of it about Tosh’s love of the L.A. Dodgers.
2. Tahitian Lanai (1956-1997)
Bobbie Green says the Tahitian Lanai was a great place to take mainland visitors. “Our kids loved it, too. They would swim in the pool while the adults would enjoy a leisurely lunch and cocktails. Crab salad and lavash, yummy!”
“My father would stay at the Waikikian when in Honolulu for business,” Ilse Epple added, “And he would let my boyfriend (now husband) and me charge food to his room. We loved sitting by the pool, with the islands etched into the bottom, and enjoying the banana nut muffins, which were served complimentary, with breakfast.”
1. The Willows (1944-2019)
The No. 1 most fondly remembered Oahu restaurant is the Willows in Moiliili. In the 1850s, King Kamehameha III picnicked at the artesian spring-fed pond named Kapaakea.
Henry and Emma McGuire Hausten built a house on the site in the late 1920s, and the street was named for them. Daughter Kathleen and her husband, musical legend Al Kealoha Perry, converted the family home into a lush garden restaurant with strolling musicians on July 4, 1944. They named it after the willow trees that populated the area.
George Butterfield said, “The Willows was a special dinner place for my wife and me early in our marriage. I loved sitting in the areas overhanging the springs, and I always had the shrimp curry and the ‘Sky High’ lemon meringue pie! The whole atmosphere there was intimate and very ‘Old Hawaii’ to me.”
Kathleen Miller Thomas said, “Walking across that wooden bridge was like entering a fairy tale wonderland with fountains, koi splashing, delicious food, enticing sounds and the warmth and love of happy people. It was my favorite restaurant.”
So, there you have it. The top 25 “gone but not forgotten” Oahu restaurants. Making the Honorable Mention list with many votes are Boulevard Saimin, Byron II, Cafe Sistina, Cannon Club, Castignola’s, Chicken Alice’s, Chowder House, Chunky’s Drive in, Compadre’s, Coco’s and Crouching Lion Inn.
Also, Horatio’s, Jolly Roger, Kelly’s, Kinkaid’s, La Ronde, Lisboa, Little Village Noodle House, Maile Room, Mama’s Mexican Kitchen, Masu’s Massive Plate Lunch, Nick’s Fishmarket, Orson’s, Palomino, Pat’s at Punaluu, Pottery, Ryan’s, Scotty’s Drive-In, Spindrifter, Sunset Grill, Tin Tin Choy Suey and Wo Fat.
Note: The recipe for the Canlis salad, Tahitian Lanai banana muffins and Willows curry and Sky-High pies will be in my Insider newsletter, or send me an email.
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