Mugen, located within the luxurious ESPACIO The Jewel of Waikiki, has officially reopened to diners with a new executive chef and menu. The restaurant is headed by executive chef Colin Sato and now offers a five-course menu ($180 per person) that features local and seasonal ingredients.
“We are thrilled to welcome chef Colin Sato and talented new beverage team members to Mugen and introduce a new era of award-winning dining experience,” states Wes Zane, food and beverage manager at ESPACIO The Jewel of Waikiki.
Mugen’s opening menu highlights include Kona abalone lobster, wasabi and lotus root, candy cane beets with macadamia, shiso, pears and buttermilk emulsion, a washugyu rib-eye with hearts of palm, Waialua asparagus and port reduction, Kona kampachi with lilikoi ponzu, green papaya, mint and avocado; and more.
Mugen is open daily for breakfast from 7 to 10 a.m. Dinner is available beginning at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
Call 808-377-2247 or visit mugenwaikiki.com.
New chef’s table menu
Aloha Steak House is known for its wide variety of steak and seafood. The eatery recently introduced a new chef’s table menu ($135 per person), which includes a little of everything.
It features bone marrow-topped torched Hokkaido scallop, petite wedge salad, double chop lamb chop, chef’s fish or steak selection of the day, sushi special of the day, and choice of dessert (Lappert’s ice cream or Kona coffee crème brûlée), along with your choice of coffee or tea.
Previous choices included dry-aged salmon, dry-aged steak and chutoro or otoro for the sushi special.
Call 808-600-3431 or visit alohasteakhousewaikiki.com.
Hidden breakfast gem
If you’re looking for a breakfast spot without the hustle and bustle of crowds, check out Hideaway Cafe (1130 N. Nimitz Hwy. Ste. C110). As its name implies, you won’t be able to see it from the street.
The biz is known for its breakfast-all-day menu, along with espresso drinks.
The coffee is sourced from Big Island Roasters. Start with specialty drinks like Nutella latte or lavender latte.
Signature breakfast dishes include the breakfast sandwich — choice of bread or bagel with Spam, spicy Spam, bacon or ham, cheddar cheese and an egg — and Hideaway açaí bowl. The latter features açaí sorbet with coconut cream, strawberries, blueberries, bananas, granola, coconut and honey.
Meanwhile, popular lunch dishes include BLT, chicken pesto melt and bacon and blue salad.
To learn more, visit hideawaycafehi.com.
New japanese-style mochi crepes
There’s a new Japanese-style mochi crepe pop-up in Honolulu. Mochill Mochi Donut is a California-based business known for its mochi doughnuts and mochi crepes. The biz (which has eight locations in California) just opened its Honolulu pop-up in Mitsuwa Marketplace in International Market Place. The pop-up will be for the next three months (and might possibly extend).
This location has exclusive Hawaiian flavors like açaí delight, tropical mango, Hawaiian pineapple, macadamia choco banana and more. All crepes are 100% gluten-free and made to order.
The menu has lots of options with signature combos like strawberry banana chocolate whipped cream with ice cream, strawberry whipped cream and kuromitsu kinako ice cream. The crepes themselves are not super sweet and feature a light, slightly chewy texture.
Mochill’s pop-up is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more info, follow the biz on Instagram (@mochillsf).
