It's been a really long time since I last did a Restaurant review. I just really haven't had the chance to take the time and write my thoughts down in a while regarding the placed my hubby and I have been or those that we have taken the kiddos. On March 16th - I posted on my Instagram about being out with my hubby and kids and enjoying a great dinner. Let me start off by saying... any dinner with these guys make for a perfect night... because company is surely awesome - but the meal itself was pretty great as well.
We had been over on the West side and decided since the day was coming to an end, that we would go and have dinner there as well. We stopped off at Fleetwood's, but they were serving Happy Hour and there was nothing that our sons could have an enjoy there, so we ventured over to The Melting Pot, to find out they had closed down the restaurant a lot sooner than I had expected. So... we decided we would head over to Mala (owned by Chef Mark Ellman). They also were serving Happy Hour and the hostess said that he had a very large party coming in. Because of this, he didn't want us to feel rushed. We decided that we would try out Honu Seafood & Pizza Restaurant for the first time, the sister Restaurant of Mala. Now, my hubby and I have eaten at Mala several times before... and we had hoped we would be dining at a similar flair.
As we walked in - the decor was a bit different. In my opinion, in comparison to Mala, it looked a little more contemporary with a beach feel but I liked that it seemed much brighter on the inside than what Mala did. I liked the fact that when we walked in, we were greeted instantly and while it did not look like a "kid friendly" restaurant, my children were not treated as such. The Hostess was sweet to the boys and even reached behind her hostess counter and grabbed out 3 little turtles (honu in Hawaiian) and handed them to the boys. They were magnetic turtles and really not meant for children to play with because they were so fragile, but the fact that they did have that as well as crayons, coloring paper and a kids menu meant a lot to me.
We had been over on the West side and decided since the day was coming to an end, that we would go and have dinner there as well. We stopped off at Fleetwood's, but they were serving Happy Hour and there was nothing that our sons could have an enjoy there, so we ventured over to The Melting Pot, to find out they had closed down the restaurant a lot sooner than I had expected. So... we decided we would head over to Mala (owned by Chef Mark Ellman). They also were serving Happy Hour and the hostess said that he had a very large party coming in. Because of this, he didn't want us to feel rushed. We decided that we would try out Honu Seafood & Pizza Restaurant for the first time, the sister Restaurant of Mala. Now, my hubby and I have eaten at Mala several times before... and we had hoped we would be dining at a similar flair.
As we walked in - the decor was a bit different. In my opinion, in comparison to Mala, it looked a little more contemporary with a beach feel but I liked that it seemed much brighter on the inside than what Mala did. I liked the fact that when we walked in, we were greeted instantly and while it did not look like a "kid friendly" restaurant, my children were not treated as such. The Hostess was sweet to the boys and even reached behind her hostess counter and grabbed out 3 little turtles (honu in Hawaiian) and handed them to the boys. They were magnetic turtles and really not meant for children to play with because they were so fragile, but the fact that they did have that as well as crayons, coloring paper and a kids menu meant a lot to me.
We were sat right on the ocean front, which the boys absolutely loved and our waitress came over quickly to let us know what they were serving. It was also Happy Hour here at Honu, so we ordered a pizza (the italian sausage - which is not pictured) and we waited while they started dinner so we could order off of the dinner menu.
Considering how the restaurant looked, they really were pretty kid friendly. The waitress was sweet, constantly accommodating the boys and the wait staff and bust boys were there every second the boys dropped something from the table... napkin, fork, toys. I really appreciated how polite they were and how the activeness of my sons did not get them frazzled, which can often happen in a restaurant that is much more upscale then say... A Dennys, IHOP or even Macaroni Grill. Because of that itself, dining there was pretty enjoyable.
Now - let's talk about food. We ordered a number of different things, the Italian Sausage Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to snack on), the Margherita Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to have as well as whatever was left to take home), The Ahi Bruscheta (which my hubby and I always get at Mala, so that was a must have), The Opakapaka Dore Style (which was my dish) and the Kobe Burger (which my husband ordered for him).
The pizzas were both delicious. I especially loved the fresh arugula with a drizzle of olive oil on the Italian Sausage Pizza ($19.00). It gave a bit of a bite from the arugula but an added freshness that made it pretty awesome. The italian sausage had great flavor and did not over power the cheese, which happens often when eating that type of pizza. We all enjoyed it. The Margherita pizza ($16.00) was also a hit, although the boys were pretty full by the time we started on it. We ended up taking home all but one slice - though it didn't make a difference because it was gone before the end of the night. I rather enjoyed that one the best, the crust was pretty good and I love Margherita style pizzas in general. It had San Marzano tomatoes, Fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. When we got home to eat it however, the basil tasted a litte stringy... though I attest that to being a few hours old.
Our Ahi Bruscheta ($27.00) is always a winner when we order it, so I'm not going to get into much detail about it except that if you eat at Mala or Honu, order it... you will love it! It includes Edamame puree (which is the only one I can say tastes just as good as mine), flax seed toast, Olowalu Tomatoes (island grown) and a 20 year old balsamic (which makes it awesome) - all topped with some greens and of course, fresh seared ahi tuna on top. Delish!
My dinner dish was just wonderful and I am working to perfect that cream sauce so I can recreate it: I had the Fresh Fish (Opakapaka) served Dore Style ($41.00) with capers, lemon, butter, dill pollen, vegetables and turkish quinoa. I love quinoa and it was absolutely wonderful... definitely a great dish choice if you are a fish lover like me.
My hubby had the Snake River Kobe Burger ($19.00). It was serviced with Apple Bacon, carmelized onions and frites and he chose white cheddar as his cheese. He did like it, but as a burger purest, he had wished he asked them to keep the onions off. He did order his burger medium rare and it came a little more on the medium well side - but for the most part, it was okay and he ate it.
All in all - it was a pretty enjoyable dining experience. The boys enjoyed themselves and we had a nice dinner out and enjoyed the time with one another. We will definitely visit Honu again and hopefully this time we will be able to see a turtle or two in the ocean near our table... which is why they called the restaurant Honu. That area is known to have turtles in the water consistently. Having grown up right across the street - I have seen many of them from the old Naoki's and Local Motion when I was a kid. Both of those places now no longer there and are the locations for Mala and Honu. The kids would have loved to see that so I'm sure we will make it that way again and enjoy another meal there.
I know this blog post was long - but I wanted to share with you the experience I had at what I think is a pretty great spot to visit if you haven't already. I enjoy doing my Restaurant reviews... and wanted to include Honu in that selection. All in all, they definitely get 5 Stars in my book and I'll be back again!
Bon Appetite,
Honey
Considering how the restaurant looked, they really were pretty kid friendly. The waitress was sweet, constantly accommodating the boys and the wait staff and bust boys were there every second the boys dropped something from the table... napkin, fork, toys. I really appreciated how polite they were and how the activeness of my sons did not get them frazzled, which can often happen in a restaurant that is much more upscale then say... A Dennys, IHOP or even Macaroni Grill. Because of that itself, dining there was pretty enjoyable.
Now - let's talk about food. We ordered a number of different things, the Italian Sausage Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to snack on), the Margherita Brick Oven Pizza (which we ordered for the kids to have as well as whatever was left to take home), The Ahi Bruscheta (which my hubby and I always get at Mala, so that was a must have), The Opakapaka Dore Style (which was my dish) and the Kobe Burger (which my husband ordered for him).
The pizzas were both delicious. I especially loved the fresh arugula with a drizzle of olive oil on the Italian Sausage Pizza ($19.00). It gave a bit of a bite from the arugula but an added freshness that made it pretty awesome. The italian sausage had great flavor and did not over power the cheese, which happens often when eating that type of pizza. We all enjoyed it. The Margherita pizza ($16.00) was also a hit, although the boys were pretty full by the time we started on it. We ended up taking home all but one slice - though it didn't make a difference because it was gone before the end of the night. I rather enjoyed that one the best, the crust was pretty good and I love Margherita style pizzas in general. It had San Marzano tomatoes, Fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. When we got home to eat it however, the basil tasted a litte stringy... though I attest that to being a few hours old.
Our Ahi Bruscheta ($27.00) is always a winner when we order it, so I'm not going to get into much detail about it except that if you eat at Mala or Honu, order it... you will love it! It includes Edamame puree (which is the only one I can say tastes just as good as mine), flax seed toast, Olowalu Tomatoes (island grown) and a 20 year old balsamic (which makes it awesome) - all topped with some greens and of course, fresh seared ahi tuna on top. Delish!
My dinner dish was just wonderful and I am working to perfect that cream sauce so I can recreate it: I had the Fresh Fish (Opakapaka) served Dore Style ($41.00) with capers, lemon, butter, dill pollen, vegetables and turkish quinoa. I love quinoa and it was absolutely wonderful... definitely a great dish choice if you are a fish lover like me.
My hubby had the Snake River Kobe Burger ($19.00). It was serviced with Apple Bacon, carmelized onions and frites and he chose white cheddar as his cheese. He did like it, but as a burger purest, he had wished he asked them to keep the onions off. He did order his burger medium rare and it came a little more on the medium well side - but for the most part, it was okay and he ate it.
All in all - it was a pretty enjoyable dining experience. The boys enjoyed themselves and we had a nice dinner out and enjoyed the time with one another. We will definitely visit Honu again and hopefully this time we will be able to see a turtle or two in the ocean near our table... which is why they called the restaurant Honu. That area is known to have turtles in the water consistently. Having grown up right across the street - I have seen many of them from the old Naoki's and Local Motion when I was a kid. Both of those places now no longer there and are the locations for Mala and Honu. The kids would have loved to see that so I'm sure we will make it that way again and enjoy another meal there.
I know this blog post was long - but I wanted to share with you the experience I had at what I think is a pretty great spot to visit if you haven't already. I enjoy doing my Restaurant reviews... and wanted to include Honu in that selection. All in all, they definitely get 5 Stars in my book and I'll be back again!
Bon Appetite,
Honey
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