Category: Dining

The Zippy’s at Kahala will be shutting down, likely by year’s end or early next year, for renovations.

The Kahala waitstaff will be diverted to other branches,  surely an inconvenience.

The closure, said one waitress, will last for about three months, which means us East Siders now may have to drive to the Makiki branch of Zippy’s for a sit-down meal and chat-chat. This one’s brighter and larger than the branch in-between Zippy’s offices on King Street and Washington Middle School.

Meanwhile, the rumors persist that Zippy’s Koko Marina take-out could be shuttered like the already closed dining room…

Red velvet ice cream

It may take me quite a spell, but I’m trying to order a different ice cream flavor at each visit to Hammond’s at the Koko Marina Center.

Latest joy: Red velvet cake, mixed with vanilla ice cream.

Always loved the red velvet dessert cake (not widely available these days), so naturally, found this choice perfect for a warm afternoon treat…

Bedbugs found at Ala Moana Center food court

Why is the Ala Moana Center food court closed, you ask?

A very good reason:  It’s shut down due to bed bug infiltration.

No reopening date yet, but they’d better thoroughly spray those antiquated seats and backboards…

Hammond’s Gourmet Ice Cream is anticipating a summer opening at the Koko Marina Shopping Center.

Hammond’s is targeting a June 7 debut – date subject to change – and will occupy the site vacated by Moena Sweets.

Hammond’s is noted for 32 ice cream flavors, alternating 20 daily, and boasts some enchanting flavors and names, like Kitty Kitty Bang Bang, a cheesecake flavor. The brand has some dairy-free, egg-free and nut-free options, too.

It also is known for the Hammond Flights, where patrons can take flight to try six flavors in mini cones. A yummy idea to get familiar with Hammond’s…

Maple Garden is shutting down

Maple Garden, the Chinese restaurant in Moiliili, is closing – likely at the end of the month—after decades of serving fans of Chinese cuisine.

Like numerous restaurants with decades of residency, Maple Gardens has been faced with a multitude of challenges – dwindling business, high prices, a fickle economy, and a shortage of staff. Two chefs are in the kitchen and struggling to keep the doors open and  serving food, too. Owning a restaurant  is a constant task; you welcome the guests, take orders, prepare and serve the food, and after meal service there are dishes to wash.

In earlier times, there were throngs celebrating birthdays and anniversaries, retirement parties, and more. Owner Richard Lam now is thinking of closure, though he’s not yet set a firm date…

A tasty snack

My latest fave snack is something sweet but healthy.

It’s called Yoggies, and it’s a shred of strawberry, coated with creamy yogurt. It’s somewhat like Raisinets, the raisin  candy cloaked with chocolate.

Got it in a large bag, from Costco, and it’s perfect for a quick snack, since  Yoggies comes in 7-oz packets and that’s enough for a single serving.

I’m a scones fan, and adore breakfast finds, so I’m happy Bits & Bites Café has moved from Kailua to Hawaii Kai. But its hours haven’t suited my timetable. So consequently, I haven’t had a chance to try the morning munchies despite the café’s presence for a few months.

I had to get a blood test early one recent morn – 6 a.m., if you want to know –  at the Diagnostic Lab next door, but the shop (in the former Taco Del Mar site)  does not open till 7 a.m. You can get a whiff of the yummy pastries, because the bakers are already getting the goodies ready for purchase. And yes, scents drift out from the closed door. The temptation is maddening.

 Many Hawaii Kai folks are commuting from 5:30 or 6:30 a.m. weekdays, to beat the town-bound freeway traffic. So, a pause between 6 and 7 a.m. to buy pastries is truly unfathomable. I see early drivers stopping at Starbucks at 6:30 a.m. around the corner, for coffee and perhaps some nibbles that don’t measure up to Bits & Bites’ delicacies.

The Bits and Bites shop is open till mid-afternoon (like, 3 p.m.) and I wonder who buys these  goodies that late in the day. The fare is solidly early morning-oriented, and I’m curious if timing was part of Bits & Bites’ scope and vision.

Reminds me of the misdirected Scratch restaurant, where Outback Steakhouse used to be in Hawaii Kai. Scratch peddled breakfast, but it opened at 9 a.m. and by then, most  Hawaii Kai breakfast traffic is long gone, either already at work or off to do errands. The menu also was part of the reason Scratch shut down, but methinks the hours also had to do with its inability to build and maintain a morning club of diners. With Zippy’s dining room shut down, folks in East Oahu move on to do breakfast at Jack’s in Aina Haina or Zippy’s at Kahala. bEASTside Kitchen in Niu Valley served breakfast for a brief period, after a trial run didn’t work out.

Of course, on special occasions, some folks play tourists and enjoy and view at Plumeria Café at the Kahala resort and its impeccable views.

Heavenly is splendid for a leisurely morning breakfast, with a view of the Koko Marina, but rather expensive without a wide range of options, and Moena Café a few doors down is OK but mostly experimental for folks who’ve heard about its signature menu. My concern: when you go to Moena, and there’s a crowd of 15 outside waiting for a table, you can’t linger and chat over a second or cup of coffee…

Finally, and sadly, two closures at Koko Marina in Hawaii Kai

• Moena Sweets, the ice cream parlor operated by Moena Café, has closed its doors.
• Fatboy’s, a stone’s throw away, apparently is closed, too. This, despite earlier renovations and more sidewalk tables and seats.