NEW BLOG FEATURE

NEW: VIEW RIGHT SIDE TAB AND SELECT
CITY FOR TASTE OF HAWAII FAVORITES!
Showing posts with label alan wongs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alan wongs. Show all posts

Sunday, December 9, 2018

ALAN WONG'S

ALAN WONG'S
1857 S. KING STREET
HONOLULU, HI. 96826
808-949-2526
HOURS:  Daily 5-10PM

I like Alan Wong's.  It is consistently one of the top rated restaurants in Hawaii and the winner of dozens of awards including Best Restaurant.  Food and service always great but on this visit we left a little unsatisfied.  The Stars of our meal were the Lobster Bisque and Desserts.  Other than that the other dishes were just ok.  Maybe we are tired of the same menu items or maybe our tastes have changed.  Don't know but just was not that great.  We started with "Da Bag" ($15) which is mostly presentation.  The dish arrives at the table in a foil bag and then the waiter opens it letting out a flume of steam. This uncovers Kalua Pork and Clams in a pretty bland broth.  Clams were small and did not have much flavor.  The Chopped Ahi Sashimi with Avocado ($23) is always delicious.  You cannot go wrong ordering this appetizer.  The Big Island Heart of Palm Caeser Salad ($12) was really different with Raw Broccoli and very little lettuce.  Dressing was a hit though with my Wife and Daughter.  The Lobster Bisque ($12) was my favorite part of the meal.  No lobster pieces in the soup but flavor was amazing and very satisfying.  The Oxtail Soup ($12) did not go over well with my Daughter.  She didn't like the overpowering spices and said Zippy's was better.  Think it was Chinese Five Spice.  The Roasted Beet Salad ($15.75) was light, fresh and pretty delicious.  I went for the Seafood Stew ($58) for my entree.  This dish was a huge disappointment because of the overpowering spice mix.  Really took away from the flavor of everything.  The Lobster was small and pretty tasteless.  I picked through the dish trying to find things not covered in the spices.  Ended up eating maybe 1/4 of the plate and then threw in the towel.  Yuck.  My Wife had the Twice Cooked Short Rib ($42) and said it was just "ok".  She didn't finish it.  The Stars of the evening were definitely the desserts.  We were given a delicious Chocolate Cake for our Anniversary and we definitely appreciated this and ate it all.  The Coconut ($14) is probably one of my favorite desserts ever.  I love the presentation of this dish and the flavor.  This is sooo good!  The Crunch Bars ($14) is also a family favorite.  We all love these chocolate bars.  
Click link below to view previous post on Alan Wong's:

ALAN WONG'S


DINING ROOM
COVERED TERRACE WITH VIEW

LOVE AND APPRECIATE THE PERSONALIZED ANNIVERSARY MENU
TASTING MENU
DAILY SPECIALS
A LITTLE BUBBLY TO CELEBRATE OUR ANNIVERSARY 
SOME NICE BREAD
DA BAG
DA BAG WITH KALUA PORK AND CLAMS
AHI SASHIMI AND AVOCADO
HEART OF PALM CAESAR SALAD
LOBSTER BISQUE
GOAT DAIRY ROASED BEET SALAD
OXTAIL SOUP
SEAFOOD STEW
TWICE COOKED SHORT RIB
DESSERT MENU
CRUNCH BARS
THE COCONUT
SPECIAL CHOCOLATE CAKE

Sunday, February 7, 2016

ALAN WONG'S

ALAN WONG'S
1857 S. KING STREET
HONOLULU, HI  96826
808-949-2526
HOURS:  Daily 5:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Alan Wong's remains one of my all time favorite Honolulu restaurants.  Always fresh, consistent and delicious with top notch service.  When you arrive at Alan Wong's there is a very small driveway that leads to a parking garage.  Always use the valet ($5) to save time and headaches looking for parking. Take the elevator to the third floor of an office building located outside Waikiki in a primarily business and residential neighborhood.  When the elevator doors open its like entering another world with a hostess station fronting the entrance and large open kitchen.  The hostess was smiling and called my name.  Wow did not know that a friend and co-star of one of my Fujitsu commercials was working here.  After a big hug she seated us at a table just off the lanai.  The menus arrived with employees right and left wishing someone at the table Happy Birthday.  The menus were customized with the Birthday Boy's name and hand signed by the entire cooking staff.  While I don't like this treatment for me, this is a super personal service that helps set Alan Wong's apart from many competitors.  The staff is well trained, knowledgeable on the menu, focused on customer service and very attentive.  Given this you should probably figure on 2-3 hours for dinner service.  Our dinner lasted just under three hours but it did not feel slow or long in any way.  First comes the bread.  So fresh, warm and delicious when paired with the Chili Pepper Aioli that is provided in place of butter.  The Aioli is addicting and the bread disappeared off the table in minutes.  The Chopped Ahi Sashimi and Avocado Stack ($22.50) was a massive mound of fresh Ahi, Avocado and Crispy Won Ton Chips.  This is a great dish to share with the table and it is delicious.  My Daughter is on a Foie Gras kick and wants to eat it with every meal.  She has no idea of how expensive it costs and eats it like candy.  The Hudson Valley Foie Gras ($24) is good here but I would prefer having a piece of toast to accompany the Foie Gras rather than eating it plain.  Don't get me wrong, the dish is excellent and cooked to perfection.  The Roasted Beet, Avocado and Tomato Salad ($15) was super fresh.  Loved the beets but there was something missing to pull all of these great flavors together.  The Caesar Salad ($14) was a thing of beauty on the table but missed the mark on taste because again the flavors did not come together.  They also put Kalua Pork in the salad which is unique but not necessary in a Caesar Salad I thought.  You really need to chop up this salad and get the dressing which is on the bottom of the plate mixed thoroughly on the lettuce.  Otherwise it is very dry and bland.  Good if you can get the dressing on the lettuce.  The Keahole Lobster Lasagna ($42) was a bit expensive but unique.  A small local Lobster Tail alongside a round of Lasagna with a Tomato based Sauce.  The sauce was delicious.  Not a bad dish but expensive.  The Pan Seared Opakapaka ($42) was also expensive for a piece of fish but the flavor was amazing.  The fish was moist and the flavor of the sauce was awesome.  This was one of my favorite fish dishes ever and I would highly recommend it.
The Tomato Soup and Sandwich ($10) is not on the menu but it is a favorite among customers.  We asked for it and the waiter checked with the kitchen and returned to tell us they would be happy to make the dish.  I looked over at the table next to me with five diners and they ALL had the Soup and Sandwich in front of them.  My Wife loves this combo and she happily finished every bite.  There are not many restaurants where you just have to save room for dessert but Alan Wong's is one of them.  My "go to" favorites are The Coconut ($13.50 and the Crunch Bars ($13).  The Coconut is so light and refreshing that it is difficult to stop eating.  The Crunch Bars are decadent and satisfy my love for chocolate.  Alan Wong's is deserving of the dozens of awards and Restaurant of the Year Awards.
Great place to eat when someone else is paying or you just want to treat yourself or someone you love.  Click link below to view another post on Alan Wongs;

ALAN WONG'S

ALAN WONG'S ON KING STREET IN HONOLULU
JUMP IN THE ELEVATOR AFTER VALET PARKING CAR
ALAN WONG'S IS LOCATED ON THIRD FLOOR OF OFFICE BUILDING
UNIQUE LOCATION FOR ONE OF HAWAII'S BEST RESTAURANTS
PHOTOS IN ELEVATOR
OPEN KITCHEN
DINING ROOM AND VERY SMALL BAR
LANAI SEATING WITH VIEW OF MOUNTAINS
ALAN WONG'S MENU
SPECIAL CUSTOMIZED MENU FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS
ENTIRE COOKING TEAM SIGNS SPECIAL MENU
SOY SAUCE AND CHILI PEPPER WATER REPLACES SALT AND PEPPER ON TABLE
CHILI PEPPER AOLI FOR BREAD IS DELICIOUS
FRESH BAKED BREADS
CHOPPED AHI SASHIMI AND AVOCADO SALSA STACK
SEARED HUDSON VALLEY FOIE GRAS
ROASTED BEET, AVOCADO AND TOMATO SALAD
H.R. CAESAR SALAD WITH KALUA PORK?
KEAHOLE LOBSTER LASAGNA
NOT YOUR NORMAL LASAGNA
PAN SEARED OPAKAPAKA
DON'T ORDER WHITE OR BROWN RICE WITH YOUR ENTREE - ORDER THE MASHED POTATOES.
THESE ARE AWESOME!
COLD TOMATO SOUP WITH GRILLED CHEESE AND FOIE GRAS SANDWICH
AFTHER DINNER DRINKS
YOU GOTTA SAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT AT ALA WONG'S
A LITTLE SURPRISE
YOU MUST TRY "THE COCONUT"
YOU MUST TRY THE CRUNCH BARS!
DANIELLE THE HOSTESS AT ALAN WONG'S IS AWESOME
AND SHE WAS IN A COMMERCIAL WITH ME
FINISHED THE MEAL WITH COMPLIMENTARY LITTLE MACADAMIA NUT MUFFINS