GREAT EATS HAWAII

Monday, May 27, 2013

BEEF BRISKET COOKED IN ELECTRIC SMOKER

BEEF BRISKET COOKED IN ELECTRIC SMOKER
HOW I RUINED A $30 PIECE OF MEAT

Took out my MasterBuilt Electric Smoker and attempted my first Smoked Beef Brisket. Picked up a nice Brisket at Costco for around $30 and followed a recipe I found on the internet. Put a dry rub on the Brisket and then wrapped it in plastic and refrigerated overnight. At 6:00 am, I got my smoker up to 225 degrees and placed the Brisket inside. The recipe I had said to smoke for 8 hours. After 7 hours I decided to take a look at my Brisket and was surprised to find that it was overcooked and pretty dried out. Rats.....my first Beef Brisket attempt went bad because I did not monitor the cooking process. While the meat still had good flavor it was a little dry so I cut it up into small pieces and added a bunch of BBQ Sauce. Simmered over low heat and the stuff actually tasted pretty good. Good enough to serve up as Beef Brisket sandwiches.

BEEF BRISKET COOKED IN ELECTRIC SMOKER

5 LB SLAB OF BEEF BRISKET FROM COSTCO

DRY RUB - ONION POWDER, GARLIC POWDER, BROWN SUGAR, CRUSHED RED PEPPER FLAKES,
CAYENNE PEPPER, MUSTARD POWDER, SALT AND PEPPER

APPLIED DRY RUB TO BOTH SIDES OF THE BRISKET

WRAPPED IN PLASTIC AND REFRIGERATED OVERNIGHT

BRISKET WITH RUB AFTER SITTING OVERNIGHT IN THE REFRIGERATOR

SET THE MASTER BUILT ELECTRIC SMOKER TO 125 DEGREES

PLACED BRISKET IN SMOKER FOR WHAT I THOUGHT WOULD BE 8 HOURS

CHECKED BRISKET AFTER 7 HOURS OF SMOKING AND IT WAS REALLY DRY

SALVAGED MY DRY BRISKET BY CUTTING IT UP AND SIMMERING WITH BBQ SAUCE

ACTUALLY MADE SOME PRETTY GOOD BEEF BRISKET SANDWICHES

2ND ATTEMPT AT SMOKED BEEF BRISKET

CAME OUT MUCH BETTER

2ND ATTEMPT SMOKING FOR ONLY FOUR HOURS CAME OUT MUCH BETTER

TACO DEL MAR - HAWAII KAI TOWN CENTER

TACO DEL MAR

HAWAII KAI TOWN CENTER

HONOLULU, HAWAII

TACO DEL MAR

333 KEAHOLE STREET, #2B1

HONOLULU, HI 96825

808-395-9880

www.tacodelmar.com

Back to Taco Del Mar to get a fix for my Mexican food craving. I don't know what it is about Taco Del Mar, but it just does not satisfy my craving for Mexican food. The food here is not bad but it just does not have that authentic Mexican taste. I went for a Soft Steak Taco and Crunchy Shredded Beef Taco. The tacos are filling and I like the "hot" sauce but there is something missing here. Good to fill me up but I always leave still craving tacos. The Chicken Enchilada at Taco Del Mar is good. Filled with marinated chicken and topped with a decent Enchilada Sauce. Refried Beans and Rice are also good. Not bad food. Just not real Mexican food.

TACO Del Mar

TACO DEL MAR IN HAWAII KAI IS A TINY LITTLE SPACE LOCATED ACROSS FROM COSTCO

STEAK SOFT TACO AND CRUNCHY SHREDDED BEEF TACO

SOFT STEAK TACO

CRUNCHY SHREDDED BEEF TACO

SOFT STEAK TACO, CHICKEN ENCHILADA WITH RICE AND BEANS

CHICKEN ENCHILADA

Sunday, May 26, 2013

FILMING NEW FUJITSU COMMERCIAL 2013 - THE DREAM

FILMING NEW FUJITSU COMMERCIAL

HOAKALEI COUNTRY CLUB

EWA BEACH, HAWAII

Completed filming new Fujitsu Air Conditioning commercial in April at the Hoakalei Country Club and at our home in Honolulu. This years spot features yours truly your blog author and the beautiful local model Ashley Jardine. A Fujitsu commercial in Hawaii would not be complete without my daughter who has been starring in them since she was three years old. She is featured in the only speaking roll at the end of the spot. This years spot is golf inspired with the concept coming from me and the script and final writing by local television and film producer/director Jon Brekke. Jon is great to work with on commercials and this one was right in his wheel house because he spent a few years as a cameraman for golf events. Jon has his first motion picture coming out this year and has directed and produced both television and film in Hawaii for over 15 years. I don't want to give out all the details of our new commercial, but it has to do with me having a terrible day of golf with three friends. After the round of golf, I return home frustrated and fall asleep. There is a dream sequence that brings in Ashley to be my Caddy. Couple the beautiful Caddy with Fujitsu Air Conditioning and you have the spot. We filmed the golf sequences on the 13th Hole at Hoakalei Country Club. This is a beautiful hole that is surrounded by water on three sides. Our thanks to Mike Biscotti, the General Manager Hoakalei for setting us up to film and giving us golf carts and access to the club. Mike was a true gentlemen and is a former quarterback for the University of Hawaii Football team. Great fan of Hawaii and our Bows. The commercial concluded at our home where the dream sequence was filmed. This was my commercial debut as an actor and I am nervous about the outcome. Hopefully Jon Brekke can work magic. Stay tuned to see the final spot. Will be done first week of June 2013 and will air on KHON 2, KITV 4 and Oceanic Sports Channel in Hawaii. See below for actual commercial now playing on local Hawaii television stations. For more on this spot visit www.ilovemyfujitsu.com

MODEL ASHLEY JARDINE GETS SOME LAST MINUTE MAKE UP ON THE COURSE AT HOAKALEI

LOCAL PRODUCER/DIRECTOR JON BREKKE (RIGHT) GETTING THE SHOT RIGHT

ASHLEY LOOKING GOOD ON THE 13TH HOLE AT HOAKALEI

SHOOTING WITH SMALL HD CAMERA

EVERYONE IS SMILING DURING THIS SHOT

THE DREAM SEQUENCE - ASHLEY BECOMES MY PERSONAL CADDY

THATS ME ON THE LEFT IN BLUE SHIRT

PUTTING IN THE DREAM SEQUENCE

HAD TO PUTT A FEW DOZEN TO GET THE SHOT RIGHT

NO PROBLEM - I CAN SINK THESE WITH MY EYES CLOSED!

DREW AND ASHLEY ON THE 13TH HOLE AT HOAKALEI

EARL THE PHOTOGRAPHER ON LEFT, DREW, ASHLEY AND JON BREKKE

THE TEE UP DREAM SEQUENCE

TEEING IT UP ON THE 13TH HOLE AT HOAKALEI

13TH HOLE IS SPECTACULAR WITH WATER ALL AROUND

I AM HAVING FUN AND GOT TO LAUNCH A FEW INTO THE LAKE AND OVER THE LAKE

FILMING THE DREAM SEQUENCE AT HOME

THE DREAM VIDEO

VERDE KAIMUKI

VERDE KAIMUKI

HONOLULU, HAWAII

VERDE KAIMUKI

3607 WAIALAE AVENUE

HONOLULU, HI 96816

808-737-4700

808-737-4744 FAX

EMAIL: info@verdekaimuki.com

www.verdekaimuki.com

Verde Kaimuki is located in the same location of BC Burrito which thankfully closed its doors and made room for another restaurant in Kaimuki. At first look you may think this is still BC Burrito when you walk in. Not much has changed with the exception of the wall coverings. We almost walked away after looking at the menu because it seemed like BC Burrito all over again. Decided to try the place anyway and made our way in to find a few customers sitting in the booths. Not much of a welcome from the employees so we looked at the menu hand written on the wall. I found a menu on a clipboard on one of the tables and picked it up to take a closer look. Burritos, Tacos, Quesadilla and Nachos were the only offerings. We started with an order of Chips and Salsa ($3.50). The salsa was made fresh and was good but it did not have any heat. Wish they could have kicked this up a notch with some heat. Decided to try the Steak Burrito ($8.50). Add another $1.75 for Guacamole and Sour Creme and you have a $11 burrito for lunch. I opted not to pay the extra $1.75 and took the burrito as is with Pinto Beans, Rice, Lettuce and Salsa. Ordered it with the Hot Salsa Verde. The burrito had some good flavor and the heat from the salsa came a bit late. I added salsa from the Chips and Salsa to help add more flavor to the burrito. It helped. My Daughter tried the Al Pastor Burrito ($7.50). Filled with the same things inside the Steak Burrito plus a Pineapple and Citrus marinade. She said it was not the best burrito and only ate a few bites. The Chicken Taco ($3.50) was served on a fried flour tortilla rather than a corn tortilla. The flour absorbed the oil from the chicken so the tortilla fell apart. The flavor of the taco however was pretty good. Not a bad taco but still nothing like tacos in San Diego or Los Angeles. I would go back to Verde to try a few other menu items. This was not the case with BC Burrito where I vowed never to return to again.