Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/133302
PHOTO COURTES OF ROY'S HONOLULU Colorful, fresh cocktails complement the Szechuan spiced ribs at Roy's. PHOTO COURTESY OF ALAN WONG'S. Hiroshi Eurasian Tapas sits on busy Ala Moana Boulevard, in the midst of a Restaurant Row of chains that are fine . . . for others. You want to go to Hiroshi, where Chef Hiroshi Fukui, along with Master Sommelier Chuck Furuya of DK Restaurants, offer modern Asian-inspired tapas—crispy soft shell crab "soup," Portuguese sausage potstickers with garlic chili foam and ponzu truffle sauce, Chef Hiroshi Fukui. steamed Hawaii snapper with Big Island ginger. The wine list, not surprisingly, is encyclopedic, with special sections of reds and whites selected to go particularly well with the food. This may be the best wine list in Hawaii. The Opihi Shooter at Alan Wong's. PHOTO COURTESY OF ALAN WONG'S. PHOTO COURTESY OF HIROSHI EURASIAN TAPAS Any discussion of Hawaiian restaurants always comes back to Roy's, with three branches in Honolulu. The eternally youthful Roy Yamaguchi is the father of Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine, making it a bit island, a bit Asian, a bit French—and always delicious. His blackened island alu dazzles. His Hawaiian-style misoyaki butterfish is mythic. His macadamia-crusted shutome has a cult following. His grilled Szechuan spiced baby back pork ribs are pretty awesome as well. In many ways, Roy put Hawaii on the culinary map. And even though there are branches of his restaurants around the world, eating at Roy's in Hawaii is . . . essential. And so are his Hawaiian cocktails—a world of fresh fruits and spirits that make the trip that much better. Alan Wong's sits in an office building on King Street, with no view of the ocean. And yet for 15 years, it's been one of Honolulu's most beloved culinary destinations, a landmark for Hawaiian Regional Cuisine that Wong (like Ferran Adrià) thinks of as a lab for the Alan Wong's "Da Bag": development of steamed clams with flavors. Flavors kalua pig and shiitake found in his New mushrooms. Wave opihi shooter (local limpets in spicy tomato water and much more), his crab "tofu" agedashi (spanner crab mousse with Kona lobster medallions) and a dish called "Da Bag"—steamed clams with kalua pig and shiitake mushrooms. There are deepfried poke balls as well. Seriously. That is so homeboy. june 2013 / the tasting panel / 121 TP0613_120-156.indd 121 5/23/13 4:53 PM