Aloha Lashpair - The Hawaii Thread !!
 

Aloha all !

So, we're soon to raid the Ala Moana Shopping centre and hunt down a big juicy Pu Pu Platter. (I giggle like mad when I say that) According to Wikipedia, they bring Pu Pu right to your table, and you can have a Poke .. Hmmm... Oh, Poke is cubed seasoned raw fish !!

You bet I'm trying for a Poke in Hawaii !!

Oh, and Poi. I wonder if they do Shepherds Poi ?

Anyway, if there are any LoTters in Hawaii, I'd love to meet them (koff, koff, Brad....)

So, my wishlist is thus:

• Pearl Harbour
• the Polynesian Cultural Centre
• A Luau
• A Lei (or several)
• The Waikiki Aquarium
• Mai Tai's at the Pink Palace (the Royal Hawaiian Hotel)
• At least one Tiki Bar (or ten)
• the Enchanted Tiki Room... wait.
• Poi
• The Honolulu Zoo
• Walking (panting) up Diamond Head
• and of course, the Ala Moana Shopping Centre.

Is there anything else we shouldn't miss that can be gotten to by public transport?

:cheers: :tiki: :cheers: :tiki:

You can't leave Oahu and not stop by the Dole Plantation for a Dole Whip Pineapple Split. It's absolutely pineapple-gasmic!

And I'd recommend Germaine's Luau for your luau fun. They're the most fun, have by far the best food, and best capture the family style feast that luaus are supposed to be. It's so awesome that we even modeled our wedding after them! A drive up to the North Shore is also one of those can't miss experiences. We rent a car and do the circle island drive. The views are simply breathtaking. Oh, and stop by Leonard's Bakery for malasadas! Way better than donuts, and you can even get them filled with haupia, which I personally don't care for, but is part of the Hawai'i experience. Also, to really experience the swank that is tiki, visit the Thor Stor in Waikiki. We love to stop in and gawk at all the awesome stuff and pick up a new tiki mug. You'll totally get a kick out of it. And right next door is the International Marketplace, which is an awesome place to hang out, eat some Dole Whip (though it's not as good as the plantation's, for some reason) and check out mega-kitschy market type stuff. If you want to pick up some aloha wear, stop by King's Village. There is a store there that is bursting with aloha stuff for way cheaper than anywhere else, and it's good stuff.

I'll post more if I think of it. I'm so jealous! I love Hawai'i!

If you are doing the north shore, don't miss Matsumoto's for some shave ice. The original and still the best...

Are you only going to be in Oahu?

Dukes, located at the Outrigger Waikiki and directly across the street from the International Market. We stayed at that hotel, and loved this landmark bar/restaurant! (Located on a beautiful stretch of Waikiki beachfront as well- lots of eye candy coming from the surf shop next door!)

Speaking of Tiki Rooms. Scuttlebutt is the Tonga Room in the Fairmont will be closing sometime this summer, the victim of the condo-i-zation and rebuilding of the tower, apparently.

So, if you are going to be in SF, might want to swing by for some cool atmosphere, lousy food and expensive drinks. Probably was/is the oldest surviving big room tiki bar. I guess I should visit, too, never been and that's shameful. I had been to the original Trader's Vics here on Cosmo Place (my favorite street name).

Now back to the regularly scheduled real-tiki-world thread.

So what days do I get with the Lashpair? I'm off on Wednesdays and have the weekends off and the evenings free (after 5:30pm). I want to have you over for dinner and take you on a "road trip" around the island of O'ahu.

Lash:

Part 1 of Bourdain visiting Hawaii

For me, ya gotta visit the place in that video

E and I stayed at that hotel back in 1998. Duke's is awesome.

I don't recommend walking through the International Market at 3am.

I believe was taken from either the hotel restaurant or Dukes at that Outrigger.

I don't recommend walking through the International Marketplace ever. It's like Adventureland with non-animatronic rats.