When i was doing research for hawaii one of the blog posts that i first stumbled upon was this one from the brave little cheesehead, which was must try food on kauai. Following statehood and world war ii, hawaiis visitor numbers grew, along with its hotel accommodations. The setup reminds me of a cafeteria and i thought it would be like the fourty niner restaurant we tried in oahu. Their beef stick skewers and their lilikoi pie are also highly recommended. Multicultural cuisine is available within walking distance of the kauai palms hotel. Saimin is a type of noodle dish with broth that was inspired by japanese ramen, chinese mein, and filipino pancit.
The whole crew of us piled in on stools around the counter and very friendly servers made us a hot lunch in no time for a very reasonable price. In his new book, simply named poke he shares some history. Our travel book said this place was worth the visit so we went to lunch here when. Saimin, while reminiscent of ramen, is actually uniquely hawaiian, born of the melting pot of peoples who worked the sugar plantations in the mid19th century. I have a copy of his book about his stay in china in storage, we knew many ofthe people who he spent time with before moving to honolulu.
Chowhound andy raskin has a book coming out about him in the spring, the ramen king and i. Saimin is a hawaiin soup noodle dish which can come with a variety of. Lihue restaurants within walking distance to kauai palms hotel. Hawaii couple buys landmark kauai restaurants property. Charles and aiko hamura founded their namesake restaurant in 1952. The cold saltiness of the fish matches perfectly with the hot saltiness of the saimin. Hamura saimin stand 2956 kress st, lihue, hi 96766. While both noodles can be used interchangeably in any number of asian soups or salads, saimin and ramen are also the names of specific dishes prepared with the noodles and other ingredients. I like to pick up a quarter pound or so on my way to hamuras saimin. It is a local comfort food eaten all year round at any time of day for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or as a latenight snack. Hamura saimin one highly recommended place to eat in lihue is hamura saimin.
Fodors escape to the hawaiian islands the definitive. As i flipped through the book i was in awe of everything from the history of hawaii and hawaiian food at the beginning of the book. Were following a broader financial and personal life plan. Top 10 hole in the walls have you ever been visiting somewhere and come across a little restaurant with a huge line but were skeptical because of the look of the place. Kauai offers plenty to do, lots of history, and unforgettable sights. Today, granddaughter lori tanigawa runs the small, openair restaurant known for its classic saimin. It began with a pair of conventional zip lines, which allowed us to soar over the trees. Was working on a paper that my wife assisted him with about ethinic origins and history in hawaii. Im trying to save calories and money by not eating out, and i avoid my normal sources of food porn only to find more on a site ostensibly about cars. Hamuras saimin stand see above in lihue is a beloved local noodle shop, a nofrills spot that does hawaiis panasian culinary mashup thing so well. Hamuras saimin stand is close to the airport and is one of those places all of the locals go. From kauai, hamura saimin offers lilikoi chiffon pies, frozen to survive the trip back to oahu.
Although the average reader may scoff at a history book put out by a church, i might point out there is an extensive amount of research that went into this. Hamuras soup is made with flavorful brotha secret recipe. Well thats what these hole in the wall spots are here on kauai. We traced the history of five hawaii comfort food favorites back to their earliest origins to decipher the roots of their modernday multicultural appeal. Im all about trying the local joints, so we popped into hamuras saimin.
We found it listed as a gem in a popular guide book, and we were not disappointed. We traced the history of five hawaii comfort food favorites all the way back to their. Hamura saimin lihue menu view the menu for hamura saimin rest of hawaii on zomato for delivery, dineout or takeaway, hamura saimin menu and prices. Visitors have also now caught on to the appeal of saimin. Each of the 20 sights and experiences described is exceptional and memorableas youll see for yourself in more than 140 luscious color photographs. Step back in time and taste the best bowl of noodles on the island. We traced the history of five hawaii comfort food favorites all the way back to their earliest origins to decipher the roots of their modernday multicultural appeal. When hamura first opened 59 years ago, there were only six wooden stools surrounding a cook who made the saimin to order. Although the upscale shops at kukuiula wont cut it for authenticity buffs, there are lots of. Hamura saimin, lihue, rest of hawaii urbanspoonzomato. Hamura saimin stand lihue, hawaii ramen restaurant. Hamura saimin few restaurants are as synonymous with kauai as hamuras, a beloved local saimin shop in lihue that is usually at the top of everyones todo list. History lovers, be sure to get a aaa book on kauai before going there so you can find things like the birthing rock where kings had to be born, the ancient japanese graveyard on the hill above, the temple foundations and actual slab for human. Roberts takes a break from reading her stephen king short story, the.
It is based on a dashi broth, served with soba noodles and fresh vegetables. Saimin is a noodle soup dish common in the contemporary cuisine of hawaii. Saimin was developed during hawaiis plantation era and is a testament to the history of cultural influences found in the hawaiian islands. A firsttimers guide to thrills and chills on kauai the. Sam satos on maui, and hamuras saimin on kauai, which was given the. Saimin is to us islanders, what mac and cheese is to mainlanders. This muststop lihue, kauai, hawaii saimin stand has been dishing out some of. On december 7, 1941, japanese warplanes bombed pearl harbor, forcing the united states to enter world war ii.
Hawaiian cuisine has largely been influenced asian cuisines, in particular by japanese and chinese, which is definitely noticeable in this soup ingredients and preparation. Its a dish that all local kids grow up eating, and hamura s is one of the oldest and most famous saimin shops in hawaii. Hamuras saimin stand see above in lihue is a beloved local. Hawaiian saimin recipe may not be healthy, but i need it in this category for now xd the favorite local fast food of the hawaiian islands abd also considered the national dish of hawaii, is saimin, an inexpensive noodle and broth soup. Aloha kitchen hawaiian guava cake pineapple and coconut.
How the inventor of instant noodles fixed my love life. Pearla yago has been crafting bowls of hamura saimin stands famed. Hamura saimin stands style is business casual, so formal wear should be left on the hanger. Saimin is an iconic local dish in hawaiiyou cant find saimin in any other part of the world.
Looking for thrills, we chose the socalled adrenaline excursion. Check winners and nominees of 2006 james beard foundation award. At hamura saimin stand, you can safely park just around the corner. The local answer to ramen, saimin is a broth noodle bowl uniquely hawaiian in its melding of filipino, chinese, japanese, portuguese, and korean immigrant cuisines. Hamura saimin menu, menu for hamura saimin, lihue, rest of. Its a small restaurant with traditional barlike seating. Malasadas pictured above the deepfried, sugardusted frieddough treat was brought to hawaii with the 1878 arrival of portuguese plantation laborers from the madeira and azores islands. Staff fodors travel publications 2000, hardcover at the best online prices at ebay. I received a complimentary tour and no other compensation. Kaimukiman although my experience is limited entirely to kauai, i know that the owner of hamura saimin in lihue was supposed to be receiving. On kauai, slurp saimin and shave ice at hamuras saimin stand.
The very first restaurant that they talked about immediately caught my eye because it sounded like another noodle soup dish that i needed try, especially since i. Escape to the hawaiian islands 1 by paul wood and inc. In 2006, the james beard foundation recognized hamura saimin. The stools are still there, and the stands original saimin recipe, created by aiko hamura, is relatively unchanged. Hawaiian saimin soup recipe food, food recipes, soup. In a rickety wooden building that survived hurricane iniki. Saimin traditional and authentic hawaiian recipe 196. Hamura is a likably divey lunchcounter kind of place. Try hamuras saimin stand for a local treat behind the salvation army, open 10am to 10pm most days. Saimin and ramen are both types of long, thin noodles used in asian cuisine. The garden island barbecue and chinese, a local favorite, also just down the block from the kauai palms hotel, offers take out for lunch and dinner.
Hawaiian people have their very own meat soup also regarded as a national dish, called saimin. A look at all the food stops on our tasting kauai tour as well as a little about the mastermind behind these tours, marta lane. This place is legendary and best known for saimin and lilikoi chiffon pies. So it should be no surprise that after a 6hour flight from seattle to kauai, our first stop was hamura saimin in lihue. Kauai saimin icon aiko hamura honolulu starbulletin hawaii news. A longstanding restaurant on kauai that remains popular even with littletono change since its inception, is hamura saimin. Owned by the hiraoka family, hamura saimin is a popular lay over for locals picking up take out orders for friends and family on the neighbor islands. It may sound like arrogance and privilege which it is but in reality if youve been following along with the origami life blog over the past 2. Different seasons offer different highlights and mustsee wonders and we are sure that once you visit, youll find yourself wanting to plan another vacation to the island. Hike through a bamboo forest to an awesome waterfall let this book inspire and guide you as you plan your hawaiian adventure. Bicyclists will also find lots of space to safely lock up their bikes. That made it an ideal warmweather destination to rev up and unwind, while talking to residents opened my eyes to kauais history and the consequences of more. Weve got the best things to do in kauai, hawaii and the nawiliwili cruise port area for those visiting on a cruise vacation.
Kauais classic hamura saimin stand is noodle nirvana hawaii. This lihue landmark dishes out more than a thousand bowls of steaming dashi and homemade saimin noodles each day. It uses the historical aspect of the bible and connects it to our modern view of history, showing us exactly how it is wrong. Kauais classic hamura saimin stand is noodle nirvana. Noodles are one of my most favorite comfort foods, next to rice. Read more subversive books to bingeread now travel subversive. If you ask anyone from hawaii what their favorite comfort food is, there is a high probability that saimin will top their list. Whenever someone tells us a story about their trip to hawaii, they tell us a. Have lunch at hamuras saimin, a local icon established in 1951 featuring japanese noodles, just a short walk around the corner.
268 56 277 1019 1537 687 204 97 148 138 836 1403 194 752 452 1046 293 1135 1330 1477 751 1281 89 439 1275 555 1430 652 226 136 316