Hawaii Restaurants~Imanas Tei

*This is the beginning of all my Hawaii restaurant posts. *

Alan from Makiki suggested that I try the nabe at Imanas Tei. Mike and I visited this place with his aunty. Mike and I shared the two-person chanko nabe pot.

When our dishes came out, Mike and I both eyed out his aunty’s ahi belly. Oh it looked so flavorful and we were both regretting ordering the nabe. But then our nabe came out and was loaded with seafood, vegetables, and everything else. Look at all the seafood! There was crab legs in this nabe.
Here are the main differences I noticed between the Ichiriki’s and Imanas Tei nabes:

Ichiriki
*The broth is spicy and more flavorful. We haven’t tried all the broths at Ichiriki, but take our advice and order the spicy broth (Kei's Pirikara) with the original nabe ingredients. See our previous post about Ichiriki.

*You have a choice between udon or saimin noodles for the leftover broth.

Imanas Tei
*A bland broth which made us feel like we were primarily using the broth to cook the raw ingredients rather than a complimentary soup.

*King Crab, Korean rice cake (duk) are included in the ingredients When the broth is left, you have the choice of noodles, or a scrambled egg to be cooked in the remaining broth. Mike's aunty really enjoyed the egg and broth.

So all in all, both are excellent restaurants with great service, but Mike and I both agreed that the broth tastes much better at Ichiriki, so we’d prefer to eat the chanko nabe at Imanas Tei. But Mike and I will definitely back to Imanas Tei to order other dishes off their menu!

Imanas Tei
2626 S King St
Honolulu, HI 96826

Hawaii Restaurants~Ichiriki

Ichiriki is quickly becoming one of my favorite restaurants in Hawaii. It is so good! Lauren and I went here with our parents after we got married. I've been there 3 times so far, and always had that same thing. I'm normally the type of person who likes to switch it up, but it was just that good! I get the Kei's Pirikara broth with the ingredients from the Ichiriki Original Nabe. The broth is sweet and spicy (I love it!), and I also get the meats and vegetables I want. You have to ask to do the switcharoo, but they'll let you do it. You just have to pay for the more expensive item. I've tried other broths I didn't like them as much.
People get Shabu-shabu and Nabe mixed up. In general, Shabu-shabu is when you cook ingredients in water, then flavor them in a dipping sauce. Nabe is cooked in a soup or broth that provides the flavor. At Ichiriki, you get a pot of broth on a burner (one pot serves 2 people and you can have different broths), and you cook your food in it. When you're done, they bring you ramen or udon (thicker) noodles for you to cook and eat in the remaining broth.
The waiters/waitresses are very nice, although sometimes you have to check your tray because they'll forget to give you an ingredient or two. Usually you have to add the meatballs first because they take the longest (gingery and very good). Everything else cooks pretty fast. The beef is super thin so it cooks really quickly.
To be fair and accurate, I read some reviews where people complained about the appetizers. Specifically, the chicken karaage was raw inside. I've never tried it so I can't comment on that specifically, but I wouldn't recommend getting appetizers anyway, because the main course is so much food. Some other people said that the broth was lacking in flavor. I had that problem once. At first I was disappointed because my new favorite restaurant was failing, but then I figured it out. Trick was to turn the burner on high and let the broth boil down for a few minutes. That made it wonderful, and the world was right again.

How much would I pay?

Mike: Whatever it says on my bill (about $25 a person after tax, tip and parking)
Lauren: Regular price. It's pricey but good!

Ichiriki

510 Piikoi Street
Honolulu, HI 96814

(808) 589-2299

Flying Home~My Favorite Hawaii Restaurants

I'll be back in Hawaii in about 24 hours. The blog posts will be limited, but I already know I'll be checking out numerous restaurants during my three week stay back home.

Restaurants on tap:
Hanamaru
Doraku
Yogurt Land-it's not really a restaurant, but I would like to go there.


Places to go, things to see:
*Trying to include a day to the North Shore with K. and her mom, and V. for Matsumoto's, garlic shrimp, and other yummies
*Dim Sum at some place good
*Find some place that sells kulolo. Since the Ward Farmer's Market closed down
*The Poke Bowl
* The Fat Greek

Other restaurants/places that I always like to squeeze into my visit:
*KJ's -Furikake Chicken
*Ichiriki
*Dave's Ice Cream-lychee sorbet
*Shokudo or Sansei
*Samurai Shave Ice - for the Maui-style guri guri
*Liliha Bakery for Orange chiffon cake
*Zippy's for chili (both the regular and vegetarian)
*Wholesale Unlimited -my aunty''s store
*Ka Ikena at Kapiolani Community College (small factoid-I attended culinary school at KCC in 2004)

restaurants to visit in hawaii

one of my friends is going to hawaii on a family trip. he asked for recommendations and places to go, restaurants to try out, etc. so i'll be using this blog to jot down notes when ideas pop up.

random things you should try, but i don't have a favorite place.
hawaiian food-this is a hit or miss. most people have to adjust to the flavors of hawaiian food. it's basically flavored with salt. I don't know what kinds of spices are used in traditional hawaiian cooking. smoked items?
*dim sum-not sure where to go for cheaper yummy type. ala moana hotel has a pretty good one
*shave ice (matsumoto's north shore, waiola-in town)

restaurants (pricey..aka fancy date places, but so worth it!)
*alan wong's-asian fusion food
*roy's-asian fusion food. yummy fish

slighty cheaper, but still yummy
*alan wong's pineapple room (macy's ala moana)
*sansei-waikiki (go for half off after 10pm or before 5:30pm on sundays-these specials might only be for locals, i'm not sure)
*verbano on king (italian food cooked by asians. it's slightly different from regular italian, but good)
*tadashi-japanese food, yummy green tea shave ice
*ichiriki-japanese food. i forgot what the name of this kind of cook it yourself place is called. "nabe"? anyways, the food was yummy!
*restaurant kuni-japanese food
*shokudo-asian fusion restaurants. portions are on the smaller side ( i guess asian tapas?)
*pietros-asian italian fusion. (my sister's favorite restaurant)

on the go foods-take-out type
*bale-vietnamese sandwiches, it's like a franchise, so some restaurants taste better than others.
*monarch seafood-seafood and chicken are yummy. i think this place is only open for lunch
*char hun sut (sp?) -manapua (aka charsiu bao)
*zippy's ( a little over-priced for local fast food, but i like it. try the chili. i like the veggie chili too)
*kurukuru sushi


food places other people like, but i think it's just okay.
*sam choy's-pricey
*sam choy's breakfast lunch and crab (cheaper)

things to do
haunama bay-snorkeling
diamond head hike
check out chinatown-it's interesting. lots of different types of produce
polynesian culture center (toursits go there. you might want to check out the prices). i remember thinking it was kind of cool when i was growing up.

night scene
sorry i've been out of it so long, i'm not sure.
indigo has happy hour during the weekdays. i think it's half-off martinis. they have a good lychee martini