3 Dishes You Must Order at the Grand Lānai Restaurant Week Menu in Waikīkī

In celebration of the weeklong dining event, the eateries and restaurants at International Market Place will serve prix fixe menus and specialty dishes from April 8–14.

April 5, 2019

Katie Kenny,

Papas bravas from Mi Almita Cantina. (Just so you know, these portions are specifically for the media tasting.)

Photos: Katie Kenny

Who doesn’t love a good ol’ restaurant week? It’s a perfect opportunity to try delicious dishes from trendy spots you can’t always factor into your dining-out budget. Thankfully the gourmet gang at International Market Place have joined forces so we can all try a sprinkling of flavors from restaurants such as Eating House 1849 by Roy Yamaguchi, ShoreFyre, Goma Tei and the uber-Instagram-worthy Herringbone.

Here are three dishes I sampled at a media preview that really stuck in my mind.

Old school-style meatballs

These spheres of meaty joy comprise of beef, veal and pork and are served with tomato sauce, Parmesan and salsa verde. Meatballs are not hard to find, but there are only a handful this fresh, tender and perfectly seasoned. Flour & Barley’s meatballs are one of two starters guests can choose from its three-course menu. We recommend ordering the meatballs, truffle-y mushroom pizza and a classic cannoli.

Price: $40 per person for a prix fixe menu

Where: Flour & Barley – Brick Oven Pizza

Open daily 11 a.m. – 11 p.m., Level Three Grand Lānai, (808) 892-2993, flourandbarley.com

Steak fajitas and papas bravas

I’m already a fan of Mi Almita Cantina’s Baja-style marlin tacos (and its cheap frozen margaritas and pork taco deal on Taco Tuesdays), but I was not expecting how good the thick juicy cuts of steak with roasted peppers, onions, guacamole and soft wrap would be. The James Beard Award-winning chefs Hugo Ortega and Michael Mina chose to include two new menu items during Restaurant Week: the steak fajitas and steak-cut fries served with a trio of sauces.

Price: $25 per person for special menu

Where: Mi Almita Cantina

Open daily 8 a.m.–10 p.m., Level One, Mauka Court at The Street, (808) 377-6915, michaelmina.net

Li hing pineapple sorbet

StripSteak Waikīkī was a finalist in HONOLULU’s 35^th Annual Hale ‘Aina Awards’ best steak category so we know we should be focused on the beef. But that li hing and pineapple sorbet has a sweet and tangy bit of something special. We recommend hitting this three-course menu hard by ordering the mushroom risotto, New York strip steak and ending on the light and airy, fruity dessert.

Price: $75 per person for a prix fixe menu

Where: StripSteak Waikīkī

Open daily 4 10:30 p.m., Level Three, Grand Lānai, (808) 800-3094, stripsteakwaikiki.com

The Grand Lānai Restaurant week runs Monday, April 8 to Sunday, April 14. The event kicks off with Poke Bowl III at 5:30 p.m. and is located in Queen’s Court, 2330 Kalākaua Ave., (808) 921-0536, shopinternationalmarketplace.com.