“I Want Them to Dream,” Says President of Izakaya Naru, 2025 Hale ‘Aina Award Winner of Best Izakaya
With the tiny izakaya on King Street winning Hale ‘Aina gold, we talk to president Hiroyuki Akiyama about the eatery’s 15-year history.
Japanese
Your Insider Guide to Okinawan Festival
Here’s everything you need to know about the celebration of Uchinanchu culture on Aug. 30–31.
All Our Favorite Musubi in Honolulu
Humble to loaded, white or brown, these rice balls fuel our foodie team at all hours of the day.
All Our Favorite Cold Noodles in Honolulu
When the summer heat hits, we reach for these refreshingly delicious cold noodle dishes.
Tororo Is a New Izakaya With a 6 to 8 p.m. Happy Hour
It means “grated mountain yam.” And there’s a chance dishes from shuttered Eastern Paradise might appear.
All Our Favorite Fried Chicken in Honolulu
Our Frolic and HONOLULU writers share their fave fried chicken finds.
Downtown Has a New Made-to-Order Musubi Shop
Onigiri Onibe’s 45 varieties are handmade to order (and yes, they come with nori).
Best of HONOLULU 2025: Food and Drinks on O‘ahu
Our editors picked 11 top categories plus 21 readers’ choices to establish the best food and drinks on O‘ahu this year.
12 Restaurants Are Creating Slimy Specials for Next Week’s Natto Takeout Dine-Around
Everything from natto eggplant bolognese and natto oyako donburi to guava natto white chocolate chip cookies.
Frolic’s 7-Course Natto Day Dinner Is Coming to Jinya on July 10
Seven original comfort dishes with oishii slimy twists, and only one rule: You must love natto.
All Our Favorite Matcha Drinks in Honolulu
Matcha is always on trend and everywhere in town. We asked the team where they get their matcha drink fixes.
8 Things You’ll Only Find at Don Don Donki in Kapolei
Beyond groceries and goods, the discount superstore has exclusives like freshly grilled eel, poke nachos and Portuguese sausage pizza.
Where Time Stands Still: Yanagi Sushi
It’s served my family sushi, combination meals and the perfect talk-story setting since I was just old enough to hold chopsticks.
A Former Sushi Chef Sells and Sharpens Knives at Aframes Tokyo in Kalihi
Revisiting that time we found an off-the-beaten-path stall selling top-line handmade knives and everyday knives at City Square’s open market.
Chillest Shave Ice Opens in a Permanent New Home in Kaimukī
The roaming pop-up once known as Ailana Shave Ice has set up a cool oasis on Wai‘alae Avenue.
Wagyu Ramen Comes to Don Don Donki’s Food Court
Affordably luxuriant Toriyama layers wagyu onto bowls of spicy garlic, miso, yuzu kosho and other ramen in Kapolei.
We Found the Ultimate Ramen—Did Your Favorite Win?
Thank you for voting in Frolic's Ramen Bowl 2025! See who took the crown—and we hope you loved every slurp along the way.
Where Time Stands Still: Yagura Restaurant
It’s more to me than just a place to get a good Japanese meal in the neighborhood.
Slurp, Snap and Vote: Your Guide to Frolic’s First-Ever Ramen Bowl 2025
From April 23 through 30, try ramen creations from 10 restaurants across the island, and you could win a trip to Japan.
Sapporo Ichiban, Sun Noodle, Ichiran: My Life in 3 Packaged Ramens
What’s in a bowl of noodles? More than meets the eye, according to this classic by HONOLULU Magazine’s creative director.
An Oishii New Bento Shop Just Opened Downtown
Waikīkī’s former Okonomiyaki Chibo reincarnates as Oide Kitchen in the Arcade Building on Merchant Street.
I Got Into Tonkatsu Kuro at 8:15 on a Wednesday Night and It Was So Worth It
The new tonkatsu restaurant at Ward is one of the city’s hottest bookings. And don’t pass up the soba.
When Rice = Comfort Food: 6 Steaming Bowls from Around the World
Reprising a classic for this cloudy, breezy cool spell: Where to find comforting rice porridge from China, Japan, the Philippines, Spain and more.
