Veg Allegiance

 Are you what you eat?

Better hope not.

That would leave you pale, soft and puffy from all those malassadas.

Clean up your act and head over to Hale, the brand new organic, vegan, macrobiotic restaurant that just opened yesterday.

Nestled on Makaloa street just off Ke‘eaumoku, Hale is a sleek little nook decorated with dark wood, bamboo and trim white tables. The menu is just a handful of lunch bentos for now, but promises to expand to a full sit-down lunch and dinner lineup.

There are vegan standbys – Teriyaki Tempeh, Seitan Ginger – and some interesting veggie dishes like organic Kabocha fried rice and the Hale Musubi. And since macrobiotic eating allows for some fish, there’s grilled salmon and grilled saba mackerel. All the plates come with brown rice plus a side of kale salad and a colorful bean medley with garbanzos, soybeans, onions and red peppers. For dessert, there’s carrot cake or chocolate muffins and biscottis, all as good as the real thing.

What a great place to veg out.

Hale, 1427 Makaloa Street, 808.944.1555. Open at 11:30 daily until the lunch bentos are gone. Full lunch and dinner hours and menu coming soon.