Dine. Drift. Dream.

After a 9 hour flight from Chicago to Honolulu I arrived famished.  I was completely unprepared for the task of feeding myself on the plane and ended up with peanut butter crackers and dried fruit.  I mean, I have never in my life been on a flight that long where food was for purchase only!  I guess when you’re headed to paradise nobody’s a critic.  Luckily, I was seated next to a local who drafted me a list of “Oahu Bests” and I proceeded to hit everything I could until our return flight.

Honolulu turned out to be quite urban and contemporary (I had no idea), the city itself is expansive and you can eat and drink like you’re in Chicago (always a plus).  I stayed on Waikiki through the work week and could not get enough of the ocean views, Outrigger Reef was a reasonable beachfront option (comparatively) that I really enjoyed.

Dan arrived midweek and the food frenzy began.  I am a huge fan of the Hawaiian approach to lunch- usually a protein, scoop of white rice and macaroni salad.  Given my weakness for macaroni salad, I could not get enough.  We had Kahlua Pork from Yama’s Fish Market that was pretty phenomenal- unfortunately they were out of Lau Lau by late afternoon, so if you attempt to go, go early.

Our next stop was happy hour at the Moana Surfrider hotel, a luxury property on Waikiki that has alfresco drinking with live music every night.  When we arrived there was only one sad table open, fairly far from the water, but after a quick 5 minute wait we secured beachfront seats.  I highly recommend checking out this historic hotel.

Dinner was at Duke’s, named for infamous Hawaiian surfer Duke Paoa Kahanamoku.  The restaurant was fairly touristy, but the food was great and a giant Tiki Bar anchored the space.  I like Tiki Bars even more than I like macaroni salad…

Unfortunately we were still adjusting to the time change (Day 4 for me) and rather than potentially passing out at the Dragon Upstairs we headed back to the hotel.

Yama’s Fish Market.  2332 Young Street. Honolulu, HI.

Moana Surfrider Hotel.  2365 Kalakaua Avenue  Honolulu, HI

Duke’s.  2335 Kalakaua Ave #116  Honolulu, HI