GREAT EATS HAWAII: CAFE CHE PASTA

CAFE CHE PASTA

HONOLULU, HAWAII

I was working downtown with a sales rep and decided to drop into Cafe Che Pasta for a quick lunch before our next appointment. We were quickly seated at a nice table next to the window. I ordered the Spaghetti Con Vongole which is Spaghetti with Clams ($15). I requested the Tomato Sauce with a little spice. My friend ordered the Daily Special ($14) which was Spaghetti with Vegetable and Chicken. Our dishes came quickly and were well presented. I was happy to see a full pound of clams over my pasta and a nice rich sauce. Then came the smell. I could not describe the smell. It was something I have never experienced in all of my dining experiences. It was really bad. Sickening. I took one small bite of the pasta and could not eat it. I lifted up several clams and brought them to my nose. The smell was overpowering. Something was very wrong here. I looked at the beautiful dish of pasta. I was starving. I wanted to dig in. I paused and took another smell. It was bad. Real bad. I pushed the plate to the side of the table and told the waitress that I hate to do this but this is uneatable. The smell was horrific. The rep eating with me offered to switch plates and eat the smelly clams. No way I thought and declined this option. He dug into his plate of pasta (which he liked) and had an enjoyable lunch. The waitress asked if she could bring me another dish. No thank you I said politely. We had limited time and I did not want to reorder. A few minutes passed and the General Manager approached our table to apologize and offer another entree. He said that the clams were left over the long Holiday weekend. I told him to tell the chef that he should have never let that plate leave the kitchen. He knew the clams were bad. This plate could have made me real sick. I told them to just pay for my friends plate and we would be even. They agreed and apologized again. As we departed the restaurant the Manager came to me and said that he had already called his seafood supplier. A little late I thought. This was not a good experience.