GREAT EATS HAWAII: IL LUPINO TRATTORIA AND WINE BAR

IL LUPINO TRATTORIA

AND WINE BAR

ROYAL HAWAIIAN SHOPPING CENTER, WAIKIKI

Il Lupino Trattoria serves up some good Italian food in Waikiki. I was surprised to see the place packed on a Sunday. Both indoor and outdoor sections were full when we arrived. The hostess greeted us with a calm smile amongst the crowd. We were given a beeper and told the wait would be around 15 minutes. In less than five minutes we were seated in the front near the bar. I immediately noticed a waiter cutting fresh meats on a food slicer next to the bar. This turned out to be the Salumeria where they cut Artesian Cheeses and Cured Meats to order. They offer five different meats and five cheeses. Each selection is $5. You can order a small plate of 3 meats and 3 cheeses for $25 and a large plate of all 5 meats and cheeses for $40. We went with Salami Toscana and Cambozola Cheese. The Salami was paper thin and fresh tasting. The Cambozola was very creamy with a subtle bleu cheese flavor. Yummy.... The Panzanella Salad ($12) was light and refreshing. Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, onion, pulled bread, anchovies, capers, and Gorgonzola doice. Liked the bread in the salad. Made it kind of rustic. Good flavors and very fresh. We ordered a Margherita Pizza ($15). Vine ripened Pomodoro Sauce, fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. We loved the thin crust but the cheese was clumped up in the middle of each slice. This pizza was not bad. The Linguine alla Vongole ($19) had some nice tasting fresh clams in a white wine, clam juice, olive oil and chili sauce. Sauce was a bit bland. Service was good considering the crowd. Our waiter was very efficient and gave us just enough attention to make us comfortable. He was really busy and did not mess around. Just get the food on the table in a friendly manner. I was impressed with the overall look of the restaurant and training of the staff. This was a well trained machine working at maximum capacity. It all worked well. We want to go back and try more menu items soon.
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http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2013/01/il-lupino-honolulu-hawaii.html