GREAT EATS HAWAII: RAGING CRAB

Sunday, July 22, 2012

RAGING CRAB - HONOLULU, HAWAII

RAGING CRAB

HONOLULU, HAWAII

RAGING CRAB

SAMSUNG PLAZA

655 KEEAUMOKU STREET, SUITE 101

HONOLULU, HI 96814

808-955-2722
HOURS: Monday thru Thursday, Sunday 12:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Friday and Saturday 12:00 PM - 12:00 AM

www.ragingcrab.com

I am a huge fan of Hot and Juicy Crawfish in Las Vegas. This place sets the bar for spicy crawfish and seafood. You can search this blog for photos, video and my review of Hot and Juicy. One of my favorite restaurants of all time. To even think of enjoying a similar restaurant in Honolulu was only a dream. Never thought anyone would open a place like Hot and Juicy here. Well, they did! The Raging Crab on Keeaumoku Street brings the same concept as Hot and Juicy to Hawaii. The restaurant features fresh shellfish cooked in mild to spicy sauces and served in plastic bags that allow the flavors to steep on the way to your table. Raging Crab does a great job. Hot and Spicy Seafood coupled with Hot and Spicy waitresses. If ever there were a recipe for success, this is it. While the waitresses were hot, they were also good. Made sure water was filled at all times and came by the table numerous times to make sure we were enjoying our meal and taken care of. We ordered a pound of Crawfish ($12), one pound of Lobster ($20), one pound King Crab ($26.99) and a few pieces of Corn for ($1) each. The bags came one at a time. First there was the Crawfish and King Crab steaming in the hot and spicy sauce. We went with "medium" heat level. This was kind of perfect. Nice amount of spice but it did not ruin the flavor of the seafood. The King Crab was meaty and sweet. Probably my favorite. I asked the waitress for a fork to help dig out the meat and she said they were not available. She brought us a pair of scissors and a two devices made to crack and cut open crab. This is where the bibs and gloves come in. There are no plates or utensils so you use your hands. This can get messy when you are cracking crab legs and lobsters. The sauce did fly a bit when we got careless or too aggressive. Wish I had put my bib on now. My golf shirt smells like garlic. The bag of Crab and Crawfish included corn on the cob and some slices of sausage. Loved both the corn and sausage. Pretty much anything would taste good soaking the the sauce which is different than Hot and Juicy Crawfish in Las Vegas but good in its own right. The Crawfish were meaty but did not have the fresh taste that I had anticipated. Liked the lobster but there really is not much meat in one of them. You would need to order one per person if you have lobster lovers at the table. My daughter loved eating with her hands. She is already planning for when she can invite her friends to the place to have some fun. We liked the decor at the Raging Crab. Simple wood walls with some crab shack items on the walls. This place will rocket in popularity fast. I can see not being able to get a table here after a late night of drinking and partying. When you take this great food, atmosphere and couple it with nightclub type waitresses the place should be the talk of the town very soon.