IKE'S PLACE - SAN FRANCISCO

IKE'S PLACE

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

IKE'S PLACE

3489 16TH STREET

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

415-553-6888

Open 7 Days a Week - 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM

www.ikesplace.com

www.facebook.com/ikes/app_249347133607

As a fan of Man vs Food on the Travel Channel, we are always excited when we can visit one of the restaurants that are featured on the show.  While in San Francisco, we had to destinations that we wanted to visit.  The first was La Cumbre which is a Mexican restaurant that was the first to introduce large California style burritos.  The second was Ike's Place.  We paid $30 to take a taxi from our hotel to La Cumbre only to find out they do not open to 11:00 AM.  We were on a very tight schedule and could not wait so we walked about five blocks up the street to Ike's Place that opens at 10:00 AM.  There were about three people ahead of us when the doors opened.  I was kind of surprised when we walked in and found just a counter and board.  The place is pretty bare.  No tables or chairs.  I asked if they had a menu so I could examine it closely.  No menus I was told.  Order from the board or from the website.  We were here for the Kryptonite Sandwich that was featured on the television series Man vs Food (video below).  At $19.91 we figured it would be enough for our family of three.  While the Kryptonite was not listed on the board we asked the cashier if it was available and she said yes.  I wanted to order another sandwich so we could experience different tastes but the wife said no.  The Kryptonite was enough.  Boy was she right.  The kitchen cut the sandwich in half at our request and we had two huge halves that took us two days to finish.  The Kryptonite Sandwich contains; Two avocados, Beer Battered Onion Rings, Corned Beef, Extra Pepper Jack Cheese, Ham, Mozzarella Sticks, Pastrami, Pesto, Roast Beef, Salami, Stuffed Jalapeño Poppers and Turkey.  All between some really fresh and delicious bread with lettuce and tomato.  In a word this was "heaven".  You could really taste every single ingredient.  The meats exploded with flavor.  You just cannot get a sandwich like this in Hawaii.  Nothing comes close.  

This is a TASTE OF HAWAII FAVORITE!

IKE'S PLACE

IKE'S PLACE IN THE CASTRO DISTRICT OF SAN FRANCISCO

ARRIVED AT 10:00 AM SHARP TO AVOID THE LONG LINE

THIS IS IKE'S.  NO TABLES OR CHAIRS.  YOU GRAB YOUR SANDWICH AND GO

NO MENUS.  ORDER OFF THE BOARD OR ONLINE ONLY

NOT A FANCY PLACE BUT THE SANDWICHES ARE A TASTE OF HAWAII FAVORITE

SANDWICH DRAWINGS ON THE WALLS

THE KRYPTONITE SANDWICH

TWO AVOCADOS, BACON, BEER BATTERED ONION RINGS, CORNED BEEF, EXTRA PEPPER JACK CHEESE, HAM, MOZZARELLA STICKS, PASTRAMI, PESTO, ROAST BEEF, SALAMI, STUFFED JALAPENO POPPERS AND TURKEY ON SOME REALLY GOOD BREAD

THE KRYPTONITE SANDWICH WAS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS AND TOOK US TWO DAYS TO FINISH.
COMES IN TWO LARGE HALVES IF YOU REQUEST THEY CUT IT

ONE OF THE BEST SANDWICHES I HAVE EVER EATEN.  LOVED IT!

MAN VS FOOD VIDEO CLIP

IN N' OUT BURGER AGAIN

IN N' OUT BURGER
CALIFORNIA

Had to post yet another great review of the best $2.30 burgers on the Planet.  This time with a little twist.  While we love In n' Out burgers and the great service at their stores. We were however surprised to learn that the In n' Out family promote their faith in a very quiet and subtle way.  A family member told us that In n' Out prints bible verses on their burger wrappers and cups.  Wow I thought.  I have never ever noticed these verses all of the times I have eaten at In n' Out.  He said they were on the bottom of the cup and on the back of the burger wrappers.  What a great reason to go back for another burger.  I was there the next day.  I looked at the bottom of my cup and the back of my burger wrapper and low and behold they they were.  John 3:16 and Revelation 3:20.  Burgers with some faith!  Love In n' Out even more now.

ABSOLUTELY BEST BURGER FOR THE PRICE ON THE PLANET

CLASSIC FRESH INGREDIENTS AND THAT IS IT

FRIES ORDERED "WELL DONE" ARE CRISP AND DELICIOUS

BEEF IS NEVER FROZEN.  FRIES ARE PEELED AND DICED AT EVERY RESTAURANT.  NEVER FROZEN.

BIBLE VERSUS ON THE BURGER WRAPPER

BIBLE VERSE ON THE CUP.  STRANGE THING HAPPENED WHEN
TRYING TO UPLOAD ANY PHOTOS OF THE VERSES.  NON OF THE PICTURES
TAKEN WOULD UPLOAD.  I HAD TO TAKE A PICTURE OF THE PICTURE TO POST?

HANGER 11 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE

HANGER 11
HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE
OAHU, HAWAII

This post has nothing to do with food but I really wanted to share this with my blog readers.  I had a meeting today at Hanger 11 at Hickam Air Force Base.  Hickam is a beautiful military base located next to the Honolulu International Airport and adjacent to Pearl Harbor.  The base and its large squadrons of military aircraft were heavily damaged during the attack on Pearl Harbor on
 December 7, 1941.  One of the more famous photographs is the one below showing Hanger 11 in shambles and a damaged B-18 aircraft parked in front of it.  Walking into the hanger took me back in history as we gazed at the bullet ridden walls inside the hanger.  I had so many thoughts about what happened inside and outside of this hanger some seventy years ago.  Who was here.  What did it sound like.  Who died.  Who lived?  The hanger has been totally refurbished with the exception of the walls.  They have been left "as is" complete with hundreds of bullet holes.  The strafing from Japanese bombers must have been intense.  Cannot imagine the hell that our brave men and woman went through on this terrible day in American history.  Hanger 11 today is now used as a warehouse for building and maintenance materials that are distributed to field workers and technicians for Hickam Air Force Base and Pearl Harbor Naval Air Station.  If base housing needs a new air conditioner, toilet, plumbing supplies or building materials they will most likely come out of Hanger 11.
God Bless the men and woman who proudly serve in the United States Military!

HICKAM HANGER 11 ON DECEMBER 7, 1941 

LOOKS LIKE A BOMB WENT THROUGH THE ROOF

HANGER 11 AT HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE 2012

INSIDE OF HANGER 11 TODAY.  HANGER IS HOME TO COMPANY THAT PROVIDES
BUILDING MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES TO HICKAM AFB AND PEARL HARBOR

BULLET HOLES REMAIN ON THE WALLS TODAY INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF HANGER 11

THESE ARE NOT YOUR AVERAGE BULLET HOLES

CANNOT IMAGINE THE SOUNDS OF ROUNDS HITTING THE BUILDING ON DECEMBER 11

BULLET MARKINGS ARE ALL OVER THE WALLS.  HANGER 11 WAS HIT HARD

THIS PHOTO HANGS ON THE WALL INSIDE HANGER 11 TODAY.
REAR VIEW OF WRECKED HANGER 11 AT HICKAM FIELD,
WITH B-18 OF THE 18TH BOMB WING ON THE RIGHT

Destruction at Hickam Field

On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Hickam Field two times. At the time of the Pearl Harbor attack, Hickam Field was the only U.S. Army airbase in Hawaii that was long enough to handle B-17 bombers. It was located adjacent to the Pearl Harbor Naval Base. During the second attack, Nakajima B5N "Kates" from the aircraft carrier Zuikaku bombed the hangars, barracks, and flight line. Nearly half of the airplanes at Hickam Field were destroyed or severely damaged.

Photo shows Hangar No. 11 at Hickam Field, on December 7, 1941.

KARAI CRAB REVISITED

KARAI CRAB
HONOLULU, HAWAII

KARAI CRAB

901 HAUSTON STREET

HONOLULU, HI  96826

808-952-6990

www.karaicrab.com

Hours: 11:00 to 10:00 PM Daily

Valet Parking Available

Free Parking for Take Out

My second visit to Karai Crab confirmed what I said in my first blog about the place.  The food is really good.  We went on a Sunday and there was no wait and plenty of room without a reservation.  A friend of mine dined here a few weeks ago and told me that you can sit outside.  The inside dining room is a bit small and has the feeling of an office building.  There is nothing on the walls and absolutely no atmosphere.  We requested to sit outside and the hostess quickly accommodated our request.  Outside was cool and comfortable.  The tables overlook the small lagoon and waterfalls that surround the Willows Restaurant.  Simply beautiful and relaxing.  Loved it outside.  We had an incredible little waitress that was so courteous and smiled constantly.  She was fantastic considering she was taking care of the tables inside and had to keep coming outside to take care of us.  We started our huge meal with the Etouffe ($8).  This is a slightly spicy dish of shrimp in a creamy sauce that is served over Dirty Rice with Red Beans.  Absolutely loved this dish and would come back just to have it again.  Next up was some Corn on the Cob ($3).  Four small pieces of some very sweat corn that was lightly spiced.  Thought $3 was a bit high for such a small order of corn but loved the taste.
We ordered the Garlic Bread ($2) because the waitress recommended it so we could soak up the sauce with the bread.  We all got so full on the other stuff and never touched the Garlic Bread.  Ended up taking it home along with a whole lot of leftovers.  We saw the Bacon and Jalapeno Corn Bread ($3) and just had to try some.  Served with a huge serving of honey butter on the top.  The bread had nice pieces of corn inside and was delicious.  The Chicken Wings ($12) were good but lacked spice.  I ended up soaking the wings in the sauce from the Crab Legs and they were fantastic.  The Karai Crab Combo Bowl ($25) was ordered with the Karai Special Sauce which is a combination of Cajun Spices and Garlic Butter.  We went with the "Spicy" heat level and it was HOT.  For me it was the perfect heat level.  My wife and daughter liked the flavor but thought it was a little to hot for them.  The Karai Combo includes shrimp, mussels, clams, crawfish, corn, sausage and potatoes.  All of the seafood is placed in a large bowl and tossed with your desired spices.  There seemed to be a lot of Mussels in our bowl which we are not huge fans of.  Loved everything else in the bowl.  Make sure you cut up the potatoes and let them sit in the sauce before you eat them.  This adds a ton of flavor to the spuds.  The King Crab ($32) was delicious.  Huge crab legs soaked in our chosen Karai Special Sauce with "Spicy" heat level.  Once you get the crab out of the shell, you can dip it into the sauce.  Pure heaven.  As we dug into each dish, the heat started to kick in.  We were all drinking water and wiping our hands and faces non stop with napkins.  My daughter requested a glass of milk which was quickly brought to our table by the Manager.  This was a great meal.  We had a load of leftovers which the waitress happily packaged into takeout containers for us.  Loved the spice level, food and service at Karai Crab.  You can read my first review by clicking on the link below.
http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2012/09/karai-crab-honolulu-hawaii.html

 KARAI CRAB

VALET PARKING LOT IS ACROSS THE STREET - $3 WITH VALIDATION

ENTRANCE IS TO THE RIGHT OF THE WILLOWS RESTAURANT

INTERIOR IS SMALL AND FEELS LIKE AN OFFICE - NO ATMOSPHERE

REQUEST TO SIT OUTSIDE AND YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL VIEW

WE HAD NICE TABLE OUTSIDE AND IT WAS COOL AND COMFORTABLE

OUTSIDE SEATING WITH VIEWS OF THE LAGOON AND WATERFALL

WE WERE THE ONLY PEOPLE SITTING OUTSIDE DURING OUR VISIT ON A SUNDAY

MENU IS SIMPLE - PICK YOUR SEAFOOD

CHOOSE A SEASONING AND SPICE LEVEL

TRY SOME OF THE GREAT SIDE DISHES.  LOVED THE ETOUFFEE!

WE WENT WITH THE SPICY (HABANERO HEAT).   IT WAS HOT! 

PUT ON YOUR KARAI CRAB BIB AND GET READY TO DIG IN

WEAPONS NEEDED TO ATTACK YOUR KING CRAB

SIDE ORDER OF CORN

CHICKEN WINGS

SIDE ORDER OF GARLIC BREAD

BACON AND JALAPENO CORN BREAD WITH HONEY BUTTER 

ETOUFFE - WORTH A VISIT JUST TO HAVE THIS DISH

ETOUFFE SERVED OVER DIRTY RICE WITH BEANS

KARAI CRAB COMBO WITH SHRIMP, MUSSELS, CRAWFISH, CLAMS, SAUSAGE, CORN AND POTATOES

ALAKAN KING CRAB LEGS WITH KARAI SPECIAL SEASONING AND "SPICY" SAUCE

CRAB LEGS WERE NICE SIZE AND SWEET

CRAWFISH AND SHRIMP FROM KARAI COMBO BOWL

WE ADDED THE CHICKEN WINGS TO THE SPICY CRAB SAUCE TO REALLY KICK UP THE FLAVOR

THE AFTERMATH IS BOWL AFTER BOWL OF SHELLS AND THINGS

MY MOUTH IS ON FIRE DAD.  PLEASE GET ME SOME MILK!