MOKU KITCHEN
660 ALA MOANA BLVD
HONOLULU, HI 96813
808-591-6658
HOURS: Monday thru Thursday 11:00 AM - 11:00 PM
Friday and Saturday 11:00 AM - 12:00 AM
Chef Peter Merriman of Monkeypod Kitchen fame is probably pretty merry with the opening of his new venture at SALT in Kakaako. This place has all the ingredients for success and should be a big hit on the Honolulu food scene. Borrowing from his Monkeypod Kitchen playbook Chef Merriman has taken the Farm to Table concept and called this location "Upcountry Downtown". The restaurant features a kiwi wood burning pizza oven, rotisserie roaster and high heat griddle for their "Roadside Burgers" plus Tacos, Duck, Poke, Fresh Fish and more. Couple this menu with around three dozen Craft Beers and indoor/outdoor seating in a new young-hip neighborhood and you have a new go to place in urban Honolulu. Like Monkeypod Kitchen, I already want to return to Moku. If I had one complaint about the restaurant it would be the prices. $19 for a small Fish Sandwich and $21 for Fish Tacos for lunch caught me as being quite expensive. We started with the Roasted Squash Ravioli ($12). This is the same dish that I absolutely love at Monkeypod Kitchen. Home made Ravioli filled with warm and creamy Roasted Butternut Squash. The Sage and Butter sauce amplifies the flavor to make this one of my favorite dishes. The Szechuan Stir Fry Green Beans ($9) were a huge surprise to me. I loved them and could have eaten an entire plate of these ginger, garlic and chili coated beans. The Mac Nuts in the dish didn't do anything for me. Sounds crazy but next time I eat here I am going to order Green Beans again. I went for the Fresh Island Fish Sandwich ($19) which was made with fresh caught Hawaiian Mahi Mahi. Served on a house made grilled bun with lettuce, tomato, pickles and Kimchee Slaw. Loved the flavors here but the sandwich was a bit small for the price. The pickles unexpectedly were delicious but the small side of Slaw was just not enough given the price. My friend enjoyed the Fish Tacos ($21). Three tacos in flour tortillas topped with large pieces of raw Jalapeño, Cilantro and Tomato Salsa. Looked delicious and my friend finished all three so they must have been good. The Watercress and Bleu Salad ($12) was a nice side salad with a whole lot of Watercress. The Roasted Brussels Sprouts ($8) looked amazing. While I did not try them, I have enjoyed these at Monkeypod and love them. Chef Merriman is the only Chef in town that can get me to eat Brussels Sprouts and Green Beans for dinner and love it. Really enjoyed my lunch here and cannot wait to return. I have a feeling that Moku (which means Island) will be very popular in Honolulu. One more thing is the service. Excellent. From the time I arrived until I got my parking validated ($1 with validation) the entire staff was smiling and friendly. The Bartender engaged me in conversation and explained the menu while I waited for my friends. The waitress also was friendly and made recommendations and described menu items when asked.
Click link below to view another post on Moku Kitchen;
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MOKU KITCHEN
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| MOKU KITCHEN AT SALT IN KAKAAKO |
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| MOKU HAS INDOOR AND OUTDOOR SEATING |
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| LONG BAR WITH CLEAN, HIP AND NATURAL FEEL |
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| SMALL PLATES AND LEAFY GREENS |
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| BURGERS, TACOS AND PIZZA |
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| SANDWICHES, FISH, SIDES AND DESSERTS |
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| ROASTED SQUASH RAVIOLI |
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| SZECHWAN GREEN BEANS |
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| FRESH FISH SANDWICH WITH MAHI MAHI |
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| FISH TACOS |
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| WATERCRESS AND BLEU SALAD |
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| BRUSSELS SPROUTS |
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