Edwards Enterprise part 2
July 3rd, 2009 by Alan OkamiAhh, I'm enjoying the relaxation of Hilo right now. Unlike home, I actually have some time behind my computer. Forgot my charger for my mac and my battery died, but no worries. Visit Tropic Mac in the Waiakea Villas and see Marty Orlando. He is a Mac certified guy. This rasta Mac man will hook you up. Visit them at tropicmac.com or call him at 808-969-9221, Yah mon.
What is Ka Leo O Kalihi without food? How else do you think I picked up so much weight anyways? After the tour of the shop, me, Sanford and Orlando headed to a popular hole in the wall, the famous "Ethel's"
The place has all the charm of a good ole fashioned mom and pops establishment. How much more Kalihi can you get than that? There are menus, but most people just order their usuals and the specials that hang on paper signs above the entry to their kitchen.
Before the grub came, we were given a serving of Ethel's famous poke. It's pan seared ahi over shredded cabbage and bean sprouts. The fish is glazed with home made shoyu and garlic marinade that absolutely will broke yo mouth. You can see her bottles aging on the counter, waiting to be paired with the poke. Damn I love garlic. Yoboseyo.
Orlando and Sanford had the Japanese style hamburger steak. For you not familiar with that, it's usually a thick piece of hamburger, covered with grated daikon, and citrus shoyu sauce. A delicious, different twist to an American standard. That's correct, we didn't invent hambuger steak here, sorry.
I wanted to go with something that was a little different, so I debated between the hamachi kama and the stir fried chorizo. I went with the chorizo. It was soooo ono. Little spicy, but ono. Actually, really spicy. The hamachi kama would have been a great choice as well. Two hugangous pieces of fish. enough to take one whole piece home for later.
My closing shot - as you can see, the chorizo was indeed spicy. All in all, a great time visiting the guys at Edwards and equally good at the eats. Like the whole theme of my blog, Kalihi is a wonderful place with a lot of things to discover. Come on down and explore. Be careful, because you just may fall in love with the place.
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Ooooh, another tour of Mr Okami's Neighborhood. This one looks really good. I could go for an organized Kalihi food tour.
July 3rd, 2009 at 8:06 pm
Another place I have to try...Ethel's.
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:49 pm
Hello Alan!
I neva heard of Ethel's, The food looks really ono. I gotta try the poke.
July 4th, 2009 at 11:22 am
David in Oregon,
Good idea. I been pitching that to the Oahu Visitor's Bureau for a number of years now. Why don't you come on down if I get it going?
Ed,
Gotta try em. Everything sooo good. This was my third time there.
M,
The poke was da bomb. Little bit haole (pan seared,) little bit local (garlic shoyu marinade,) and little bit Japanese (cabbage, radish sprouts and bean sprouts) All good stuff
July 4th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
I am hungry!
July 4th, 2009 at 6:53 pm
I AM SOooooo HUNGRY!
July 4th, 2009 at 7:49 pm
I looked everywhere for this info...thanks! :>)
July 4th, 2009 at 8:06 pm
Eh Alan,
Dat sounds like a plan, a guided food tour of Mr. Okami's Neighborhood. Eh, I could even settle for just a guided (non-food) tour of Mr. Okami's Neighborhood
Speaking of O'ahu Visitors Bureau, have you heard of (or know anything about) the Kalihi Business Association (http://www.kbahawaii.org/Welcome.html)? I figure since this is a Kalihi blog, maybe you could pitch the ideas to them? Who knows, maybe others might be interested. All you (we) need is others to buy off on the idea.
Frankly, I can't understand why you seem to run into the problems you do with other businesses. If I was a business owner, and in your neighborhood, I'd gladly welcome the opportunity for more business exposure. Hawai'i is a tough place to do business on a normal basis. With a down economy, it's like surfing North Shore during the Winter. If you're lucky, you make it back to shore bruised but alive, barely alive, but alive.
If it was me, any exposure to my business (preferably restaurant) would be welcomed with 2 scoops rice and poke on da side. How's this one....a new restaurant in Kalihi called.......Okami's
One can dream, eh? Who knows, if I win the lottery, maybe the dream can become a reality.
Aloha from the Pac. NW, where the temp is in the mid 90's right now. I feel like I'm gonna melt. Neeeeeeeed shave ice..................
July 5th, 2009 at 9:04 am
Rosette,
Oh yes, be hungry and fulfill that need. Visit Ethel's and enjoy.
Beth M,
Search no more, you have found it. Head on down and enjoy some delicious food.
David in Oregon,
Guided tour anytime, just give me a heads up. I'm sure we can find some places to stuff our bellies full.
I have had limited interaction with KBA through the Sunset in Kalihi. They are a good organization, but we have a little different approaches to matters. I am totally guerilla, so I key in on my contacts and push hard whenever I see an opening. Budget shortfalls are the biggest obstacle right now. Everything here is based on contracts generated, so I need to find a creative way to introduce/implement my ideas. I am blessed to have awesome mentors that help e refine my approach.
Most businesses welcome my promotion, but some are skeptical about my motivations. I can understand. I really don't give a damn about getting compensated. I do give a hella damn about my community though. It will take time, and in these matters, I am patient. Imua Kalihi, Imua small biz!
July 5th, 2009 at 8:58 pm
Alan, have you talked to businesses about the internet? Exposure can be gained through the internet. I'm not just talking about individual businesses having their own website, what I'm speaking about, are the "social" sites, such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter.
Exposure to Kalihi businesses could easily be gained through those sites. If you think Twitter might be useless for a business, think again. For companies like KoAloha (that manufacture a product), they could use Twitter to post short messages about what their folks are working on, new models of products, as well as, where they might be headed to (shows, events). Restaurants could use Twitter to post daily specials. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to sit at your desk and see all the specials of all the businesses in the neigborhood before deciding where (and what) to go eat? Wouldn't it be nice to NOT have to call up and ask what the specials are? If they wanted, they could even update Twitter and post what food dishes have sold out for the day.
For the companies that have their own websites, how about asking that they have a "links" section and list links to other Kalihi businesses. I noticed KoAloha has a links section; however, not one link is to another Kalihi business. How about it boss, a subsection under KoAloha links of your fave, fellow Kalihi businesses?
Aloha from across the sea.
July 7th, 2009 at 8:38 am
Alan, Wow! Where is Ethel's? Your closing shot said it all. I used to read your column at work, but the pics were always blocked out. I'm off today, so am enjoying a good cup of coffee and reading your column, the pictures are causing me to drool...Mean action in Kalihi - Hootah!