Tag Archives: food

King’s Pizza Cafe: You’re Budget and Taste Buds’ll say “Thank You, Thank You Very Much!”

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If you head down Kapahulu away from the beach, past President Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, and just a little farther beyond, you’ll find a tiny restaurant called King’s Pizza Cafe. Voted as the community’s best pizza, it serves them up by the slice and always freshly made. By Oahu’s food standards, it’s a bargain. In a place where two burgers, a side of fries and one drink is regularly $30, getting two large slices of pizza and two drinks for around $10 is a bargain. The slices we had were cut in half, so it was more like getting two slices of pizza rather than one giant slice.

The Queen’s Pizza was by far the best of the two varieties we tried. Stacked full of correctly crisped pepperoni, olives and other great pizza ingredients, it played the best in our mouths. The Chicken Ginger Pizza was a little less successful. It provided a clean ginger flavor, which is what it’s supposed to do, but I wasn’t as fond of it as I was my wife’s choice. Both pizzas featured a sauce that was the right amount of sweet and tangy, and the crust was edible on its own without reservation.

The atmosphere is eclectic 1950s through the 1980s. Tables are topped with 45s or LPs from the 1980s. DJ cats playing pizza on the turntable are on the throw pillowcases, and a variety of other pizza related items are available for sale.

King’s Pizza Café is a nice-priced oasis with great food in a desert of high-priced mediocrity. Come for the break from the hub bub and high prices along the beach and enjoy a slice of goodness. When you’re done,you can head up the street a little more and get to Leonard’s Bakery for dessert (and even getting six Malasadas, you’ll still be ahead of most dinner options that aren’t fast food in the area).

Interior shot of King's Pizza Cafe counter in Oahu

Leonard’s Bakery serves up warm, doughy goodness

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Leonard’s Bakery is so famous for its malasadas that I’ve seen it on several travel shows, including one in Russian. Malasadas are a Portuguese fried dough coated in sugar, or sugar and cinnamon, or li hing. They are made fresh-to-order, so they are always soft and warm. At just over a dollar for the original malasadas and a little more than a $1.50 for the stuffed malasadas, it makes sense for two people to get one of every flavor in a six-pack at a slightly reduced price. Eat three now and have three for breakfast the next morning. Or get two each of the original flavors, either way, it’s cheap eats for the island.

Unfortunately, the stuffed malasadas were hard to distinguish one from the other. Custard was clear, as was chocolate. There was a vaguely coconut one and one that tasted like custard until we actually had the custard variety.

Still, they were warm, gooey goodness and tasted great the second day when we threw them in the microwave for 30 seconds. (Careful not to burn your mouth.) Oh, and don’t forget the coffee. After four days on Oahu, the iced mocha macadamia is still one of the top coffees I’ve had. It’s just the right amount of sweet to allow the bitter of the coffee to shine.

If you’re worried about the calories or healthiness of the malasadas, just call them “mas saladas.” They’ll sound healthier, and you can enjoy them without the guilt.

Island Vintage Shave Ice Is Cold Comfort Food

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Pink Island Shave Ice
Pink Island Shave Ice

Shave ice – that’s right, without the ‘d’ – is a flavor sensation, at least the way it is prepared at Island Vintage Shave Ice. The syrup used for flavoring tastes like real strawberries – none of that sickly-sweet syrup we get stateside on a sno-cone.

Pink Island Menu Board

“The Pink Island” had pieces of mochi in the corners; the syrup flowed down the sides and collected in the bowl. The lychee popping boba were liquid refreshment at mini-size. But it was the soft organic ice cream that stole the show. Underneath the layers of shave ice was a beautiful tasting vanilla ice cream that gained strength from the flavor and texture of the shave ice and its syrup.

Shave ice is like cold comfort food with flavors you never tasted at home. Our serving was big enough to share. If it isn’t big enough for you, I would suggest getting different flavors for each person in the group to try.