Posts Tagged ‘Misoyaki Butterfish’

Mamaya Japanese Foods – Mamma Mia!

March 1, 2013

Yeah, I know “Mamma Mia!” is an Italian phrase and this place I’m about to cover is not, but “Mamaya” is not exactly the easiest word to rhyme or come up with something clever for. It was either that or something to do with Papayas. 😛

We have a tradition in the Sugimoto household where we pack up our mat, drinks and selves, head to a favorite eatery to pick up lunch, and then head to Moanalua Gardens for a family picnic. One morning, the wife excitedly exclaimed that she wanted to pick up from this new place called Mamaya that recently (December, 2012) opened up in Pearl Kai Shopping Center. She heard about it from her mom and was particularly excited because it was the same bento company that serves up her favorites at Shirokiya’s Yataimura.

As a fan of new eateries and not having to drive very far, I was intrigued. So off we went, with drinks and selves in tow.

Mamaya Japanese Foods sign
Mamaya Japanese Foods sign

It’s located on the east end of the shopping center (to the left of Sprint, Kuru Kuru Sushi and Subway), where I believe BBQ Hut used to be.

When you first walk in, you’ll notice a delicatessen style lineup on the right.

Delicatessen style options at Mamaya
Delicatessen style options at Mamaya

Keeping things simple, everything from the “deli” – hot or cold – is Mix and Match style for $7.75 per pound. Here are the options we found that day.

Fried Ahi Belly with Teri Ginger Sauce, Mochiko Chicken, Yakisoba Noodle, Whitefish with Butter Caper Sauce
Fried Ahi Belly with Teri Ginger Sauce, Mochiko Chicken, Yakisoba Noodle, Whitefish with Butter Caper Sauce

Tofu Steak with Vegetable Sauce, Beef Broccoli, Chicken Katsu, Nishime
Tofu Steak with Vegetable Sauce, Beef Broccoli, Chicken Katsu, Nishime

Assorted Sushi, Pumpkin Tempura, Fried Pork Hash, Eggplant with Teriyaki Sauce, Potato Salad
Assorted Sushi, Pumpkin Tempura, Fried Pork Hash, Eggplant with Teriyaki Sauce, Potato Salad

Sweet Egg, Broccoli Salad, Water Crest with Sesame Seed, Kinpira Gobo, Namasu, Takuan, Aokappa, Kim Chee
Sweet Egg, Broccoli Salad, Water Crest with Sesame Seed, Kinpira Gobo, Namasu, Takuan, Aokappa, Kim Chee

Then you move along to the left and find something unique.

Poke Bowls!
Poke Bowls!

You can make a mini Poke Bowl for $5.75 or a regular sized Poke Bowl for $7.50 with your choice of rice (plain or multigrain). You can also go for the Mamaya Special Bowl for $8.25, where you can choose two kinds of Poke in addition to one side (Seaweed Salad or Won Bok Kim chee) with your rice. Looking at the per pound prices for the poke by itself ($14.50 for previously frozen ahi!), cost-wise, you’re better off going with the bowl.

Just past the register, we get to the drinks and the prepackaged stuff. The neat thing about the bentos is that if you are looking for a particular kind or combo and they don’t have it out, you can make a special request and they may be able to custom build your order (depending on supply) with a 10-20 minute waiting period. We were there just before lunch, and they were already decently wiped out. Luckily, we were able to find what we wanted. (Hint: the Misoyaki Butterfish and Mochiko Chicken are their popular items.) Here were some of the tasty looking options we found.

Mochiko Chicken Bento ($7.50)
Mochiko Chicken Bento ($7.50)

Hamachi Kama Combo Bento ($9.95)
Hamachi Kama Combo Bento ($9.95)

Salmon Dynamite Combo Bento ($8.50)
Salmon Dynamite Combo Bento ($8.50)

Grilled Salmon Combo Bento ($8.50)
Grilled Salmon Combo Bento ($8.50)

They even have donburis, musubis, handrolls, chichidango and mochi, amongst other interesting items!

Mochiko Chicken Curry Donburi ($5.75)
Mochiko Chicken Curry Donburi ($5.75)

Mochi with Peanut Butter ($2.50)
Mochi with Peanut Butter ($2.50)

Then we were off to Moanalua Gardens for our family picnic.

My Mochiko Chicken Bento at Moanalua Gardens
My Mochiko Chicken Bento at Moanalua Gardens

So if you’re a born-again westsidah like me, check out their new, closer location at Pearl Kai Shopping Center, and then come meet us at Moanalua Gardens. Just be sure to bring some fruits too. I dunno, maybe some papayas?

The fam
The fam

Mamaya
Pearl Kai Shopping Center
98-199 Kamehameha Hwy
Aiea, HI 96701 (Street View)
(808) 492-1863
Hours:
Mon-Sat 10am-7:30pm
Sun 10am-5pm

 

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What Chefs Eat Launch Party

April 7, 2010

A-ight, so Urban Mix Plate’s Melissa Chang’s got some mean typing skillz and beat me to the punch already. Her version of last night’s “What Chefs Eat Launch Party” is already live on her blog. Geez Louise.

And although she posted a pic of me in there that looks like I’m balding, I won’t hate, I’ll appreciate… I guess. Nah, she’s da woMAN! 😛

So last night, the “Party Like A Chef” event, put on by Share Your Table‘s Melanie Kosaka, and hosted by the good people at Roy’s Restaurant, was in full effect. Melanie, with the help of tech entrepreneur Eric Nakagawa (ICanHasCheezburger.com), developed an iPhone app based on an idea she and Master Sommelier Chuck Furuya thought up: create a place that focuses on where Hawaii’s chefs like to go and grind during their down times. You know, the “insider” mom and pop kine places. The event helped to formally introduce and launch the app to much of the state’s local media (traditional and social) and food industry’s titans.

The app, fittingly called “What Chefs Eat“, is currently the #1 “Hawaii” app on the iPhone app store and can be downloaded here.

What Chefs Eat iPhone App
What Chefs Eat iPhone App

According to Kosaka, an Android version of the app is in the works. Yeah, I had to ask. 😉

The quality of some of the pics are not the greatest as they were pulled from the pics from my live tweets (via my phone), but here’s a glimpse at some of the sights and ono grindz from last night.

World Wide Ed
Outside Roy’s Restaurant, Hawaii Kai

World Wide Ed
The Ahi Summer Roll

World Wide Ed
Misoyaki Butterfish (left) and Spicy Tuna Ahi Tomato and Salmon Puree rolls (right)

World Wide Ed
Hawaii Kai Style Crispy Crab Cake with Spicy Aioli Sauce

World Wide Ed
Chinatown Chicken Spring Roll with Maui Pineapple Sweet and Sour Chili Sauce

World Wide Ed
A Hank’s Haute Dog with Sweet Relish

On a side note, Kosaka is also busy working with Oceanic Time Warner Cable to develop a full-blown Share Your Table TV Channel. Scheduled to launch on June 1st, Share Your Table TV will literally share their table and air their massive library of culinary content to Oceanic’s customers via channel 320. For a sneak peek at Share Your Table TV, visit shareyourtable.tv or click on the screenshot below.

Share Your Table TV Sneak Preview
Share Your Table TV Sneak Preview

A big Mahalo to Melanie Kosaka, Eric Nakagawa, Roy Yamaguchi and the gang at Roy’s Restaurant, Starwood Hotels’ RumFire Bar Station, Hank’s Haute Dogs for the yummy dogs, and Oceanic Time Warner Cable. See below for some apropos linkage: