After my first visit, I knew that Dean's had the best Beef Teriyaki on the island and some very good Ahi Cakes but after my initial post, several diners told me that I had try their Pulehu Lamb (individual ribs broiled over a fire). It can be tricky getting a meal at Dean's. Though they advertise being open from Sunday through Friday from 11-6 (11-4 on Friday), they've been known to close early or sometimes not even open at all. Since we had a lot of errands on Monday, we stopped by just after the lunch rush... only to find a sign stating that they were closed that Monday. Not to be defeated, I tried again on Wednesday after getting my car serviced. BINGO! They're open! I immediately ordered the 8 bone Pulehu Lamb ($19.25) which comes with brown or white rice and soup, green salad or macaroni salad (I did brown rice and mac salad). They also offer a 6 bone serving for $17.25 but Doreen (Dean's wife) usually tries to convince you to shell out another $2 for the extra 2 bones.
The lamb was done medium (it probably came off the grill medium rare but my lunch sat for about 30 minutes before I dug in) but it was still VERY tender and delicious! Of course man doesn't live by lamb alone so I had to have a beverage with it... 2000 Cavallotto Riserva Barolo - one of my favorite barolo producers which had a nose of ripe sour cherry, licorice, new leather and tobacco and mouthfilling cherry, acid and smooth tannins and a very long finish. Wine! For lunch? Hey, I was still on vacation.
These are photos of the Beef Teriyaki - cut thicker than usual beef teriyaki but cooked medium rare and oh so tender with a sauce with the perfect balance of sweet, salty and umami.
These are the Ahi Cakes - tender patties with a sweet chili sauce mayo combo drizzled over the top. If they included 4 cakes the dish would be perfecto (since ahi is so easy to eat)!
Now I need to decide what to try next... tempted to go right back to the Beef Teriyaki but I know I should sample something different...
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