What do you look for in a restaurant? Terrific food?
Affordable prices? Excellent service? Great wine list? Or do you look for other
intangibles like dishes utilizing local products? Or energy and water
conservation? Or is it someplace that simply has a convenient location? As you
probably know by now, our go-to establishment is Vino Italian Tapas and Wine
Bar which fulfills most of the criteria. Great food with good pricing with most
of the wait staff knowing our tastes and preferences. The best wine list on the
island (and the most rascal Master Sommelier) and basically just a stone’s
throw from Kaneohe with loads of free parking.
Recently we found another establishment that also
fulfills most of the criteria that other diners also look for when selecting
restaurants that will be a part of their regular rotations. Though it’s a
little farther from K-Town where we reside, it probably is convenient for all
of you 968-residents: The Nook Neighborhood Bistro.
The Nook
The Nook started with a Foodstart fundraising campaign in
April 2014 with a goal of raising $12,000 to finish renovating the space in
Puck’s Alley formerly occupied by Kiss my Grits. Within 3 weeks, they
accomplished their fundraising goal then owners Anicea Campanale and Hailey
Berkey opened The Nook for brunch just 3 months later with a classics like
variations of Eggs Benedict to not-so-classics like Mochiko Chicken on Mochiko
Waffles.
Running the back of the house, Le Cordon Bleu trained
Anicea Campanale worked in kitchens in Napa Valley and Melbourne, Australia
prior to her arrival in the 50th where she had stints at Formaggio,
Taormina Sicilian Cuisine, 53 by the Sea and Alan Wong’s as well as running the
kitchen in Anchor Point Lodge in Alaska. Co-owner Hailey Berkey runs the front
of the house and this self-trained cook and gastronome brings over 10 years of
experience in the restaurant and service industry after obtaining degrees in
Anthropology and Chinese from the University of Hawaii. In the (still) male
dominated restaurant business, it is refreshing to see two young women
operating a successful restaurant on their own.
Obviously what first caught my eye was what I found on
the internet. And that’s usually just the description of the online menu
selections. You’re all aware of the limitations of the internet. You see an
online menu and base your reservations on that menu only to find that none of
the menu selections that initially piqued your interest are on the current menu
(which is worse in the Bay Area where some restaurants are no longer even open
for business). So I usually make sure I see several menu items that seem
worthwhile to sample along with an interesting cocktail list and wine list. At
least if the menu turns out to be boring, I can still enjoy a good libation or
glass of wine.
And The Nook’s menu had several interesting items like
Benedict with pork belly as well as an opened face BLT also with pork belly. Or
a Japanese twist on Chicken-n-Waffles using mochiko flour (Chef Campanale is
half Japanese). After a year and a half of simply serving breakfast and brunch,
The Nook finally started dinner service earlier this year with starters like
Fennel Tempura, Polenta Fries and
Fried Jidori chicken along with Pastelone (a Latin
American dish featuring plantains), pastas, and various proteins to round out
your evening meal. Almost every dish incorporates locally sourced produce or
proteins and to enhance your guilt free dining, one of The Nook’s missions is
to leave as small a carbon footprint on the planet by reducing waste. Compostable
takeout containers along with washable stainless steel chopsticks and even
straws makes The Nook as “green’ a restaurant as I’ve seen. Along with a very
interesting cocktail list and eclectic wine list, I knew a reservation was
definitely in order.
But of course no matter how great the service, the
philosophy, the cocktail and wine lists are, taste basically triumphs all and
is the main determinant whether you’ll return so here’s a sampling of both our
brunch and dinner experiences:
Yuzu Splash ($9)
yuzu sorbet, Mio sparkling sake
Grapefruit-n-Ginger ($9)
Pau Maui Vodka, Cock-n-Bull ginger beer, fresh grapefruit
juice, Pamplemosse liquor
Pineapple Pancakes ($11.50)
bruleed pineapple, house-made caramel sauce
Jidori Chicken Sausage ($4.50)
Mochiko Chicken and Waffles ($13.50)
mochi waffles, mochiko chicken, bacon maple syrup
BLT-fried pork belly ($14)
micro greens, local tomatoes, spicy avocado on baguette
For starters, the two morning cocktails we sampled were
perfect for a leisurely brunch. I would venture to state that sparkling sake
with three dollops of yuzu sorbet is as refreshing as it gets making a Mimosa
seem boring in comparison and the grapefruit and ginger balanced the sweet and
savory flavors of brunch. While the waffles weren’t as light and airy as the
traditional Belgian waffles, I don’t think they were meant to be the same
especially with mochiko flour. They were very hearty and filling and the
chicken was perfectly fried (especially the skin) while the BLT had a nice
balance of salty and rich pork belly balanced by the heat of the Sriracha
mayonnaise. We experienced those same creative touches at our evening meal at
The Nook:
Nookie Spritzer ($9)
Hendrick’s Gin, All for The Nookie, lime, cucumber, soda
Scofflaw ($11)
Old Forester, dry vermouth, Jack Rudy Grenadine, orange
bitters
Fennel Frites ($7)
tempura, curry aioli
Polenta Fries ($7)
with blue cheese and balsamic reduction or garlic
Sriracha aioli
Orange Green Tea Chicken ($10)
Fried Jidori chicken, Sexpot green tea, fried garlic,
chilies
Asian Pear Salad ($9)
spinach, Ewa onions, honey candied pecans, miso
vinaigrette
Glazed Duck Breast ($26)
All For The Nookie glaze, cannellini beans, braised
greens, pickled onions
Grilled Rib Eye ($34)
fresh wasabi crème fraîche, baked Yukon potato, pork belly
bits, onion compound butter
Spiced Espresso ($9)
RumChata, Koloa Rum, cacao, Chai Hard, espresso
My new favorite tempura is made with fennel! That piquant
licorice-anise flavor paired with a curry aioli had my palate singin’. We
sampled our crisp and fluffy polenta with the balsamic reduction but I bet that
the Sriracha aioli would have been just as good and I knew that the fried
Jidori chicken would be good. I didn’t expect much of the salad based on its
description but it was a large hearty salad that I kept going back to between
bites while the duck and rib eye were both perfectly cooked. The Mrs enjoyed
her starter cocktail so much that she ordered another cocktail (a first) as her
dessert. We both agreed that I needed to try and replicate the Spiced Espresso
as my next home mixology mission.
So if you’re still looking for that quaint neighborhood
hangout for breakfast or dinner, I suggest you look no further than central
Honolulu for an establishment that’s firing on all cylinders, good food, good
service, good cocktails and wines and also a good neighbor for the local
economy and this little orb where we all reside, The Nook Neighborhood Bistro.
Tuesday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Wednesday through Thursday, Sunday 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday and Saturday 6 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Puck’s Alley
1035 University Ave
Honolulu, HI 96822
942-2222
www.thenookhonolulu.com
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