On the last night before son Dylan returned to school in LA, we did the traditional “where do you want to eat” dinner. After first heading to Tekkaippin Ramen, one of our favorite ramen shops on Kapahulu Avenue, we made a quick change in plans when we spied cars backed up to get into the shared rear parking lot with Jamba Juice and Starbucks—and a line going out the door. A line at Tekkaippin is not unusual, but there was packing to be done and the wait didn’t coincide with our plans. That’s when Dylan remembered, Hinone Mizunone, a Japanese restaurant on South King Street that took over an old Taco Bell restaurant.
Not too many minutes later, we zipped into the parking lot, through the front door, and were promptly seated in Hinone Mizunone’s spacious and very casual dining room. My husband asked, “Is this the same size as Taco Bell?” Hmmm, how to answer that one…
The windows on the way into the restaurant boasted pans topped with large wooden covers, while framed posters next to the windows proclaimed “Ono!! Kamadaki Gohan.” Turns out kamadaki gohan is a special traditional method for cooking rice – no rice cooker involved! – and when we tasted it, served in individual covered containers complete with single serving rice paddles, all we could say was oishii!!!
Dylan said the restaurant reminded him of a restaurant he had been to in Japan the year he went to school in Nagoya. His better-tuned Japanese taste buds also proclaimed the food pretty authentic. He ate everything on his teishoku and finished off some of mine, too. He really wanted the Japanese hamburger steak, which he said is very different from any other hamburger steak (also pronounced “hom-buh-guh”), but sadly the restaurant had run out for the evening. Guess that means we’re going back. Maybe even before Dylan returns in May.
Two entrée teishoku $14.95 proportioned right, but limited in selection. A la carte menu is more extensive.
Hinone Mizunone
1345 S. King St.
Honolulu, HI
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