Happy Hour at Roy's Ko Olina

My friend and I were in Kapolei for an afternoon event that ended early, and as we were searching for a place to go for happy hour on the Yelp app, we came across Roy's Ko Olina, and saw that they had a check-in offer for a free chocolate souffle, so we booked it over to Ko Olina and made it just in time for last call (for the happy hour menu).  

Happy hour and pupus are offered daily from 2-5 pm on the outside lanai of the restaurant, overlooking the Ko Olina Golf Course. 

The weather could not have been more perfect for an afternoon of drinks, good food, and good company.

I was in the mood for something sweet to drink, so I ordered The Ultimate Raspberry Lemon Drop - it was the perfect thirst-quencher on this sunny Saturday afternoon.  

Also on the happy hour menu (which the restaurant calls the "Aloha Hourz Menu") are these Garlic Butter Seared Shrimp & Garlic Fries. It's an interesting combination (two pieces of shrimp and french fries?!) but they were both delicious.

We also ordered the Ko Olina Dragon Maki and Y Hawaii Kai Style Crispy Crab Cakes, even though they were not on special. 

I always order the crab cakes whenever I dine at a Roy's Restaurant. Their crab cakes are full of real crab meat and not a lot of fillers. 

We finished off our meal with Roy's Melting Hot Chocolate Souffle, which is one of the main reasons for us coming here. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of it, but there is a picture of one in Gem's previous review (click here).  Don't forget that it takes 30 minutes to prepare, therefore if you plan to order this for dessert, inform your server ahead of time.

Roy's Ko Olina

92-1220 Aliinui Drive

(808) 676-7697

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#HMBMomsIRL Treat Yourself Luncheon at Anna Miller's Restaurant

Anna Miller's Restaurant was extremely gracious in hosting our #HMBMomsIRL Treat Yourself Luncheon last month.

We were treated to a yummy meal, and of course, PIE!

Chicken Pot Pie

Fried Rice Loco Moco

Fried Rice Omelette

California Benedict

Kalbi Ribs

Chicken & Waffles

Ground Steak

Anna Miller's is known for their breakfasts, but they also serve a lot of local and comfort food faves, like pot pies and kalbi!  I love breakfast, so I had a special of the day, the Fried Rice Omelette.  It was enormous!

Blueberry Cheesecake Pie

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Pie

Strawberry Cheesecake Pie

The Strawberry Cheesecake Pie was amazing!  If you love cheesecake, get this pie!  And you must get it with ice cream!

Thank you to Anna Miller's Restaurant, Nadia and Nat, the moms who attended (and donated to the Hawaii Food Bank), and all of our amazing sponsors who donated prizes and favors!

Mahalo to:

@annamillershawaii⁣ (Anna Miller's Restaurant)

@bigislandcandies⁣ (Big Island Candies)

@bubbies⁣ (Bubbies)

@chocoleahawaii⁣ (Choco le`a)

@chocolateandvanilla808⁣ (Chocolate + Vanilla)

@edeninloveboutique⁣ (Eden in Love)

@fiveguys⁣ (Five Guys)

@flourplusbutter⁣ (Flour + Butter)

@gochigrill⁣ (Gochi Grill)

@hoalasalonandspa⁣ (Hoala Salon and Spa)

@illupino⁣ (Il Lupino Trattoria & Wine Bar)

@lavishkapolei⁣ (Lavish Nails Wax & Lash Bar)

@ono2guys⁣ (ONO2GUYS)

@pieology⁣ (Pieology Pizzeria)

@pipelinebakeshop⁣ (Pipeline Bakeshop & Creamery)

@scratch_wardhi⁣ (Scratch Kitchen & Meatery)

@starbeautyroomhi⁣ (Star Beauty Room)

@sugarlinabakeshop⁣ (Sugarlina Bakeshop)

@uncleclays⁣ (Uncle Clay's House of Pure Aloha)

@viagelatohawaii⁣ (Via Gelato)

Anna Miller's Restaurant

98-115 Kaonohi St

Aiea, HI 96701
(808) 487-2421

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Visit Auckland: Wild Bean Cafe

We had a long day ahead of us in New Zealand, so we decided to walk to Wild Bean Cafe, which was close to our hotel, for some quick eats.

Wild Bean Cafe is located inside the BP gas station convenience stores throughout New Zealand.  They have lots of food options, including grab-and-go, heat-and-eat, and even Krispy Kreme!

Cookies & Cream Donut

Sprinkle Donut

Chocolate Donut

Bacon & Egg Pie

Mince & Cheese Pie

The kids chose sweet eats, and I tried some savory pies. New Zealand is known for their savory pies, especially Mince & Cheese!  Wild Bean Cafe had several varieties of pies to choose from.

Wild Bean Cafe was a convenient stop to fuel up before our long day in New Zealand!

Wild Bean Cafe
420 Fenton St
Froude St
Whakarewarewa, Rotorua 3010, New Zealand

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The Lanai at Ala Moana Center Revisited

Last year I visited The Lanai at Ala Moana Center for the first time, and was disappointed that the one thing I wanted to try - Soul Fries from Seoul Mix 2.0, wasn't available.

I recently visited The Lanai again, and was happy that I finally got to try the Soul Fries.

The fries were topped with kim chee, smoked pork, cheese, and green onions.  So yummy!

Other eats we indulged in at The Lanai were:

SPAM Musubi from Musubi Cafe Iyasume

Menehune Sliders from Mahaloha Burger

The Alan Wong from Ike's Love & Sandwiches

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Visit Rotorua: BurgerFuel

We saw the BurgerFuel chain all throughout New Zealand, so we knew we just had to give it a try.  We picked up food at a location in Rotorua.

Kumara Fries

Kids Fries

Kids  Cheeseburger

Kids Natural Nuggets

Bastard

Bacon Backfryer

I tried the Backfryer - crispy fried chicken topped with brie, bacon, and a sweet plum sauce.  It was totally worth the mess and multiple napkins!  I loved the sweetness of the plum sauce combined with the salty bacon.  It was a really great sandwich!

The Bastard consisted of cheddar, bacon, avocado, mango, beets, and you could add a fried egg for an additional cost! 

We ordered Kumara Fries, since Kumara seemed to be everywhere in NZ.  I'm not a fan of sweet potatoes, but with the famous BurgerFuel Aioli, I ate almost the entire serving!

Kids Meals come with a drink and fries.  There are only two options - cheeseburger and natural nuggets.

If you're craving a great burger or chicken sandwich, look no further than BurgerFuel!

BurgerFuel
5 Tarawera Rd, Redwood Centre

Rotorua 3010, New Zealand
+64 7-348 4860

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Ube + Vanilla

If you're in Kaimuki and craving a cool, tasty treat, stop in Chocolate + Vanilla for some Ube + Vanilla soft serve!

I'm actually not a fan of ube, but the ube and vanilla swirl was so yummy!

You can get either flavor on its own, and also add toppings!

I want to try the Vanilla Root Beer swirl!  

Thank you Ube + Vanilla for the sweet treat!
 

Ube + Vanilla
Chocolate + Vanilla
1115 12th Ave

Honolulu, HI 96816
(808) 737-2462

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Visit Auckland: Windsor Reserve

My youngest son recently said "I have a weird question - why do we always visit playgrounds when we go on trips, but in Hawaii, we hardly go to any playgrounds?"

I laughed at that very accurate observation. 

On our trip to New Zealand, we visited many, many playgrounds, one of which was Windsor Reserve, which we stumbled upon by accident. 

It's a fun playground in a huge park, right next to the beach.

We saw lots of people picnicking and strolling the sand.

There are a number of benches and tables for parents to sit nearby and watch over the kiddos.

Windsor Reserve was a nice spot to take in some fresh air!

Windsor Reserve
2 Victoria Rd, Devonport

Auckland 0624, New Zealand
+64 9-301 0101

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