Ward Centers' Honolulu City Lights Trolley

Every year we try to take the kids to see the Honolulu City Lights.  Usually we'll go down to Honolulu Hale and check out all the lights and displays up close, but this year we decided to try out the Ward Centers' Honolulu City Lights Trolley.

Tickets are $6 per person, and children 3 and under are free, but must sit on a paying adult's lap inside the trolley's cabin.  Children 45" and shorter must also sit in the inside cabin.

We ended up buying our tickets a couple weeks in advance - 2 tickets for the inside cabin, and 2 tickets for the outside since DS1 is tall enough to sit on the outside (pre-sale tickets have ended, but standby tickets may be available for purchase each night).

We had tickets for the 7:50pm trolley, so we ended up going to Ward a little early to have dinner.  At about 7:15 we arrived at the tent where the trolley passengers wait.  Two trolleys at a time are boarded, and the ones we saw had different configurations (e.g. the middle seats were facing each other on one trolley, the middle seats were facing outward on another trolley). 

When one of the 7:30 trolleys boarded, it was fairly empty, so the attendants asked if we wanted to go on instead of wait another 20 minutes.  After we asked if we'd still be able to get a good view (we made sure we were first in line for the 7:50 trolley so we could get good seats), and the driver said yes, we hopped on the earlier trolley.  We had almost the entire middle cabin to ourselves (our friends were actually on that trolley!).

The trolley ride is about 30 minutes long, and we went through downtown, passed the lights at Honolulu Hale and Kakaako, and went back to Ward Warehouse.

Overall the trolley ride was a lot of fun.

Although it was a bit scary for me to see the kids leaning against the window since the seats were facing inward, the kids enjoyed seeing all the lights and yelling "Merry Christmas" to everyone they saw.

Our trolley driver was awesome - very spirited and lively, and it just so happened that other passengers on the trolley were just as spirited - they were singing all kinds of Christmas songs!

We really enjoyed the trolley - it was a fun way to see the Honolulu City Lights!

The Honolulu City Lights Trolley runs through December 30.

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Mele Kalikimaka!

Photo taken from the Honolulu City Lights Trolley.

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Waimalu Chop Suey

Our family recently attended a dinner party at Waimalu Chop Suey, where we were served the following:

Egg Blossom Soup

Chinese Chicken Salad

Honey Glazed Walnut Shrimp

Lobster with Black Bean Sauce

I'm not sure what this dish is called, but it's basically a noodle bowl full of beef, chicken, shrimp, and veggies.

Peking Duck with Buns

Orange Chicken

I'm unsure of this dish as well, but the server called it "sizzling beef."

Dessert

Unfortunately I didn't try a lot of the dishes simply because I usually only eat chicken, but the overall consensus of the 40+ people at the party was that the food was really good!

The service was prompt and very friendly, and dinner was enjoyable!

Waimalu Chop Suey:  98 Kamehameha Highway  Aiea, HI 96701; 488-1616

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Visit Los Angeles: Sweet Treats in Los Angeles

Los Angeles has an abundance of everything, including places selling sweet treats. Here are some of my favorite places to get a sugar high:

SPRINKLES CUPCAKES

9635 South Santa Monica Blvd.

Beverly Hills, CA

(310) 274-8765

Sprinkles claims to be the world's first cupcake bakery. Their cupcakes are amazingly moist and decadent. This past year they debuted the world's first cupcake ATM (pictured below). The ATM is open 24 hours a day and is stocked day and night with fresh cupcakes.

Snickerdoodle cupcake

BECKER'S BAKERY

1025 Manhattan Avenue

Manhattan Beach, CA

(310) 372-3214

In Manhattan Beach, I visited Becker's Bakery, which was a former contestant on the Food Network's Cupcake Wars. For a neighborhood bakery, these cupcakes were fantastic. They also sell fun-shaped cookies, colorful cakes, and I hear their sandwiches are good too.

BOB'S DONUTS

The Original Farmer's Market

6333 W. 3rd Street (@ Fairfax Ave)

Los Angeles, CA

(323) 933-8929

Once you've had a donut from Bob's, you won't ever want to go to Krispy Kreme again. They make all of the classic favorites, and even make kitty and dinosaur-shaped donuts for the kids.

BRUXIE

215 W. Birch Street (Brea Downtown)

(714) 255-1188

Bruxie features sweet and savory Belgian Waffle sandwiches.  Pictured below is the Nutella and Bananas.  How can I eat a plain Belgian Waffle again?

Randy's Donuts

805 West Manchester Blvd.

(310) 645-4707

Randy's is a landmark in Los Angeles.  If it's not my first stop in LA, it's my last, since it's located 5 minutes from LAX.  They are open 24 hours! 

Apple Fritter

Glazed Donut

Tea Station

 560 W Main St # A

Alhambra, CA 91801

(626) 289-7389

I'm hooked on boba (bubble tea), thus I had to get my fix at some point during my visit in LA.  My friends who live in LA recommended the Tea Station.  Definitely a thirst-quencher.

Semi Sweet Bakery

105 E 6th Street

Los Angeles, CA 90014

(213) 228-9975

A lot of Yelpers raved about their red velvet ding-a-ling in their reviews, but I'm not a big fan of their peanut butter ding-a-ling.  Heavenly!

Umamicatessen

852 South Broadway

Los Angeles, CA 90014

(213) 413-8626

The Tres Leches, Cajeta, Ceylon Cinnamon Cake Donut from Umamicatessen in Downtown LA is the best cake donut you'll ever eat.  It's moist, not to sweet, and just melts in your mouth. 

Diddy Riese

926 Broxton Avenue

Westwood, CA 90024

(310) 208-0448

Invent your own ice cream sandwich at Diddy Riese.  First, choose any combination of two cookies - there are ten different kinds, all baked fresh daily.  Then choose your ice cream (they use Dreyer's Premium Ice Cream).  All for $1.75.  

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Kapolei Electric Light Parade

Last weekend we took the kids to watch the Kapolei Electric Light Parade.

We arrived in Kapolei just after 5pm (the parade was scheduled to start at 6pm), and after finding parking, we found an open space on the sidewalk across from Walmart, near the beginning of the parade.

The parade started just after 6pm and lasted for about 30 minutes.

The kids were so excited to see lots of vehicles strewn with lights (trolleys, ambulances, etc.), as well as appearances by the Grinch, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Star Wars characters, and of course, Santa Claus (click on photos to enlarge)!

 

One thing that we were not prepared for was all of the candy that was given to us. 

The kids were given (and thrown) so much candy, that it was like Halloween all over again!

 

It was a fun parade and we can't wait for next year's!

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Dishcrawl Honolulu

If you love: 1) food 2) adventures 3) meeting new people 4) having fun and 5) supporting locally owned and operated restaurants, Dishcrawl is for you!

The concept, which was founded a couple of years ago by Tracy Lee, has finally been brought to Hawaii, and it's been creating quite a buzz since the first Crawl last month in downtown Honolulu.

What makes Dishcrawl attractive is this: first of all, you have no idea of where you're going or what you'll be eating when you sign up.  They give you a hint of the general area (e.g. Kakaako, Downtown Honolulu), but that's it.  Then, two days before the Dishcrawl, they'll let you know where the first stop is, because that's where the meeting point is.  From there on out, you put yourself in cruise control as you eat and socialize at four different restaurants over the span of a few hours.  The menu at each stop is already pre-set and arranged ahead of time, so you don't need to worry about what you're going to order and what's good on the menu.

Secondly, it allows you to explore a neighborhood by foot, and learn about locally owned and operated restaurants.  At each stop, a manager or chef will come out and give a little speech on the business, as well as what's being served.  You don't get this kind of experience as a regular customer.

The cost ranges from $39-45, and it includes everything except drinks.  The first thing that may come to mind is - is it worth it?  After experiencing the Dishcrawl first-hand, I'd say that it's worth to each participant depends on what they put into the experience.  For those who will judge its worthiness strictly on the food, then it's a stretch.  However, Dishcrawl is not just about food.  It's about uniting a fun group of people who enjoy eating and socializing with people that come from all parts of the island.  The social aspect of Dishcrawl is a critical component of its model, and the more social the group is, the more fun and satisfying the experience will be.

Dishcrawl Ambassador Papiloa Jourdan, who coordinates the Dishcrawls in Hawaii, gave me and Gem the opportunity to find out what Dishcrawl is all about, by inviting us to Dishcrawl's "Brunch Time Baby"event, which was held on December 7.  Here's how it all went down:

We were instructed to meet at 11:30 am at Fresh Cafe on Queen Street in Kakaako.  Here's the scene as we all waited for our food to come out.  

Fresh Cafe first came out with their haupia latte.  It was refreshing and sweet.  

Then they served us a plate with a slice of frittata and a mixed green salad.  

And much to everyone's surprise, the frittata was followed by a second dish - a gooey bar with sliced bananas.   After we got a jump start on our sugar rush, we headed out to our second stop, which was just around the corner.

Kanpai Bar and Grill.  This is where we put the lunch in "brunch", as Kanpai is more of a lunch/dinner/late night type of establishment.  To my delight, they served us a trio of some of their most popular menu items - ahi poke (they use all fresh ahi, never frozen), boneless fried chicken topped with furikake (winner!!!), and kim chee fried rice.  I scored a double serving of their ahi poke since Gem doesn't eat raw fish.  

By this point, I was actually getting pretty full.  But we were only at the halfway point, and we had two more stops to go.  After Kanpai Grill, we took a leisurely stroll from Ward Avenue to Keeaumoku Street, where stop #3 was located.

Yogur Story was our third stop.  Yes, it's quite a distance between Kanpai Grill and Yogur Story (in fact, it took us 40 minutes), but the sun was out, and the walk worked up an appetite so that we were all ready to dive into the goodies at Yogur Story.  At each place setting was a business card, and on the back was a coupon for a $5 Waffle after 5 pm.  Their waffles normally run about $9-10 dollars.  What a great way to persuade each Dish Crawler to come back again. 

And here's what Yogur Story served for us - a trio sampling of their Santa Monica eggs benedict, a bulgogi rib and a mixed green salad with blueberry vinegar dressing 

And after we thought we were done at stop #3, they brought us each a sample of their macadamia nut waffle.  Yum!

The fourth and final stop on today's Dish Crawl was Bambu Desserts and Drinks, located right across the street from Yogur Story.  I was excited to learn that this was one of our stops, since I had never been here before.  Each Dishcrawler got one of these (see above) - it definitely put me over the top.  

Here's a group shot of the Brunch Time Dish Crawlers.  It was a nice, diverse group of people.  I didn't get to meet everyone (there were 40 of us), but the ones that I did get to chat with were fun to socialize with.

Like what you saw?   In January, they have a Dishwalk "After Dark" Honolulu Edition ($45), a DishWALK ($40), and in February, a Pre-Valentine "Love at First Bite" Dishcrawl ($40).  Check out their website for more information on how to get in on all the action.

Dishcrawl Honolulu
Website: http://www.dishcrawl.com/oahu/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dishcrawlHNL?filter=1
Twitter: http://twitter.com/dishcrawlhnl

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Kaka`ako Kitchen

When I wake up in the morning and I don't feel like eating my usual fruit salad and yogurt, I head to Kaka'ako Kitchen for breakfast. Their breakfast menu is not big or comprehensive, but they do have two of my most favorite savory breakfast items on their menu - fried rice and corned beef hash.

Kaka'ako Kitchen
Ward Centre, Ground Floor
(808) 596-7488

Half Order Fried Rice ($4.99)

Homemade Corned Beef Hash (over easy eggs) with Brown Rice ($8.29)

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Pearlridge Express

For the past several years, we've been taking the boys to ride the Pearlridge Express.

Since DS1 probably won't be able to ride it next year due to the height requirements (must be under 48" tall), we wanted to make sure all the boys got to ride it together this year.

Tickets are $3 each, and it runs through December 31 (excluding Christmas Day).
 
The setup, props, and decorations look the same as previous years, but it's still magical and fun for the kids!

For more information on the Pearlridge Express, click here.

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