Now Open: Aloha Donut Company

Attention donut fans - there is a new bakery in town, serving soft, chewy mochi donuts in a variety of flavors, and also cake donuts!  It's called Aloha Donut Company, and they are offering 20% off during their soft opening. Best of all, you can pre-order online the day before (in fact, that's the only way to get them during their soft opening), schedule your pick up time, and your donuts will be boxed up and ready for you when you arrive.  

Current flavors for their mochi donuts are: lilikoi, black sesame, taro, and chocolate. For cake donuts, they are offering blueberry. I'm sure they will offer more flavors in the future. 

To place an order, go to: alohadonut.revelup.online/. 

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ALOHA DONUT COMPANY
1742 South King Street

Instagram: @alohadonutco

 

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Beyond Pastry Studio - Now Open!

 

Congratulations to Cristine Nishioka on the opening of her brick-and-mortar studio in downtown Honolulu! Beyond Pastry Studio now has a permanent home.  If you work in downtown, you are lucky to be able to walk here.  But even if you don't work in downtown, you can easily find public parking in Alii Place at a reasonable rate of 75 cents per hour (the current municipal rate).

The pastries are made that morning, and the popular items sell out early. By 11:30 on a Friday afternoon, this is all they had left (see pics below). Your best bet is to call in the morning to put your desired items on hold, or go to the website and purchase the Morning Pastry Box, which is comprised of their best selling items (a great choice for first-timers!).

Here's what I ended up getting on my first visit:

Banana foster cake

Snickerdoodle

Mango Pineapple Spanish Roll

Lilikoi Yuzu biscuit

Which was my favorite? If I had to choose one, it would be the Snickerdoodle.  The banana foster cake comes in a close second - it was really moist!

Cristina plans to hold workshops in the Studio - I cannot wait for those to start up.  I'm also keeping my eye out for her Epicurean Cheesecakes to pop up on the menu. 

Follow @BeyondPastryStudio on Instagram for information and updates!

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BEYOND PASTRY STUDIO
1067 ALAKEA STREET
(808) 352-8303

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Baked by Beri Pop-Up at Ala Moana Center

Baked By Beri, a cupcake business operated by a 17 year old (!!), is currently a pop-up shop at Ala Moana Center for the month of July and August. 

My sweet tooth led me to her pop up shop on opening day, and good thing I went early, because she sold out later that day before closing time.  

The three flavors offered on opening day was vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. Of course, I had to try one of each.

Unfortunately they didn't quite stay intact during the ride home, but presentation didn't matter to me since these were just for me and the twins. 

The strawberry one was my favorite, since it came with a white chocolate covered strawberry on top. All of the cupcakes were very moist and topped with a generous amount of frosting.

Congratulation to this 17 year old for the opening of her first pop-up shop in a major shopping mall! That's quite an accomplishment for someone her age, and I can't wait to see where she takes this!

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BAKED BY BERI
ALA MOANA TARGET WING, LEVEL 2

Website: bakedbyberi.com

Instagram: @bakedbyberi

 

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Purvé Donuts: Now Open in Ku'ono Marketplace

Purvé Donuts, owned and operated by two bartenders who decided to switch from making mixed drinks to making donuts, just opened their second location in Ku‘ono Marketplace.  I have been a huge fan of Purvé ever since they opened for business in 2018, and I am so happy to see that they've expanded to a second location in Kahala. 

I visited their new location on opening day, and ordered my favorites, which are the Smurf Ball, Unicorn Butt Sneeze, the "Sanchez", and of course we had to try the Weekly D (flavor rotates weekly).

The Kahala location is the only location where you can get their Rise N Shine sandwiches, which are made with their signature donuts.

Visit their website at www.purvehawaii.com to place your order online (for either location!).

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Purvé Donuts
4210 Waialae Avenue (Ku'ono Marketplace)
(808) 762-8351

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Mochi Do Hawaii

Thank you to our sponsor for the complimentary donuts!

I love donuts, and I love mochi, so it's no surprise that I am a huge fan of mochi donuts! Unlike traditional yeast or cake donuts, mochi donuts are made with tapioca flour and in the shape of a teething ring. Then the donuts are glazed or frosted with different flavors and add-ons.

There are a handful of bakeries on Oahu making their own versions of mochi donuts. About 5 weeks ago, Mochi Do Hawaii opened in Waikiki, becoming the second shop in Waikiki to sell mochi donuts.

Recently, Mochi Do Hawaii's operation manager reached out to me on Instagram and invited me to sample their mochi donuts. I gave him a date and time and when I pulled up to their curbside pick up location, the donuts were waiting for me. I love curbside service!

Mochi Do Hawaii rotates their flavors every week.  They have select flavors available in 4-packs, and an "Xplorer Pack", which consists of a 6-pack of the week's flavors.  

For this particular week, the flavors are: cinnamon sprinkles, strawberry banana, chocolate crispies, mango, double espresso, and banana.

My sons and I sampled each of the 6 flavors - D really liked the double espresso and B liked the cinnamon sprinkles. I liked all 6 of them!  The flavors are very subtle and the donuts in general are not overly sweet.  The texture is very soft and chewy!

We were also given a 4-pack of Peanut Butter to try. I am a big fan of this one! Unfortunately, you cannot get the peanut butter donut in the Xplorer pack due to allergy concerns.  

What I really like about Mochi Do Hawaii is that you order your donuts online and pick them up curbside (just pull in to the Waikiki Monarch Hotel and look for the Mochi Do signs - you can't miss it).  So easy!

For more information or to place an order, visit their website. 

Follow @mochidohawaii on Instagram for updates and flavors of the week!

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Mochi Do Hawaii
444 Niu Street
Waikiki Monarch Hotel
info@mochidohawaii.com

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Pastries from Nagoya Ramen & Bakery

My boss came back from a meeting and presented me with a white box with "Nagoya Ramen & Bakery" stamped on it.  The first thing that came to mind was "a ramen-ya that sells pastries?"  Of course I had to google it, and I found Nagoya Ramen & Bakery's website.  

This locally-owned small business has three locations - Mililani, Kapolei, and Aiea (bakery only).  I found out from my boss that this box of goodies was purchased from their Mililani location. 

Each pastry comes individually wrapped (a-MUST during a pandemic!).  Unfortunately though, the pastries were not marked, leaving me to guess what each one was filled with or flavored with.  But, I could figure out some of them based on the exterior.

This one was a tough one to figure out without actually taking a bite, since there are no markings or hints on the exterior, but once I took a bite I discovered it was their char siu manapua. 

char siu

I like that they don't add red food coloring to their char siu, and the bread was very soft and sweet. 

custard

azuki bean

I really enjoyed all of the pastries and will definitely pay them a visit the next time I'm near one of their locations!

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Nagoya Ramen & Bakery
95-221 Kipapa Dr Ste C-15
Mililani, HI 96789
(808) 625-9999

 

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Beyond Pastry Studio's Basque Burnt Cheesecake

Christmas has come and gone, but the thoughts of the Basque Burnt Cheesecake that I bought from Beyond Pastry Studio for Christmas Eve are still vivid in my mind.

If you're like me and have no idea what a Basque Burnt Cheesecake actually is, don't worry! Here's a cheat sheet from Just One Cookbook - one of my favorite websites for recipes:

• Texture: Creamy in the middle, firmer cheesecake texture on the exterior. Unlike American cheesecake, it does not have a crust.
• Flavor: Simply put, it tastes like a caramelized cheesecake in one bite. It has a good balance of bitterness from the burnt exterior and sweetness from the creamy custardy interior.
• Difficulty: This is absolutely the easiest cheesecake I’ve ever made. I told Mr. JOC that a man who had never baked in his life can impress loved ones with this cheesecake!
• Baking: The cheesecake is finished baking in half the time compared to regular cheesecake! Bake at a higher temperature to achieve that rich, dark caramelized exterior surface, yet the center of the cheesecake is still jiggly

As you can tell right off the bat, the exterior looks nothing like the traditional New York Style Cheesecake that you see in most restaurants and bakeries. Because this type of cheesecake is baked at high heat, the top gets burnt, but the end result is a caramelized crust on top.

Beyond Pastry Studio's Basque Burnt Cheesecake was like no other, in that the outside-bottom layer consisted of purple sweet potato. Not only was it delicious, but it just made the slices of cheesecake that much more beautiful-looking! Just look at the marbling! 

 

Although the cheesecake was available ala carte, I opted for the "Full Experience", which meant my cheesecake was accompanied by Beyond Pastry Studio's signature macadamia nut butter cookies, candied walnuts, and sous-vide mixed berry compote.  

I don't know if I can go back to eating plain cheesecake ever again. I ate a slice of this cheesecake for days and could not get enough of it. 

While the Basque Burnt Cheesecake is no longer on the menu (it was a special offering for Christmas Eve), Beyond Pastry Studio is currently offering an Epicurean Cheesecake that looks and sounds amazing - light sponge cake, creamy lilikoi, and mascarpone cheese infused with vanilla from Laie Vanilla Company, wrapped in sponge cake crumbles.  Click here to place your order for pick up this Friday or Saturday only at Beyond Pastry Studio's Pop Up at Fishcake in Kaka'ako.

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Freshly Baked Portuguese Egg Tarts by Treats by TOFUBX

I'm a sucker for an egg tart so when I saw the delicious flakey beauties on a friend's Instagram page, I knew I had to put in my own order.  Mary, who sells the egg tarts and her other mouth watering creations, is @TOFUBX on Instagram.  

Pre-order days are Mondays for pick up on Fridays and Tuesdays for pick up on Saturdays.  Preorder times are from 3-9pm.  Pickup times are from 3-5pm in Waipahu.  She will also accommodate you if you can't make those times.   

I ordered 4 of the egg tarts at $2.50 each.  One for each family member.  This was strategic as I knew if I ordered more, I would eat all the extras.  We picked up on the way to the beach and enjoyed them there.  They were amazing!  The custard texture was perfect and not overly egg-y, if that's a thing.  I loved the flakey layers and layers of the crust.  The entire family enjoyed them and I will definitely order again.  Be on the lookout for her holiday flavors!

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The Kuki Man

If you're a fan of chewy cookies, you'll need to get your hands on a box of cookies from The Kuki Man.

About The Kuki Man: Former athlete turned baker!  He admits he has no business background and started this business because he enjoyed baking cookies.  He started posting pics of his cookies on Instagram and business has taken off since then.

Order forms (the link to the forms is on his Instagram page) open at 6 pm on Sundays, and you need to be on it, because he sells out every time.  His currently delivery schedule is Waipahu - Kapolei on Mondays, Kaimuki - Pearl City on Wednesdays, and Kaneohe - Hawaii Kai on Fridays.  He usually features two different flavors every week.  To see what's coming up, follow him on Instagram at @Kukimanofficial.

Pictured below are the Reese's and Kukis n Creme.  

These cookies are loaded with goodies inside!

Not only are these cookies delicious, they're delivered right to your door! So be sure to set your alarms for 6 pm on Sundays if you want to put your order in!

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Dosirak now available at Ono2Guys

After a brief closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ono2Guys is back in business, with a new offering called Dosirak. The best way I can describe it is that it is like a korean-style bento box.

Each box comes with rice, protein, and banchan.  Currently priced at $5.72, this is a really good deal for what you get!  Selections change daily.  Call or follow them on Instagram @ono2guys for updates.  

They also offer a limited selection of breads and other bakery items.  The Korean cheese cake (pictured in the first pic) is one of my favorite desserts here.  Similar to Japanese style cheese cake, it's very light in texture and not too sweet (opposite of classic cheesecake).

ONO2GUYS

45-773 Kamehameha Highway

Kaneohe, HI

(808) 762-3111

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