Elena's March Special

Elena's is my go-to for Filipino food, and March's special has all my faves!  For $18.75, you'll get Pork Adobo Fried Rice Omelette, Pansit, Lechon Special, and Gisantes.  My favorite is the Gisantes, but I love all of it!

And of course the Elena's Pack ($65.99) is always a hit with the family.  It includes:

Pork Adobo

Sari Sari

Pork Adobo Fried Rice Omelette

8 Scoops of Rice

Gisantes

Pansit

Lechon Special

Elena's always brings back fond memories of when I used to dine there as a child with my grandparents.

I can always count on Elena's for delicious and nostalgic foods.

Elena's
94-866 Moloalo St
Waipahu, HI 96797
(808) 676-8005

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Attention French Fry Fans: Potato Corner Open in Waipahu

When I saw an Instagram reel featuring customizable flavored french fries in Hawaii, I was sold. I had no idea Potato Corner started out as a food cart in a Philippines night market in 1992 that has grown to a chain of franchises with over 1,000 locations across 11 countries! Hawaii's Potato Corner is located in Waipahu, next to Seafood City. 

It was very busy when we arrived, but the ordering process was efficient and the service was excellent. First, pick your size: Mega or Giga. Next, choose your style: original, tater tots, Jo Jo chips, loopy fries (extra), or sweet potato (extra). Lastly, pick your flavor: BBQ, Cheddar, Chili BBQ, Sour Cream and Onion, Cinnamon and Sugar, or Garlic and Parmesan.  If you choose the Giga size, you can choose 2 seasonings. Potato Corner also serves chicken tenders and wings as well as baked potatoes and chili cheese fries.   

We chose the Giga size of the loopy fries with sour cream and onion and it did not disappoint! It was a super tasty treat that held us over until dinner. Definitely worth checking out.

Potato Corner 
94-50 Farrington Hwy
Waipahu, HI 96797

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Leeward Drive-Inn: fried noodles!

 

On our way back to town from Koolina Lagoons, we stopped at Leeward Drive-Inn for lunch. I  have been craving their legendary fried noodles every since Gem wrote about it in April (click here to see what she had to say). 

Although Leeward Drive-Inn is known for their fried chicken, I added kal bi to our plate of fried noodles, because one of my sons loves kal bi. He loved both the kal bi meat and the noodles, allowing me to take just a few fork-full of noodles.

The other son ordered a plain hamburger and fries. I felt a moment of sticker shock when I paid $6 for the fries, but after seeing the how much fries was given, I saw why it was $6.  It was a big serving of fresh cut and fried to order french fries. My son, who can polish off a large fries at McDs, could not finish this bag of fries in one sitting.

He liked his plain hamburger too, but he said he wants to make it a double the next time we come here!

Open daily 5 am - 11 pm.

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LEEWARD DRIVE-INN
94-209 Pupukahi St
808-671-7323

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Deep Fried Manapua from Honolulu Kitchen

While doing some Christmas shopping at Waikele the other day, I was thinking about what to eat while on that side of the island. The deep fried manapuas from Honolulu Kitchen came to mind, and so I hopped in my car and within 10 minutes, I arrived at Honolulu Kitchen in Waipahu.

It took me a while to decide what to order, after all, there are over 30 different flavors of manapuas, both savory flavors and sweet. 

I decided to get the char siu, Teri chicken, and lilikoi cheesecake manapuas.  Thankfully they mark the manupas with a different shape/color for each flavor, and they write it down on the outside of the container so that you know which one is which.

I love these deep fried manapuas because of the crispy outside and soft/chewy interior.  And the  manapuas are generously filled with flavorful fillings.  

Manapuas can be either steamed or deep fried, and they are all made to order, therefore you should call your order in ahead of time if you don't want to wait at the restaurant for your order.  Here's a sample of their offerings and prices (subject to change at any time):

HONOLULU KITCHEN

94-861 Farrington Highway

(808) 671-5241

 

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Restaurant Kuni

One of my favorite restaurants in Waipahu, which also happens to be one of my favorite spots to get Chicken Katsu from, is Restaurant Kuni.

Namasu

Oyako Don

I ordered my "usual" - Chicken Katsu & Chicken Teri Teishoku (teishokus come with tsukemono, miso soup, morashi, and salad).

Miso Soup, Tsukemono, Salad, Morashi

Chicken Katsu

Chicken Teri

A keiki plate is offered for just $9.95, with choice of an entree, plus miso soup, fries, mac salad, and a drink.

Chicken Katsu

Tofu Steak

Both the food and service are consistently good, and are reasons why I keep going back to Restaurant Kuni.

Restaurant Kuni
94-210 Leokane St

Waipahu, HI 96797
(808) 671-7270

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Honolulu Kitchen

On our way back from an event in Kapolei, we stopped at Honolulu Kitchen to redeem a prize that I had won from them on Instagram - a dozen manapua!

Right at the entrance is the manapua menu. Today there were 24 flavors available - some savory, some sweet. Thank goodness there was a line of people ahead of me, so that I had some time to figure out what I wanted to get.

As I waited, owner "Unko" Steve came out with a tray of manapua and invited us all to try a sample. They all have little markings on them so that you can tell what's inside. The slightly pink-ish ones in the back with no markings is the classic charsiu manapua.

It wasn't long before my number was called, and I decided to get (6) char siu, (4) honey chicken, and (2) kalbi. 

All manapuas are available either steamed or deep fried. I almost ordered them steamed because that's the healthier option, but since they are known for their deep fried manapuas, I opted for deep fried, and I don't regret it one bit!

The deep fried manapuas are crispy on the outside, and surprisingly they hold their crispy pretty well after an hour or so at room temperature. Each manapuas as a nicely sized serving of filling. It is hard to eat just one manapua, because they're so tasty!

Since all manapuas are made-to-order, I ordered a plate of food while I was waiting - Pancit and two types of chicken. I could probably stretch this out to three meals - their portions are really generous.

They also have some ready-made items in the display case ...

Thank you Unko Steve for running so many contests on Instagram - you are so generous and your manapuas rock!

On a side note, Honolulu Kitchen can customize their fried manapuas with a message, company logo, your favorite sports team mascot, etc.  Call the kitchen for more information!  These are perfect for graduation parties, baby showers, weddings, or for no special reason at all - just because!  And there is no minimum limit on the number you need to order either!

HONOLULU KITCHEN

99-861 Farrington Highway

(808) 671-5241

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Yoloha Cafe

A close up of the soft serve taiyaki topped with cotton candy and a pocky stick!

Taiyaki soft serve?!  I'm there!  $5 gets you a yummy soft serve in a generous sized taiyaki - a fish shaped cake using pancake or waffle batter.  Yoloha Café uses waffle batter and you can get it filled with chocolate, vanilla, or swirl soft serve.  We really enjoyed the soft serve, but we wished there was more of it.  While the taiyaki was a little messy to eat it was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside.   

Located in the Waipahu Plantation Marketplace, Yoloha Café also serves espresso, coffee, boba drinks and even savory filled taiyaki like spam and egg!  The café has some seating inside and this mom was happy there was a restroom too.   

Open 7am to 7pm Monday thru Saturday and 9am to 5pm on Sundays.  Service was fast and friendly.  Check in on Yelp for $1 off!   

Love the décor of Yoloha!

My son is all smiles with his soft serve! 

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Tanioka's Express

A last-minute decision to picnic at a park resulted in our family going to the Patsy T. Mink Central Oahu Regional Park (CORP), simply because of the new Tanioka's Express located in the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center Building.

Mochiko Plate

Deluxe Bento II

SPAM Musubi

My kids ordered several SPAM Musubis, and my husband and I ordered the Mochiko Chicken Plate and Deluxe Bento II (teri beef, chicken, fish patty, fried noodles, cone sushi, musubi) to share amongst us all.

I loved the mochiko chicken, and the bento sure packs a lot of Tanioka faves!

Prices are reasonable, and Tanioka's Express also serves scones, andagi, slush, and Samurai soft serve.

Tanioka's Express is obviously a welcome addition to CORP.  With all the sports events going on, families can simply order food from Tanioka's Express for potlucks, and the eatery is very convenient for grab-and-go meals!


Tanioka's Express

94-801 Kamehameha Hwy
Waipahu, HI 96797

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