Cafe Broder

Portland $$ *****
This may be my new favorite restaurant in Portland. Maybe. Broder is a Swedish cafe located on adorable Clinton, a street that I definitely need to explore more this year. Like at most good restaurants in Portland, you'll have to write your name on a list and wait for your name to be called. Once called, you'll be taken into a charming little room facing the kitchen (and all the cute cooks and waiters).
I ordered their specialty: Danish pancakes and a soft-boiled egg. Delicious! These are not normal pancakes. These are puffy balls, almost like malasadas without all that sugar and grease. They came with three sauces: maple syrup, jam, and lemon curd. I'm not usually a boiled egg person, but my soft-boiled egg was amazing. It came in a cute little dish and was smothered with spices. My other friends ordered scrambles, waffles, and the summer bord. Everyone was pleased. Although the sizes look small (think Japanese food - cute and organized), the food is quite filling. None of us were able to finish everything.
Broder is going to be another one of those restaurants at which I will become a regualar.
Cafe Broder (Clinton)
2508 SE Clinton St.
Portland, OR 97255
Mon-Sun 9am-3pm

Indish

Portland $$ *****
Great food, nice atmosphere, good service, complicated menu. Indish is a tapas restaurant, which just means that everything is separate and they get to overcharge you for something silly, like rice. Nevertheless, everything we ordered was delicious.
My friends and I shared a tandoori chicken breast, pork balchao, bombay potatoes, basmati rice, and crispy grilled chapati. The chapati was definitely my favorite dish. It is a thin crispy yet soft, puffy bread brushed with butter and herbs. Then we ordered the chocolate pudding and mango cheesecake. There was definitely alcohol in that chocolate pudding (so it was good), but the mango cheesecake was a little disappointing.
Overall, this is a wonderful restaurant. Great for a date, especially if you're able to snag one of those loveseat couches. I'll be back.
Indish (Pearl District)
305 NW 21st Avenue
Portland, OR 97209
Tue-Fri 11:30am-2:30pm, 5pm-late
Sat-Sun 5pm-late

Top of Waikiki

Honolulu $$$ ***
I'll be blunt: come for the view and not the food. Top of Waikiki is a revolving restaurant located in the heart of Kalakaua, offering spectacular views of Honolulu - different views throughout your meal! Unfortunately, the actual food and service are not as exciting as the location.
My friend and I came for desserts. We were seated at the top section, by the bar. Because of that, our waiter had to pass everything to us over the counter because he was stuck in the bar. Oh well. Maybe the food will make up for that? Nope. I ordered the Candy Bar, which really did taste like a candy bar (so why should I pay more than $2 for it?). However, it did come with ice cream and was nice presented on a sleek plate.
As I stated earlier, the food is mediocre, but the view itself is worthwhile. We stayed for exactly one full revolution, and left as soon as we saw the bank again. Perhaps dinner is better.
Top of Waikiki (Waikiki)
2270 Kalakaua Ave
Honolulu, HI 96815
Daily 5pm-9:30pm

Sunrise Restaurant

Honolulu $ ****
This is an adorable little Okinawan restaurant in Kapahulu. It's tiny and a little unorganized, but the food is great and the atmosphere is endearing.
I ordered the sushi and soba combination. The soba was so good! I'm not usually a soba fan, but when it's as hot and tasty as it was at Sunrise, I guess I am a fan after all. The sushi chef gave me my sushi dish by passing it through a few tables along the way, eventually ending up at my table. Luckily, this is the type of place that can pull it off. It contained about ten pieces of assorted sushi, all wonderful. So far, Sunrise is my favorite Okinawan restaurant.Sunrise Restaurant (Kapahulu)
525 Kapahulu Ave
Honolulu, HI 96815

Yakiniku Seoul

Honolulu $$ *****
Oh my goodness, I really should not be writing this post when I am stuck in Portland (and have no access to authentic Korean food). Yakiniku Seoul is AMAZING. We decided to finally try this place after numerous Koreans recommended it. A great place for a little celebration.
The process is interesting in that you choose from a wide selection of raw meats. Each meat dish comes with a variety of vegetables. Once everything is brought out to you, you cook it yourself. Apparently that is what "yakiniku" means. We ordered shrimp, steak, and kal bi. Delicious!
There's something just so wonderful about cooking your own food at a restaurant. The shrimp came with two sauces - both very good. I even liked the vegetables (and how often do I say that?). This is a nice change after the usual Korean take-out from Yummy's. I'm definitely coming back when I return to Hawaii.
Yakiniku Seoul (Moiliili)
1521 S King Street
Honolulu, HI 96826

Beachhouse at the Moana

Honolulu $$$$ *****
Another amazing restaurant at another amazing hotel. Walk straight into the Moana Surfrider (Hawaii's oldest hotel), into the relaxing, oceanfront restaurant. My friends and I came for dessert on a Monday night. Our host told us to sit anywhere, so we looked at our options. We could sit inside (but who wants that on such a beautiful night in Waikiki?) or outside on high chairs or on low chairs. We chose the cushy low chairs that we immediately sank into.
We ordered the tiramisu and cheecake bon bons(?). I'm glad we ordered only two for the three of us because the sizes were huge. The tiramisu was wonderful as usual. I'm not really a cheesecake person, so I didn't particularly care for the bon bons, but my friend loved them. The bon bons consisted of three chocolate, three shortbread, and three strawberries.

The laid-back atmosphere was a perfect way to end our night. The chef came around and asked how we were doing. Live music and great service - none of us wanted to leave. I'm definitely adding the Beachhouse to my list of favorite dessert places, and sometime I'll try the high tea.
Beachhouse at the Moana (Waikiki)
2365 Kalakaua Avenue
Honolulu, HI
Breakfast: Sun-Sat 6am-11am
High Tea: Sun-Sat 1pm-4pm
Dinner: Sun-Sat 5:30pm-10pm

Yotteko-ya

Honolulu $ *****
This is possibly the best ramen I've ever had. Possibly. Also called Kyoto Ramen, this bright neon red restaurant is located at McCully Shopping Center. Its menu claims that their ramen will make you look younger due to their unique collagen rich stock. Alright, whatever you say. Regardless of whether I wake up looking like a 9-year-old the next morning, their ramen is amazing.

They offer three different broths: shoyu, paitan and tonshio (clear and salt-based). As usual, I ordered the shoyu and was glad I did. The noodles were the perfect texture, and the char siu practically melts in your mouth.

You will never go back to that Top Ramen crap you buy from the store.
Yotteko-ya (McCully)
1960 Kapiolani Blvd
Honolulu, HI 96826
Lunch: Mon-Tue, Thu-Sun 11am-2pm
Dinner: Mon-Tue, Thu-Sat 5-11; Sun 5-9pm

Orchids

Honolulu $$$$ ****
Orchids is comparable to my favorite restaurant, Plumeria Beach House. Of course I'm biased (loyal, sentimental, etc.), so I still prefer Plumeria, but Orchids is pretty good.
Just like Plumeria Beach House, Orchids is located at Oahu's other 4-star hotel, Halekulani. It's an open-air, secluded beachfront restaurant facing Waikiki beach. Unlike Plumeria's unobstructed view of Kahala beach, the view at Orchids sadly has a little bush and railing that slightly block the beach, unless you are very tall (which I cannot speak for).
I ordered the corned beef hash and poached eggs. Both were perfect; it was the bland potatoes that were kind of a disappointment. I ordered rye bread, but the waiter gave me something else. When he finally told me they were out of rye bread, I told him I'll take sourdough instead. Well, guess what -- he had given me sourdough already. Hm. That was pure luck, man.
Service was good (Mariposa had better), and the atmosphere was relaxed -- exactly what you want when dining here on a lazy morning. All in all, if Plumeria Beach House suddenly shut down, I would probably start brunching at Orchids. However, since it doesn't look like that's happening any day soon, Plumeria remains my favorite restaurant in Hawaii.
Orchids at Halekulani (Waikiki)
2199 Kalia Rd
Honolulu, HI 96815
Breakfast: Mon-Sat 7:30am-11am
Lunch: Mon-Sat 11:30am-2pm
Dinner: daily 6pm-10pm
Brunch: Sunday buffet 9:30am-2:30pm

Wong Kwok Hometown Noodle House

Honolulu $ ****
I love eating at hole-in-the-walls; you know the food will be good and the prices will be even better. This particular one is located on the edge of Chinatown. It looked relatively clean and was crowded with other Asians (the ONLY people we trust with good taste in authentic Asian food), so we decided to try it.
Wong Kwok specializes in Hong Kong cuisine. I ordered the rice noodles with roast duck and char siu. Yum! You can't go wrong with roast duck and noodles. There was some sort of oyster sauce on it, I believe. My friend ordered a soup dish, which had the same noodles as my dish. For dessert we ordered yam jin dui. I always end a Chinese meal with jin dui, but this was the first time I had yam jin dui. It was purple and very tasty. I will definitely try it again!
The portions were huge (more leftovers than what I had eaten), and the prices were as good as I expected - less than $10!
Wong Kwok Hometown Noodle House (Chinatown)
2 N. Hotel St.
Honolulu, HI 96817
Mon-Sat 9am-8pm
Sun 9am-3pm

Ramen Nakamura

Honolulu $ ****
Think it's impossible to find cheap, authentic food in Waikiki? Well... maybe it is. But Ramen Nakamura is probably as cheap and authentic as you can get.
This is a simple ramen place located on Kalakaua Avenue. It's right next to Burberry, but don't let that intimidate you. The waitress is extremely welcoming (but maybe that's because we're Asians?), and our ramen was delicious. I had the typical shoyu ramen. It was huge, with pieces of char siu, bean sprouts, and other goodies. My friend also ordered some gyoza, and our waitress made some sauce for it right in front of us.
If you're from Hawaii, they give you a discounted kama'aina rate. Now I know where to eat in Waikiki!
Ramen Nakamura (Waikiki)
2141 Kalakaua Ave
Honolulu, HI 96815
Does not take credit cards