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

Brasserie Du Vin

Honolulu $$ *****
Oh man, this place is fantastic. It reminds me of St. Honoré in Portland. Brasserie Du Vin is an adorable little French place in the newly-"hip" section of Chinatown (art galleries, boutique hotels, exotic restaurants, the usual...).
Since we were there on a Saturday afternoon, it was almost completely empty. We could either eat in the very dimly-lit indoors or go in the back to the outdoor patio. We opted for the outoor patio because the umbrella-shaded tables and tiny fountain beckoned us. Besides, it seemed to be cooler outside, thanks to our Hawaiian tradewinds.
I had the crostini sandwich with warm gorgonzola dolce and prosciutto served on a thin-sliced baguette. It was delicious. Three slices of baguette topped with proscuitto slices and the gorgonzola cheese, surrounding a tiny green salad. I had forgotten how salty proscuitto is, but I liked it anyway. My meal was $10. My friends ordered the mushroom & brie risotto, flat iron steak sandwich, and turkey & roast beef gouda croissant sandwich. Everyone was delighted with their meal.
As usual, I had to check out the bathrooms to see if they were up to par, and I was not disappointed. Pale yellow walls, black and white tiled floors, co-ed lavatories. The service was pretty good. Can't wait to return!
Brasserie Du Vin (Chinatown)
1115 Bethel Street
Honolulu, HI
Mon-Sat 11:30-late