Chef Dutch O'neal and Desiree Souki O'neal of Sam Choy's in Tokyo. Like Roy's restaurant, Sam Choy's has found its niche market in Japan.
Photo by Susan Kreifels, Star-Bulletin

Hanauma Bay it's not, but a touch of Hawaii from the nearby Sam Choy's restaurant is like a breath of fresh trade winds. And that aloha connection is paying off for the Hawaii-based eatery.

"I've been to Hawaii seven times," said Hiroko Saito, sitting among several tables of restaurant customers who all had visited the islands. Some of them wore aloha shirts. "I like Sam Choy," Saito added.

The restaurant, located right off the strip of Tokyo Bay sand known as Sunset Beach, partly banked on its reputation among Japanese tourists who visit Hawaii, and it's paying off. Sam Choy's is packed with weekend crowds who visit the huge entertainment complex where the restaurant is located. The complex, atop a landfill island, opened this year, with Sam Choy's starting business in April.

The rotund Choy, known for his motto "Never trust a skinny chef," has been a hit in Japanese media, said chief chef Dutch O'neal. "Sam is sort of the ambassador of Hawaiian cuisine here," said O'neal, who worked as a chef in Hawaii before moving to Tokyo. "He's full of aloha and things people associate with Hawaii."

The restaurant features more tastes of Hawaii than those on the menu. Songs from the local group Hapa drift through the speakers, and tropical art from Mary Lovein dominates one wall. And Hawaii entertainer Peter Moon recently performed at Sunset Beach.

Sam Choy's reputation, along with big portions of Hawaiian dishes, have been part of the success, O'neal said. But having a Japanese partner also was critical, even down to daily shopping in Tokyo's famous Tsukiji fish market.

Choy's partner, Hitoshi Goto, who owns 30 Tokyo restaurants and also develops land on the Big Island, has his own fish market stall. "If you were an outsider, it would be really hard to get high-quality stuff," O'neal said.

Sam Choy's is not the only Hawaii-based restaurant cashing in on aloha here. Roy's, which first opened in Tokyo in 1992, is opening its third eatery in February.

Shinsuke Nagahata, manager of Roy's Aoyama Bar and Grill, estimated about half of the customers have been to Hawaii.

Roy's saw the tourist connection as a good way to promote franchises around the Pacific Rim. A restaurant opened in Guam three years ago, and in Hong Kong, the Philippine island of Cebu, and Pebble Beach, Calif., last year.

"We felt it was a sure thing," said Randy Caparosa, a Roy's manager based in Hawaii. "The original networking was based on tourism. You'd be surprised how many travel among these places."