YES, a picture is worth a thousand words, especially if it's of a table-top bamboo boat provisioned from bow to stern with filets of grilled New York steak, shrimp tempura, nigiri sushi, chicken katsu and lobster tails. Fine Japanese dining
comes to WaikeleAfter seeing Kunio Japanese Restaurant's photo of such a fantasy vessel, I was ready to sign up for a sail. Dubbed a "party boat," this entree was created for a minimum of four people, at $17.95 per person. It's a no-brainer choice for those times when you fall into indecision mode and don't care what you eat, as long as its delicious.
Once I got there, the whole menu looked yummy so I veered off course, taking the a la carte, rather than charted route.
Kunio's an ideal place for lunch after a morning of bargain hunting at Waikele or the swap meet, the place more and more people seem to be shopping these days.
I complain a lot about the dearth of quality Leeward restaurants, but Kunio is on a short list of good ones, and area residents know it. There are still Japan visitors milling around the shopping center, but the crowd at Kunio is predominantly local. In an amusing switch from the usual retail practice of helping the tourist before the kamaaina, when one Japan visitor tried to push past me to get a table, he was led to an outside bench to wait his turn.
I don't blame him for trying. The restaurant seats only about 25, and at about noon there's a rush for tables. I waited 20 minutes because I this is my job. Most people would have simply moved on to a nearby plate-lunch joint.
KUNIO's prices are the same for lunch and dinner, so the party boat seems like a good deal when you discover a combination of a single broiled lobster tail (it looks like a 1-pounder) and 8 ounces of broiled New York steak is already $24.95. The combination is served with the usual tsukemono, miso soup, rice, salad topped with thousand island dressing, and dessert of green tea, azuki or vanilla ice cream. Single-item teishoku meals range from $9.75 for broiled salmon, to $16.95 for sashimi. The shrimp tempura ($6.95 a la carte, $12.95 teishoku) achieves an ideal balance between large, sweet shrimp and a light layer of breading that manages to combine a slight puff with crispness.
More conservatively, you can order hot or cold noodles -- udon or soba -- from $6.25 to $9.45 for nabeyaki udon, a rich broth full of the thick, chewy noodles and vegetables.
Fried oysters ($6.95) on the a la carte menu were rather shriveled. It's better to get these at a Chinese restaurant. Other a la carte selections include fried scallops ($6.95) or fried soft-shell crab ($7.45 for two pieces).
Or you may simply opt for miso soup ($1.25 plain or with the flat green seaweed wakame; $2.95 with clams) and your favorite sushi. A la carte selections range from the usual maguro and hamachi, to the harder to get giant clam and abalone.
The 14-piece deluxe combo of maki and nigiri sushi ($14.95) includes pieces topped with silky fresh salmon, sweet amaebi and salty capsules of salmon roe.
In these questionable economic times, it's crazy to think about expansion, but Kunio could actually break down a wall, take over the next space, and hold on to the customers they now turn away.
Kunio Japanese Restaurant: Waikele Center
Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday and Monday; 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday
Prices: About $16 to $50 for two for lunch or dinner
Call: 680-9188
Nadine Kam's restaurant reviews run on Thursdays. Reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Bulletin. Star ratings are based on comparisons of similar restaurants:
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to features@starbulletin.com-- excellent;
