Guest star columnists
head to All StarOn "Take Your Daughter to Work"day last week, I hosted
two 6th graders from La Pietra -- Hawaii School for Girls. After spending the
morning watching a photo shoot, editing wire stories and learning how feature
pages are designed and sent to press, we headed to All Star Cafe, where the
real work began. Following is their review of the restaurant:By Calli Chinen
and Arnica PlaskettTHE All Star Cafe has a setting familiar to Planet Hollywood and is a good place to bring your children. It would be very educational. All over the dining area there are pictures and facts about famous athletes, some of their clothing and their quotes. The sports memorabilia is fun to look at, but can be distracting.
The restaurant is a bit noisy because there are several big TV screens showing different sports channels at once. At the same time, there is music playing. Every hour an announcer tells what is playing and what is coming up. All of that going on at the same time is too much.
The table we sat at was shaped like a baseball and the seats were shaped like a baseball glove. Very cute!
The food is great once it gets there. The service is very slow. But the food tasted delicious! We tried a variety of Western-style foods: "Power Lift" potato skins ($5.95) filled with crumbled bacon, cheese and sour cream; buffalo shrimp ($9.95) and buffalo wings ($5.95). Monica's topspin caesar ($7.95) was plain -- just romaine, dressing and croutons. Chippers chocolate cookie ($5.95) was a delicious dessert -- tasty, hot and cold all at once. It was an oven-hot chocolate-chip cookie with caramel coconut macadamia nut ice cream topped with chocolate and caramel sauce. We definitely recommend trying it.
Also, be sure to come with a big appetite because the All Star Cafe serves big portions.
We give the All Star Cafe an all-star review. It is a great place for the whole family. It's also great for sports lovers.
Nadine adds: I totally agree. All-Star Cafe also has several burgers and some adult fare in the form of an ahi steak sandwich ($10.95) or macadamia-crusted "Touchdown" tuna tenderloin ($15.95). "Bull Penne" ($11.50) is pasta in a tomato-basil cream sauce lightly tossed with smoked chicken and fresh broccoli. Wayne's cracked porkback ribs ($14.95) is served with a light, refreshing slaw of julienned zucchini and summer squash.
The one thing that bugs me about this place -- besides the volume on steroids -- is the parking. With validation you pay $3 plus tip for valet parking, which is unnecessary and time-consuming at midday. I felt gouged.
All Star Cafe: King Kalakaua Plaza, 2080 Kalakaua Ave.
Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; to midnight Friday and Saturday
Prices: About $20 to $30 for two without drinks
Call: 955-8326
New Kapahulu Chop Suey offers one of the best deals around on a plate of minute chicken and oyster sauce cake noodles. Between 10:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. daily, you can get this generous plate for $3.75, and it is enough to feed two. There's even choi sum tossed into the mix. The restaurant is at 730 Kapahulu Ave. Call 734-4953. Cheap eats!
See a listing of past restaurants reviewed in the
section online. Click the logo to go!
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:
-- excellent;
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to features@starbulletin.com
