THE success of Big City Diner is so obvious many will be wondering, "Why didn't I think of that?" They think big at
the diner in KaimukiWe've come to believe that Kaimuki's "restaurant row" had everything -- Mexican, Vietnamese, Chinese, upscale, Italian -- but what it didn't really have was an all-American diner.
The word "diner" may be indigestible to those who associate the word with homogenous '50s-style creamed or canned fare, sugar-water drinks and Jell-O desserts, but the menu here has been adapted to suit a more sophisticated clientele.
Yes, there are burgers, steaks and ribs, but these basics are touched with a dash of Hawaii Regional Cuisine flair, and true to the diner's name, everything is BIG.
Big City president and general manager Lane Muraoka, who's had 20 years of experience at home and on the mainland, said "Kaimuki was the big city in its heydey in the '40s. I knew that everything we did had to be big. In Hawaii, that's value." He even drew criticism from others in the industry for offering such colossal desserts as a rich Double-Choco Bread Pudding ($5.95 a la mode) topped with Hershey's chocolate chips and a Jack Daniels caramel sauce.
"People said I wasn't going to make money," he said. Well, actually, he has yet to profit, but it's just a matter of time. Customers sure seem happy with his line of value-conscious thinking. Fresh fish, once sold at market prices of $11.95 to $14.95, is now being offered at a flat price of $11.95.
A simple appetizer of "Wings Over Kaimuki" ($5.50) is smeared with the house guava-BBQ sauce before going into the oven, popping out sweet and spicy. The same sauce is used on Big City's to-die-for entree of baby back ribs ($13.95 half slab, $16.95 big slab), which are the best I've tasted in Honolulu to date. Slow roasting allows the sauce to caramelize and mellow, so it ends up tasting far different from the wings. And you won't even get your hands dirty. The meat simply melts away from the bone. I just used a fork.
Also worth trying are the Calamari Tempura Strips ($5.95) breaded with panko and served with a spicy garlic wasabi aioli.
There may be no such thing as a "light" dish at this place. Even a salad of 'Nalo greens is topped with a whole fillet of Citrus-Grilled Salmon ($8.95), dressed with ponzu vinaigrette. There is a Veggie Stir-Fry ($7.50), but the staff has made it possible to add to this, too. They'll toss in steak, chicken, tofu or jumbo shrimp for $1.95 to $2.95 per ingredient.
The staff strives for a perfect medium when cooking up half-pound burgers. The Magic Mushroom Burger ($6.95) is a favorite, with mushrooms sauteed in garlic, marsala wine and butter.
The marquee-style sign outside the building, advertising satellite sports, might give the impression that this is guy territory. The families that fill the place on the weekends don't seem to notice. Closed captioning allows for the sound to be turned down during lunch and dinner hours, unless there's a big game going on.
"On slow days the sound tends to be up," Lane said, "so you can tell when we're not doing so good."
Once more people discover this place, the TV should be quiet.
Big City Diner: 3565 Waialae Ave.Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily
Prices: Less than $10 per person for lunch; about $20 to $30 for two for dinner; full bar
Call: 738-8855
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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
