The Weekly Eater
"LET me share a secret in Moiliili ..." the e-mail begins. "Or do I dare!" Surprising feast
awaits at Magoo’sPlease, dare! I love input from readers. Why do you fear me? What's the worst I could say? That you wouldn't know good food if I threw it in your face? Mere words. You like a restaurant, that's all that matters.
I also liked Magoo's Breakfast Steak Pasta. As the e-mailer said, "We got the shock of our eating days." I, too, was amazed by the huge portions and decent prices. "As Good As It Gets!!" the menu reads, and it's not out of vanity or the owner's distorted sense of reality.
On my first visit, I ordered Penne with Red Sauce, and ended up eating the leftovers the next day for lunch, dinner and lunch again the day after.
Then I went again. They didn't have the Lamb Chops ($15.95) or the Ribs (full rack, $18.95) that I wanted. I settled on a special of Steak and Ahi. Again my eyes bugged out to take in the view, and, although I had ordered garlic mashed potatoes, the staff didn't believe I had enough food and added half a baked potato. I felt so guilty. Could they profit this way? I wanted to give them back some food.
I expected the combo to cost about $18.95 but it was only $10.95, for what seemed to be a good 9 ounces of steak and a fabulous piece of fish cooked medium rare as requested.
It would be nice of them to be keeping costs down for the university kids, but those who may benefit most are the couples who have whined to me that they can't go anywhere because of their kids. It's casual enough here for families, and a couple with three young kids could get two plates and not go broke.
The menu is non-threatening. A one-pound top sirloin steak with teriyaki sauce or the house spice rub (heavy on the pepper), goes for $9.95. It's served with a large salad with your choice of ranch dressing or raspberry vinaigrette. The 24-ounce sirloin goes for $15.95.
Food -- MAGOO'S BREAKFAST STEAK PASTA
Atmosphere --1/2
Service --
Value --
Address: Puck's Alley, 1035 University Ave.
Order one of the pastas -- among them Clams Linguine ($9.95), heavy on the noodles, with a dozen clams; and Roasted Red Peppers with Chicken ($10.95), a kiawe-grilled half chicken on top of bow-tie pasta stirred with a creamy red pepper sauce -- or create your own.
From the same people that brought you Magoo's Pizza, meals can be delivered from 12th Avenue to Kakaako. Also following the Magoo's Pizza concept of add-on toppings, you can add different vegetables ($1 each) to a plate of penne, angel hair, linguine or bow-tie pasta, or add seafood or chicken at $1.50 to $2 per item. The base price for the dish is $5.95.
Stick to a few items. Once you start piling on shrimp, scallops, red peppers, mushrooms, roasted garlic, sun-dried tomato, etc., it starts to get pricey and there's not enough of any one ingredient to make a statement.
Not all is perfect. Shrimp Scampi ($7.95) was overcooked and lacked for presentation. A bowl of mushroom soup was a ringer for Campbell's. Yet I was surprised by a steamy bowl of tomato soup that seemed to be a fresh puree of tomatoes and vegetables stirred with cream.
Good, cheap, sometimes surprising. Nothin' wrong with that.
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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
